Unix
vs. 
Windows
|
| 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.
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Supported
Features
|
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| 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 |
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|
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.
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Unix |
Windows |
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| Ease of use |  |
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| Speed | |
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| Reliability | |
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| Functionality | |
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| Price | |
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| Integration with Microsoft solutions | |
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Speed:
The Unix system tends to run a bit faster between
the two platforms.
Reliability:
The industry consensus is that Unix is more reliable. However, Cheetah Solutions has made every attempt to improve the reliability of the Windows platform. What this means is that you can make your decision based on the differences in features rather than on reliability.