We are often asked which hosting platform one should choose, Unix or Windows. Below, we've listed the major differences between the two that you should consider in making your final decision. In the process, we have also tried to dispel any common misconceptions regarding these platforms.

Important: One of the biggest misconceptions is that you have to run UNIX on your own computer in order for you to host your site on UNIX platform. That is not true. Which operating system you run on your computer is irrelevant in making your decision. This means that if you are running Windows XP or Mac on your computer, you can still choose UNIX. The same can be said for our Windows 2003 plans.

Narrowing down your search:

If you are engaging a web designer/programmer to develop your website, you can approach them on the language or platform used for your site. Alternatively, you may contact us at (65) 6720 1800 for a free consultation.

Ease of use:

Over the years, many resources have been poured 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. If you are an advanced user who prefers to work in shell environment, then UNIX is your choice. However, if you are using Active Server Pages (ASP), ASP.NET, ColdFusion or MS SQL, then you will need Windows hosting.


Reliability:

The industry consensus is that UNIX is more reliable. However, you will still need to make your decision based on the differences in features rather than on reliability.


Speed:

There is no difference in terms of speed between the two platforms.


Functionality:

This is where two platforms differ the most. There isn’t much that can be achieved in one platform that can’t be on the other one. The main difference is how the end is achieved. For example, if you need a database driven web site, you can choose either PHP/MySQL combination under UNIX or ASP/MS SQL combination under Windows. However, Microsoft FrontPage, one of the most popular web site editors out there, is supported on both UNIX and Windows.


Price:

Here UNIX holds a slight edge due to the fact that the most of the software are open-source (free in a way) and that it’s easier to maintain UNIX servers than Windows servers for the same level of reliability and performance. Unless you specifically plan to use Windows platform specific features, it probably makes sense to choose the UNIX platform.

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