Submitted by Admin on 08/Jul/2011 22:25
Well this article of mine is a biased article which is being written to put forward the case of Linux Hosting (PHP/JSP Java Developent) viz-a-viz Windows Hosting (.NET/ASP Development). Also we look into the various metrics which make the case for Linux Hosting stronger apart from just development reasons. Our earlier article http://packwebhosting.com/content/myths-about-hosting-platforms explored the common myths of Web Hosting platforms. This article follows from where the last article was signed off.
We are writing this article on the basis of our 9 years experience in hosting industry, where upteen times we have seen Windows based solutions failing or not deliviring on their desired promise. Its not that I am getting personnel. I would really love to have a Win XP based Desktop to run the latest game, but on the server side things are the other way around.
I'll put my case here point-by-point :
1. PHP Applications - Easiest to Deploy : Its not a secret as far experienced developers are concerned. But for newbies, here it goes. There are two types of Websites/Application you would be deploying - pre-built GPL or Commerical licensed applications/frameworks/shopping carts and your own custom applications. In PHP eco-system, quite a few application have near 100% success rate for seemless deployment. Examples being Wordpress, Joomla, Drupal, Zencart etc. Mostly these are GPLed (GNU Public License) licensed applications, and even on WAMP (Windows Apache MySQL PHP) platform, they are not that difficult to deploy. But when custom development comes into play, a .NET framework based application with MS-SQL 2005/2008 DB, deploying it on a shared server has never been a one shot experience. Developer's have often struggled with web.config settings and other issues. Its only after some poking that your application will get deployed and be up and running. Though there are a few lucky souls who have brezeed through it, but then they are in minority.
2. Framework Architecture : I must admit many developers love frameworks and pre-built platforms a.k. CMSes. Be it CakePHP, Smphony, Wordpress, Drupal, Joomla, .NET 2,3.5,4 etc. But .NET is a bit different. Though I am not .NET expert, but .NET applications depend on a binary code which again has many dependencies. Where as CakePHP etc., are just plain simple TXT files which are interpreted or sometimes bytecoded by PHP accelerators. Normally PHP based framework's eco-system is all contained within a bunch of text files and very little is system dependent (I mean most common LAMP setups support without any tweaking). Whereas a .NET framework, it goes outside the developer's space and into the system space. It is dependent on the IIS version and its various settings. Also it revolves around the trust concept. To put it bluntly, a PHP code base is very likely to run out of the box (provided correct DB settings are made) as compared to a .NET framework based application under the same scenario.
3. Web Application Portability : Portability of webistes/applications is one of the most important consideration in a development process. Unfortunately for .NET applications, porting from one server to another, is like going through the whole deployment grind again. Where as for PHP, 95%+ times its a breeze.
4. Website Scalability : It is this area which has made Linux Platform with PHP as the preferred choice. Be it the likes of Facebook.com, Shaadi.com, ndtv.com, in.com - everywhere you can see PHP. You may say that its my opinion, well take a look at one of the most respected online stats analysis - http://toolbar.netcraft.com/stats/topsites by Netcraft. You will be amazed with how many Linux based sites are in top 25. If big corporations with big money have choosen Linux, why do you as a developer not Choose Linux. Think big, think Linux.
5. Security Vulnerabilities : Security is dependent on multiple factors - The Operating System, System Admin(s) and the Application(s). Lets focus here on the Operating System part. A simple straight search of Linux vs Windows vulnerability count (closed+open vulnerabilities) at http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/html/search (US-CERT stands for - United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team) throws following results - Linux : 300+, Windows 800+. Remember lower figure is the better figure.
Here I would like to close this article. Call us at 91-172-4648308, 4648208 to learn more.
Kirti
We are writing this article on the basis of our 9 years experience in hosting industry, where upteen times we have seen Windows based solutions failing or not deliviring on their desired promise. Its not that I am getting personnel. I would really love to have a Win XP based Desktop to run the latest game, but on the server side things are the other way around.
I'll put my case here point-by-point :
1. PHP Applications - Easiest to Deploy : Its not a secret as far experienced developers are concerned. But for newbies, here it goes. There are two types of Websites/Application you would be deploying - pre-built GPL or Commerical licensed applications/frameworks/shopping carts and your own custom applications. In PHP eco-system, quite a few application have near 100% success rate for seemless deployment. Examples being Wordpress, Joomla, Drupal, Zencart etc. Mostly these are GPLed (GNU Public License) licensed applications, and even on WAMP (Windows Apache MySQL PHP) platform, they are not that difficult to deploy. But when custom development comes into play, a .NET framework based application with MS-SQL 2005/2008 DB, deploying it on a shared server has never been a one shot experience. Developer's have often struggled with web.config settings and other issues. Its only after some poking that your application will get deployed and be up and running. Though there are a few lucky souls who have brezeed through it, but then they are in minority.
2. Framework Architecture : I must admit many developers love frameworks and pre-built platforms a.k. CMSes. Be it CakePHP, Smphony, Wordpress, Drupal, Joomla, .NET 2,3.5,4 etc. But .NET is a bit different. Though I am not .NET expert, but .NET applications depend on a binary code which again has many dependencies. Where as CakePHP etc., are just plain simple TXT files which are interpreted or sometimes bytecoded by PHP accelerators. Normally PHP based framework's eco-system is all contained within a bunch of text files and very little is system dependent (I mean most common LAMP setups support without any tweaking). Whereas a .NET framework, it goes outside the developer's space and into the system space. It is dependent on the IIS version and its various settings. Also it revolves around the trust concept. To put it bluntly, a PHP code base is very likely to run out of the box (provided correct DB settings are made) as compared to a .NET framework based application under the same scenario.
3. Web Application Portability : Portability of webistes/applications is one of the most important consideration in a development process. Unfortunately for .NET applications, porting from one server to another, is like going through the whole deployment grind again. Where as for PHP, 95%+ times its a breeze.
4. Website Scalability : It is this area which has made Linux Platform with PHP as the preferred choice. Be it the likes of Facebook.com, Shaadi.com, ndtv.com, in.com - everywhere you can see PHP. You may say that its my opinion, well take a look at one of the most respected online stats analysis - http://toolbar.netcraft.com/stats/topsites by Netcraft. You will be amazed with how many Linux based sites are in top 25. If big corporations with big money have choosen Linux, why do you as a developer not Choose Linux. Think big, think Linux.
5. Security Vulnerabilities : Security is dependent on multiple factors - The Operating System, System Admin(s) and the Application(s). Lets focus here on the Operating System part. A simple straight search of Linux vs Windows vulnerability count (closed+open vulnerabilities) at http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/html/search (US-CERT stands for - United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team) throws following results - Linux : 300+, Windows 800+. Remember lower figure is the better figure.
Here I would like to close this article. Call us at 91-172-4648308, 4648208 to learn more.
Kirti
