Hosting Cheap

When selecting hosting for your website, you have the option of choosing a Linux based or a Windows based system. There are some differences between the two, including price, and this article will present you with the advantages of Linux webhosting over Windows.

Linux webhosting is probably the most popular type of hosting. Linux webhosts are preferred by a number of people especially those individuals and small to medium-sized companies under budget constraints because it is generally cheaper than a Windows based hosting service. This is so because Linux adheres to the open source software policy. Which means you can download and use Linux software for free. Windows based servers on the other hand need to be purchased by the hosting company. And any extra features you need from your Windows host requires you to pay additional fees.

Other advantages for using Linux based web servers are Linux/UNIX operating systems are very stable. A website housed on Linux will have very high uptime. Linux webhosting is also easy to use. You are allowed to use almost all types of file extensions (Scripts) in Linux webhosting. The following extensions can be used: .cgi, .html, .htm, .pl, .php, .shtml, .asp, .xml and others.

The features of Linux webhosting include: cheaper than Windows, expected to offer PHP and MySQL functions and may offer telnet accounts at little or no additional cost. The reason for Linux webhosting's affordability is the fact that Linux operating system and all Linux based languages and databases are free to install. Due to this, companies using Linux webhosting can afford to sell their services at a lower price. In Linux webhosting, Perl should be supported with a sendmail support for formmail scripts. SSI works well with .htaccess. Linux is not only the most popular choice for web designers it also has more secure features than Windows. Linux webhosting allows users more configuration options and advanced customizations.

Linux webhosting is easy to move between hosts. Linux web server can be hosted by a Windows web server easily. But the reverse is not true. Linux webhosting can easily come up with the scalability requirement without the need to make any site wide changes in design. This feature is apparent when your web site pages start to grow in numbers. A web site compatible with Linux/Unix based web server does not encounter problems with regards to increase in file size. The biggest drawback of Linux webhosting though is the fact that it is not fully compatible with Microsoft technologies.

The other popular webhosting is Windows based server. Compared to Linux, Windows is generally more expensive. Windows should support ASP and is able to support Cold Fusion, Access, SQL Server for an additional cost. Windows is more expensive because windows based servers are fairly expensive to purchase.

You have an option to choose between Linux webhosting and Windows webhosting. For those new to web site design and have little knowledge on hosting options and features, a Linux webhost would suit you best. And what's more, it comes at a lower price. But if you are using Microsoft Access databases for the web or any specialized application or VB for development of your web site then Windows based hosting service is necessary for you.

So ultimately the decision depends upon what you intend to do with your website. If you plan to use Microsoft based technologies such as Access, then you don't have a choice in the matter. But if you are able to pick from the two, Linux is probably your best bet.