Best UNIX Hosting–What to Expect
In your search for the best UNIX hosting services out there, you may have run into some pretty impressive features lists that have convinced you that the UNIX platform is the way to go. Indeed, there are many reasons why one would choose this platform in preference to any other, and the UNIX hosting services in the business offer what are simply the most reliable and powerful set of features you can get for the money. If you have ever wondered what you can get from the best UNIX hosting firms around, this article should tell you all you need to know.
Advantages
One of the most significant advantages of the UNIX packages around is reliability. Sites hosted on the Unix platform are some of the most stable you will find anywhere, and most of them will run for months on end without having to be restarted single time. Sure you can find some fairly reliable Windows-based hosting plans, but in general, the very best of Windows systems can’t hold a candle to the unix web hosting systems when it comes to reliability.
Many of the UNIX firms you will come across use either Linux or FreeBSD, which are the two most popular versions of UNIX. Since these operating systems are available for free, such companies are able to offer lower rates than other companies that use the Windows platform. Windows server software is actually quite pricey, so you may be able to cut your costs considerably by going with a web hosting provider that uses the this platform.
Variations
Furthermore, most variations of the this operating systems are open source, which means that 3rd party developers are allowed to modify the source code. This results in numerous bug fixes and improvements, making for a hosting environment that just keeps on getting better. In contrast, Windows server software is proprietary, which means that users will have to rely on Microsoft to fix bugs and make improvements.
What is perhaps the most significant difference between Windows and UNIX server operating systems is the software they run. This is where Windows has a slight edge over this systems, since they can run some pretty powerful software and scripting languages such as Microsoft Access, ASP and VBScript. UNIX systems do not support this software at all, so is you find them essential to your needs, even the best UNIX plan won’t work for you.
PHP and Perl Scripting
That being said, this does offer support for PHP and Perl scripting software, as well as MySQL or PostgreSQL databases. UNIX also supports MP3, Flash and Shockwave media formats, but Windows systems have the advantage of supporting those, as well as Windows media.
Users of Microsoft FrontPage will be glad to know that the site building program can be used to develop sites for both Windows and UNIX systems. This is because Microsoft has developed a FrontPage extension that can be used with UNIX systems. Along with the features, power and flexibility offered by the best hosting systems, this may just be enough reason to go for this platform.