Linux Php Vs Windows Asp Web Hosting Comparison

One of the first decisions to make while choosing web hosting is – what platform to opt for? Windows or Linux? PHP or ASP?

First of all, note that sites with static pages such as blogs can run on either Windows or Linux hosting platforms. These only use HTML and CSS, which are supported equally well by both operating systems.

When you require dynamic content on your website, such as eCommerce facilities, forums or other forms of scripting, then you need to pay attention to your hosting platform.

Traditionally, Linux servers are used for scripts based on PHP or Perl. These scripts include WordPress, Drupal, Joomla and many other blogging or content management systems. Windows servers, on the contrary, are used with scripts written in ASP, ASP(dot)Net or Access. MySQL works equally well with both Windows and Linux. Today, cross-platform scripting – that is, scripting with PHP/Perl on Windows or with ASP/ASP(dot)NET/Access on Linux – is permitted by some ISPs. However, cross-platform scripting will never give the smooth performance that a program does when run on its native platform – it is a bit like using emulators to run programs that are not native to the OS. There is one exception here, though – PHP runs equally well on Windows and Linux, so Linux-based hosting is no longer essential to run PHP-based scripts and applications.

Most computer geeks will advise you to go for Linux hosting, as Unix – on which Linux is based – is a far more secure and stable platform than Windows’ alternative. While this is demonstrably true – think of the millions of viruses for Windows systems, and the rare bug that crops up in Linux – it is also true that efficient server administration can render a Windows system as secure as a Linux one.

Speedwise, there is no clear winner between Windows and Linux. Some things work faster on Windows, while others work faster on Linux. So to choose between operating systems, cost and security would have to be the deciding factors. Linux here is substantially cheaper, as it is an open-source system, and most of its applications are also under GNU public licenses – in other words, free. Windows hosting comes with the added cost of the OS, and certain applications that the hosting company has to continually pay for.

As for the ASP-PHP comparison, ASP is almost universally the winner where speed is concerned. However, the learning curve in ASP or ASP(dot)NET is much steeper than in PHP – something that can backfire for advanced users looking for greater control and freedom. PHP, however, is still one of the most popular scripts around thanks to its versatility and the solid, useful applications being written using it.

In the end, choosing between Windows ASP and Linux PHP as hosting platforms becomes a matter of individual preference and contingent need. Depending on your budget, security concerns and familiarity with the computer language, you can pick either of them and successfully run a dynamic website for a long time to come.

Dedicated Hosting vs. Cloud Hosting

There are many web hosting options and two of these are dedicated hosting and cloud hosting. There are advantages and disadvantages to both and these are outlined below.

Dedicated hosting is where a web server is entirely dedicated to your website and, unlike shared hosting, isnt shared with other websites. With your website being the only one on a server it prevents the problem of other sites having an impact on yours.

With cloud hosting you can make use of several servers as required. These are available as and when you need them. Rather than having a physical server (or more than one) that you are paying for all of the time, you use the resources you require at any particular time and pay accordingly. This means that should you suddenly require more resource you can use it, but without paying for it when you are not using it. Essentially, you pay for what you are using at any particular time.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Dedicated Hosting

The main advantage of dedicated hosting is that you are not sharing servers with other websites. This means the entire resource of the server is dedicated to your site. For example, bandwidth for the server is not shared amongst other websites. The lack of other sites makes dedicated hosting very reliable. Unlike shared hosting, problems with other sites cannot impact you. Dedicated hosting can be pricey, though, compared with other forms of hosting as it often means website owners are paying for resources they dont require. Dedicated hosting is a good option for websites where traffic is consistently high. The bandwidth of dedicated hosting may be required and if traffic is steady it is easier to decide how much resource is needed.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Cloud Hosting

Paying for what you use is an obvious benefit. Cloud hosting means having extra resource available to you but not having to pay for it all of the time. Cloud hosting is beneficial for growing businesses. It allows them to easily adapt their hosting as they require more resource. Websites with fluctuating traffic can also benefit. It means having the option to use extra server space when traffic is high but without having to pay for it when traffic is low. Seasonal businesses, for example those who are particularly busy at Christmas or during the summer, are amongst those who should consider cloud hosting. With several servers being used cloud hosting can increase reliability. The overall load is balanced across different servers, meaning less reliability on one server. There are obvious advantages to cloud hosting but also some downsides. Unlike with dedicated hosting, you dont have access to a server. This means being dependant on third-party providers and having less control. Though improving, security can also be an issue, with websites being more vulnerable to hackers.

Dedicated Hosting or Cloud Hosting?

Different options are suitable to different websites. Dedicated hosting might be preferable for established websites or those which are highly sensitive, while cloud hosting can be the better option for sites where traffic fluctuates or is expected to increase over time.

Andrew Marshall

What You Need to Know About Web Hosting Resellers

Everyday, millions of new websites sprung out in the information superhighway. You may even be one of those hunting for web hosting companies now. But in this age of retail and customized service, most clients prefer to purchase from a web hosting reseller. What is a web hosting reseller? And why would you want to consider purchasing from these companies when you can go directly to a web host?

Before defining web hosting resellers though, it is good to know the basics of web hosting. The internet is pretty much like the real estate industry. Websites are like houses. In order for a website to be accessed live on the internet, it requires a host, a dedicated cyber location where your website files, database and important components are stored. Just like a house that needs a lot to build on. Web hosting companies sell these “lots” or spaces to website builders.

Due to enormity of web space demands, web hosting companies can no longer attend to the vast number of hosting buyers. This is where the “real estate brokers” of hosting space come in the web hosting resellers. What they do is typical of an agent or a middleman. They sell and handle accounts of clients on behalf of the web hosting company. However, there is pretty much a big difference, especially when you talk about customer satisfaction and support.

There are three reasons why you should go for a web host reseller. First, the hosting is cheaper. Second, there are flexible package rates. There are rates that are suitable for every hosting need, based on web space requirements. Third, customer support is more personal. Since resellers do not tackle technical aspects, they have more time and resources to attend to your needs.

The web hosting industry is huge and provides unlimited earning opportunities to hosting middlemen. This means there are a lot of resellers to choose from. But do not get lost. Your best choice is to go to a local web host reseller, those companies that can understand the dialect of your web site needs and the language of your budget.

How Corporate Web Hosting Is Beneficial For Business

Corporate web hosting provide efficient shared web services for companies or individuals who require advanced features together with a lot of resources to run the high traffic website. These online services easily pull up the business website of the companies over the web and helps in exchanging the resources. For the corporate hosting, the companies give a detailed look to the software required for the maintenance of the site. Moreover an eye upon the security and updates must also be needed. All this exercise is done to make sure that the corporate content kept safe, from hackers or viruses or unwanted spam. The company puts the business website on the web server that ultimately places it on the internet. An individual website address or web-url is given to the corporations so that they get the complete web attendance. These web hosting services are provided by major companies around the globe and charge the corporations on the pay per click basis.

Corporate web hosting is done mainly to cut down the costs and for the companies the better option would be to proceed with shared hosting which also lowers the prices and still provides the desirable result. Sharing web host not-only means that the space will be distributed on the server but they can even use their own web address, which may not be available during shared services.

The hosting companies also offer corporate email hosting that includes checking of email with three different spam and virus detectors, thus keeping the corporate systems safe. The mailboxes provided have 10 Giga-byte memory, so there is no need to delete the mails. The services are ad free and they guarantee the privacy of the inbox. Mail-box are hosted in such a way that they do not choke photos or videos. Daily backup of the mails is also taken. Therefore the corporate email solution is very much required to manage the heavy inflow of emails.
Some points must be taken care of while going for shared web hosting service provider:

The price of the hosting should be reasonable.

The disk space i.e. physical storage space provided to secure all the web site files should be proper.

Bandwidth and data transfer rate should be appropriate.

Companies should provide proper customer support and should keep a complete backup of the corporate data.

The file transfer protocol i.e. uploading and downloading files to and from the server should be provided. Proper operating systems should also be provided.

Looking For The Best Video Streaming Hosting

Video streaming requires enormous space and bandwidth, well over what any other form of web hosting will need. Security is also essential, as public or commercial videos are as prone to piracy as private videos are to violation. To ensure that your videos are viewed smoothly and without interruptions by everyone who wants to watch them, it is crucial to choose a good video streaming host.

However, there is one major hurdle in the process. Video streaming hosting is a highly expensive affair. Oftener than not, the extra services provided by the video streaming host is unnecessary for the user – unless s/he requires services such as live webcasting. For the average user, hosting videos on the regular web host is usually enough.

The cheapest and easier video streaming option is to stream from your existing web server. This does not need any additional hardware or software installations, is easy to maintain, but offers little control to the end user and very few facilities to viewers. The protocol used here is standard HTTP – the same protocol used to load web pages and most embedded media.

For users just beginning to stream video from their sites, the only thing necessary to ensure that transfers can proceed smoothly is to check with monthly file transfer limit. If the data transferred during video streaming stays within the transfer limit, there is no need to consider a change of ISP just yet.

Alternatively, video server software may be necessary for users with advanced needs. Video server software is quite expensive, allows load balancing, automatic bandwidth negotiation, and lets visitors fast-forward through videos. Video server software can be used with Flash Video, Windows Media and Quicktime.

Some Internet Service Providers(ISPs) come with video servers as part of their offered hosting packages. These video servers can be used by the clients if they specifically need to do so. Typically, most ISPs can cope with up to 1,000 minutes of video each day on a general hosting plan. If an individual’s or a company’s needs exceed that, they can opt for these higher-level video streaming options.

For clients whose video streaming hosting needs exceed what the typical ISP’s video servers can provide, moving to an ISP which specializes in video throughput may be necessary. These ISPs have extremely high bandwidth, and some are optimized specifically for video streaming hosting.

The last word in video streaming hosting, however, are companies who have data servers distributed throughout the world. This results in consistent high speeds and unparalleled reliability, ideal for the needs of people whose videos are viewed by thousands of people every day – or even every hour.

For people who plan to host multiple, highly-viewed videos on their website in the future, it is best to invest in an ISP which offers high video throughput when necessary, from a video server of its own. This will allow users to upgrade from basic hosting plans to advanced ones as their videos grow in popularity, without going through the hassles associated with changing ISPs.