Unix vs. Windows

Which hosting platform should you choose, Unix or Windows. Listed below are the major differences between the platforms that you should consider in making your  choice.

Important: One of the biggest misconceptions is that you must run Unix on your PC in order  to host your site on a Unix platform. That is not true. The operating system you use on your PC does not need  to match the server you host your site on. This means that if you are running Windows 98/ME/2000/XP or MAC OS on your PC, you can still choose Unix to host your website.

Features:

There is a difference in the availability of features offered on the platforms. For example, if you need a database driven web site, you can choose either PHP/MySQL under Unix or a PHP/MySQL, ASP/MS Access, ASP/MS SQL, ASP.net/MS Access, ASP.net/MS SQL combination under Windows. Most features are supported on both Unix and Windows. Please see below for the list of supported features.
 

Supported Features
Features	Unix	Windows
MS FrontPage 2003, 2002, 2000
Flash
Shockwave
cgi-script
Perl
PHP
MySQL
ASP (Active Server Pages)
pre-installed ASP components
Web Chat
MS Access
MS SQL
Visual Basic Scripts
ASP.net Scripts
The following features are supported in both Unix and Windows
- H-Sphere – advanced web based hosting control - SiteStudio - online web developer - osCommerce - PHP based shopping cart - phpBB - advanced forum - Mailing List - Webalizer - daily web stats - Web Based Email
Technical information for advanced users
	Unix	Windows
Web Server	Apache	IIS 5.0 (Internet Information Server)

Ease of use:

Over the years, resources have been invested into both Unix and Windows platforms to make hosting as easy as possible. Today, there are no differences in terms of ease of use between these platforms.


 

	Unix	Windows
	1   2   3   4   5	1   2   3   4   5
Ease of use
Speed
Reliability
Functionality
Price
Integration with Microsoft solutions

Speed:

The Unix system tends to run a bit faster between the two platforms.

Reliability: