This is one of the first decisions you need to make when looking for someone to host your website. The vast majority of hosting services being offered today are based either on Windows or Linux.
Features common to both platforms.
No matter which platform you select for hosting your site, there are some things that are common to all. All web servers support HTML files and JavaScript. If your site contains only static content such as HTML, then it could run on either a Linux or Windows hosting environment. With that said, if your site was developed using Frontpage extensions, you may be better off on a Windows platform as Microsoft has designed their product to work best with Windows. Therefore even if your site contains only static content, if you have designed it and need to publish it using FrontPage, then a Windows hosting environment is recommended.
What if I’m programming a dynamic web site?
If you are using active content such as a forum, shopping cart or blog, you’ll need to choose your hosting platform accordingly. There are a few types of server-side scripting languages including PHP, ASP and ASP.NET. Some languages such as PHP are available for both Linux and Windows systems, but are more commonly deployed on Linux. ASP and the newer ASP.NET are native to Windows. They provide, among other things, access to Visual Basic and the VB Scripting language. A decision to utilize ASP or ASP.NET may be a deciding factor for you in the choice of platform you look for in a hosting company.
What environment works best for databases?
Each environment supports databases. MySQL and PostgreSQL are common databases on Linux-based servers and also now available on Windows. Microsoft Access databases are typically available only on a Windows platform while Microsoft SQL is only available on Windows. Most sites use MySQL or PostgreSQL because they are less expensive then Microsoft SQL, which is a robust database system.
So, which one is the best?
Recent advances in operating systems have brought the feature sets of Windows and Linux-based hosting much closer to each other. Whereas previously there were significant advantages to one over the other for particular applications, these differences have diminished to the point where the choice of operating system is no longer as important. Use the chart above to make sure the system you choose works for your use.