What Is Linux Web Hosting?
Linux is a Unix-based operating system and the open source Linux code is freely available to everyone. You need only read that opening sentence to understand why the Linux operating system has become one of the most widely-used and cost effective hosting platforms:
- Unix-based - making it is a very reliable platform for operating web servers.
- Freely-available - so its cheap, and web hosts are able to charge less for hosting.
Linux may be used for a wide variety of purposes including networking, software development and as an end-user platform. Linux is often considered an excellent, low-cost alternative to other more expensive operating systems, such as Windows or other versions of Unix.
It's really no surprise then that Linux has gained a reputation for being an affordable and extremely stable web hosting platform. RedHat Linux is the traditional operating system that most low-cost web hosting providers are currently using. Check our Linux Web Hosting section for hosts that use Linux as their hosting platform.
Linux Or Unix? What's The difference?
Since Linux is based on Unix, you will never notice a difference between the two as a web hosting consumer. Both provide you with the same basic web hosting capabilities as each other. In fact, when asked what operating system they use on their servers, many providers will just answer "Unix" or "Linux/Unix" whether they use Redhat Linux or some type of Unix (such as FreeBSD).
For the end-user, whether you choose a Linux host or a Unix host, you simply won't notice any difference in the performance or hosting capabilities of your website.
Linux Web Hosting or Windows
We often get the question from visitors, "Which platform is better; Linux or Windows?"
Regardless of which one people might say is "better", the choice is ultimately one that customers have to make for themselves, and it depends upon the special features you need on your website:
Will you require any of these specific hosting features?
- Microsoft ASP (Active Server Pages)
- Microsoft Access Databases
- Coldfusion Scripting Capabilities
- Scripts written using Visual Basic (VB)
- Windows Media (Audio, Video, etc.)
If you do, then you need Windows.
If not, then you should probably go with a web hosting provider using Linux. The main reason for this is the price. Linux web hosting will typically cost much less than most Windows web hosting providers.
Since Linux is an open-source platform, this means that no software license fees have to be paid by the hosting provider. With the Windows, proprietary software license fees have to be paid. That is why Linux is typically cheaper for the end user than Windows hosting.
Related FAQs & Websites
- Linux Online - This is the home site for all-things Linux.
- Redhat Linux - The most popular version of Linux.
- SuSE Linux - Like Redhat, SuSE provides their own version of Linux.
For more information about web hosting, please take a look at our Web Hosting Articles. Also, if you have a question you'd like to add to our FAQ or some other contribution you'd like to make to this page, please Contact Us.
