It’s common to refer to the world wide web as an information superhighway, and if it’s to be regarded that way then reliable web hosting is your website is only going to be located along it and visible to passersby. But not all websites are the same, and neither is web hosting. The fundamental differences in websites is going to be in their infrastructure. The way they’ve been built, and as it relates to best web hosting compatibility it depends on the type of website you have. WordPress web hosting for WordPress websites is its own thing, but most of the time it comes down to Linux vs. Windows VPS.
Microsoft is the perennial giant in the web and digital development world, and as such websites have been build with architecture best suited for a Windows web OS for a long time now. That said, they’re not as ubiquitous as they once were and more and more often nowadays you’re going to have websites with frameworks that are better suited to Linux VPS hosting. Linux is in many ways the ‘great accommodator’ of web hosting operating systems, and there’s a few very specific reasons for that.
Especially in any of the instances where the space and exclusive resource accessibility of having a virtual private server is preferable. VPS web hosting may mean a considerable step up in price, but that added cost is easily justified when – for example – the growth of a business or increased demand for services means an ecommerce website now has too many visitors at times. A shared web hosting arrangement is then going to mean some of those would-be customers won’t be able to access the site if there is a web traffic spike.
VPS is the solution to that, and it’s likely that you’re already aware of that. But your site will most optimally seated along that highway if you’ve got either Linux or Windows hosting. And as you can likely assume it is only a Windows-based site that is going to best with Windows VPS hosting. So let’s take this blog entry and have a deeper look at it.
One of 3 Ways
There are 3 choices when choosing web hosting for your website, and you’ll be going with either a dedicated server, virtual private server, or shared hosting. Dedicated servers are always going to be the most secure, and if the nature of your business means your site is more at risk of breaches or attacks then this may be less of a choice for you and more of a necessity.
However, dedicated hosting is the furthest thing from economical. For starters you’ll need maintaining it yourself or paying someone to do that for you and in the second scenario there it can be a significant ongoing expense. If you’re not any sort of webmaster then you have may have no choice but to be taking on that expense.
At the other end of the spectrum is shared hosting. It is always going to be the most affordable option, but often comes up way short with having an entirely secure website. If you are starting with your first website and just looking to gain some experience in the field, shared hosting may be a good fit, but keep in mind that shared hosting is the most vulnerable hosting and sites are most frequently infiltrated when they are hosted with shared web hosting.
A virtual private server is superior in this regard, and here Linux vs. Windows VPS is a saw-off. The type of web hosting OS you have behind your website isn’t going to factor into security to any large extent, although the more universal compatibility for Linux VPS can make it so that distros used for the implementation of the OS are better sealed up for exclusive data retention when scaling up or down. But outside of that there isn’t much of an advantage one way or the other.
VPS hosting gives you most of the functionality of a dedicated server without any of the worries. Dedicated storage, RAM, and CPU resources are segmented in a virtualized server environment and this is the most integral part of why a VPS hosted site is able to accommodate traffic spikes and function optimally with more bandwidth-heavy site content.
The virtual servers provide more stable and scalable web hosting. They are more secure and use fewer resources, making them the best option for a mid-sized business or organization.
Upwards of Half
Windows and Linux are two of the most popular operating systems and between them over 60% of all websites on the internet are powered by one of the other web hosting OS. You have two options here, and as we’ve detailed it is Linux vs. Windows VPS. Both have their features and benefits, and there will be some sites that are better served with one more than the other. But the reality is that it is only Windows-based websites which are always most compatible with Windows VPS hosting, whereas with Linux there is any array of architecture-specific site types that be functioning at their best when the Linux web hosting OS is behind them.
Which one is better for you between these two will depend on the requirement and use case of the website, and we can start by trying to understanding them better. Linux VPS is when a server that has been virtually segmented runs on Linux and is a virtual part of dedicated storage, with RAM and CPU and the rest of resources on a dedicated server. When a dedicated server runs on Linux, the VPS is then referred to as Linux VPS and with different distributors like CentOS, Ubuntu, Debian, RHEL, etc.
Linux VPS hosting is often better because it provides superior performance levels and can be customized to your purposes. It is generally more adept at handling high-traffic websites and because Linux is an open-source OS and going to remain a more affordable option for bloggers and small organizations. Canadian web hosting providers are more inclined to go with Linux OS servers because of that lower licensing and implementation cost. Savings that are then passed on to customers in the form of more affordable web hosting in Canada.
Linux VPS hosting is going to be better for handling high traffic with pretty much any site that is not a Windows type website. It is always going to be better able to handle high traffic and is commonly the better choice for any medium or large-sized business or organization. Linux VPS can be a Proxy, Webserver, File server, Cloud server, Mail server, DNS server, Game Server, Penetration Testing, Firewall, and Transferring large files to a computer.
Mix of Security / Privacy
Proxy servers are a good point to focus on with the advantages of either type of VPS hosting and continuing our comparison of Linux vs. Windows VPS hosting. Employing a proxy server in VPS hosting offers added security and privacy benefits, and choosing the right operating system for your needs has much to do with achieving optimal performance and functionality. But again for most sites that are not Windows-based there are very clear advantages to a Linux web host OS when it comes to proxy servers and other functionalities related to the type of web hosting you have behind your website.
To list at least some of them out:
- Linux VPS is open-source to simplify your workflow and gives you access to programming languages like PHP
- Greater overall flexibility
- Easier working in terminal console with less of a requirement for extensive lines of code
- Better overall security as there is no graphical environment and fewer code lines, meaning fewer spaces or spots for hackers to be able to penetrate through, which makes Linux VPS hosting comparatively much more secure
Windows VPS Hosting For Windows-Based Sites
Windows VPS is when the dedicated server that has been segmented into smaller virtual servers is working on Windows OS. Going with a Windows VPS can be advisable for large businesses because of its reliability and flexibility. Windows server provides sub-features allowing the user to work in any field. It may also be better if you are already familiar with Windows OS and want to avoid switching to Linux OS.
One of the biggest benefits of using a Windows VPS is better comparative ease of use. Working with Linux does require more of the webmaster, but with Windows OS you don’t need a lot of tech knowledge to get done the bulk of what you’ll need to in managing your site. Scaling may be an exception that, but overall the point stands. It’s possible to use Windows VPS easily if you have a basic understanding of computers and computer networks.
The graphical user interface (GUI) is a big plus for Windows web hosting as it makes it quite easy to use. Different versions of Windows are available, but it is recommended to use more popular versions like Windows 2019. Different versions of Windows servers that are also fairly standard choices for workability include Windows NT 3.1 Advanced Server 1993, Windows NT 3.5 Server 1994, Windows NT Server 3.51 1995, Windows NT 4.0 1996, Windows Server 2000, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2 2005, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003 R2 2009, Windows Server 2012, and Windows Server 2016.
In addition, Windows VPS can also promote ideal functionality for email servers, multiplayer games, application testing, webserver, backup, Forex, VPN, file sharing, downloading large files, and to a lesser extent web surfing when the user is an Edge browser. That is countered somewhat by the fact that Chrome is the much popular one of those these days.
Windows VPS Hosting Features:
- Ease of use and general widespread familiarity with Windows OS
- Flexibility
- Ease of setup and configuration
- Full reliability
- High-speed upload / downloads
- Low-cost, even in comparison to lower ones with Linux VPS hosting
- Powerful memory capacity
- Graphical user interface (GUI) that is easy to use
Linux vs. Windows VPS – Defined Differences
The differences between Linux OS and Windows OS are extensive, and this results in many differences between them and including several fundamental differences. First and foremost is always going to be cost, and because Linux is an open-source OS it is always going to be less expensive for web hosting providers in Canada. The fact Windows is not an open-source OS means that it cannot be offered at the same price point, and that is something that is not going to change.
Linux VPS hosting will get the nod for community support too, and the most integral part of this aspect of it is with software distribution. Linux offers enterprise-level functionality and is mostly free or made available through distribution at a lower cost. Because of this hosting companies can create a managed VPS environment and provide the users with services at a minimized cost.
Windows is comparatively more costly due to the high licensing fees that Microsoft attaches to it. That is understandable, but those costs are passed along to the end user with web hosting in Canada.
Overall ease of use is next, although for some more capable webmasters their familiarity with everything Microsoft-based may counter this and make it so that a Windows web hosting OS is easier for them to work with. But that is not going to be the case 90+% of the time and likely increasingly less so as more people take on the responsibilities of managing their website through a web hosting control panel.
However it should be mentioned with Windows VPS hosting that the GUI there does make it easy for a less tech-savvy individual to manage the server and that is definitely something it has going for it. You’re not going to have that advantage with a Linux web hosting OS.
Super Flexible Too
If we were to compare these two based on flexibility alone then Linux would be running away with it. Linux also offers more choices for content management systems and website management tools and user-friendliness is enhanced because of it. Windows has limited CMS and website management tools but web server functionality is the same as Linux.
Next we’ll need to weight performance, and the truth is that both Windows and Linux meet high performance standards. They offer a fine-tuned hosting environment to maximize website performance and neither is decidedly better than the other when looking at them with performance metrics. But for security we see quite a tilt in our weighing of Linux vs. Windows VPS and going in favor of Linux.
The help of a good community of dedicated software engineers is always making Linux OS the more secure choice of the two. Whenever a threat is detected, it is resolved quickly due to Linux’s enterprise-level security. Alternately, Windows is the most frequently attacked web hosting OS and it’s a marked gap between the two in this regard. There are a team of professionals at Microsoft trying to keep up with the hackers, but the hackers always find security weaknesses in Windows. Windows is less secure than Linux, and that’s not debatable.
Next we can evaluate technical support between the two, and here the main factor is in the way that the cost of technical support is rolled into you paying more to have Windows web hosting. For Linux the community support is much better and it’s nice how you can often find technical support provided through forums and other communication avenues. A large network of developers is ready to solve any problem you face as soon as you tell them about it.
Your Choice of Windows VPS Or Linux VPS
To this point we’ve looked at every important aspect, and you’re likely seeing that any choice for Linux vs. Windows VPS will depend on the user. If the user has previous knowledge of using Windows and would prefer not to switch to Linux, a Windows VPS may work as well or even better for them. But that’s not going to be the case most of the time; it will be costlier, less secure, and you won’t have the same degree of flexibility with it.
For more affordable, more secure, and more flexible VPS with robust support you’re almost always going to be better served with a Linux VPS hosting plan here in Canada. Hopefully this has made your work easier and you’re better equipped to choose between two of the most widely used VPS hosting types. But who you are, what type of site you have, and what are your aims with may pull you in one direction more than the other. We’ve compared Windows VPS and Linux VPS using different metrics in this article and the hope was to make it easier for users to distinguish between them and choose their best option.
