Operating a server is no easy task. While many people perceive hosting as an easy way to share their website with the world using the Internet, there is a lot more that goes into actually managing your server than just uploading a bunch of files.
As a matter of fact, managing a server can be especially difficult for people that don’t have any prior experience when it comes to hosting due to the fact that 9 out of 10 administrators struggle with using the operating system. But what does the server operating system have to do with running your service?
The answer is simple – quite a substantial number of hosting providers offer Linux distributions as an operating system for their servers. This makes it incredibly difficult for people without Linux knowledge to actually operate their server, with servers requiring SSH access and instructions that are entered through a command line that doesn’t have an user interface.
Windows Servers are a great solution
A new and innovative solution that has slowly been surging through the market over the last decade is virtual private servers that utilize the Windows Server operating system. The OS has many advantages over traditional Linux distributions such as CentOS and Debian, with the greatest benefit being the intuitive user interface.
This allows users that are accustomed to working with Windows in general to easily operate their servers without having to worry about different commands.
Also, quite a large number of hosting providers offer administrators remote access through the RDP protocol. The protocol in itself was developed and is maintained by Microsoft making the integration process easier. Additionally, this allows users to access their server remotely from any machine just by using their established credentials.
Advantages of getting a VPS server
Virtual private servers also bring additional advantages. VPS servers are easily scalable, meaning that you can add or remove resources to accommodate traffic fluctuations on your website or application. This can be extremely useful for businesses or projects that get more visits during a certain time of the year such as travel agencies and given ecommerce stores that sell seasonal products. Having the option to improve your server without changing your hosting plan saves you both time and effort, making them a very suitable choice for a wide range of applications.
VPS servers also run on both shared and dedicated CPU cores, allowing you to opt for better performance or for a more cash-friendly option. With a dedicated CPU, you can have a virtual machine operating on full capacity at all times without needing to share power and resources with other VMs running on the same physical unit.
Hosting providers even offer further additional options such as DDoS protection and automatic backups that you can utilize to not only protect your server but also ease your workload. The list of VPS server benefits is quite substantial with another advantage being the fact that different providers accept alternative payment methods that users can also use to purchase a server. Such alternatives are often cheaper than traditional bank transfers especially when it comes to international transactions, allowing customers to save quite a bit in additional fees, considering the fact that such payments are made on a monthly basis.
Windows VPS or Linux-based servers?
Overall, both Windows and Linux have their pros and drawbacks. In general, the Windows Server OS is preferred by people who are not specialists in the world of hosting. However, more and more people are slowly beginning to use Windows Server due to the fact that it has a very easy to navigate interface and supports RDP access.
Linux-based servers can also run powerful applications and some would argue that they are also much easier to manage once you know how to do so. They also allow for greater flexibility and customizability.
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