Web Hosting - 3

Operating Systems

Also different types of operating system can be used in either type of web hosting. The main operating systems used in web hosting are (1) Linux (2) Unix (3) Microsoft Windows. Linux and Windows are the two most common and readily available operating systems, and there are many good reasons for using both. Both Windows and Linux offer FTP access to your files. (FTP is a way of transferring your files from your hard drive to your Web server.)

• Linux. Linux is one of the more popular operating systems on the Web, mostly because it is so cheap to install and get up and running.
• Windows. Windows is another popular operating system for Web hosting providers because it has a lot of support.
• UNIX. UNIX is very similar to Linux, but not as common on Web hosting services, usually because it is more expensive and the hardware is more specific.
• Macintosh. Macintosh hosting servers are very uncommon. In fact, if you want to host your site on a Macintosh server, you'll probably have to look into hosting it yourself.

Server-Side Scripts

If you need to program forms or dynamic objects for your website, you should make sure that your hosting service provides a way to process them. You need a server side script to do that. There are different Server Side Scripts that can be used on the website. You should make sure that your web hosting company offer the scripting language you want. The different scrips used on the website are CGI, Pearl, Php, ASP, ASP.Net and ColdFusion. Many hosting systems offer PHP, ASP, ASP.Net and ColdFusion. These server side scripting options give you a lot of flexibility.

• CGI and Perl access are often found on both Windows and Linux servers, but it is more typical on Linux.
• PHP is more often found on Linux systems
• ASP and ASP.Net is more often found on Windows.
• ColdFusion can be found on both.