Windows Hosting Services

Windows Hosting Services provide web hosting accounts that are served by Internet Information Server (IIS) on a web server running the Windows Server operating system. The main benefit to utilizing a Windows hosting service is to run Microsoft-based web applications, such as ASPX pages, SharePoint and the C# programming language.

Many web-based applications must be run within a Windows environment. Web hosting companies that provide Windows hosting services will provide you with an account on the required Windows-based server.

Generally, web hosting companies offer one of two, or both types of web hosting: Windows and Linux. Linux-based web servers host web-based pages written in PHP and other languages that run in the Unix/Linux environment. Linux servers do not support or run Windows-based applications or proprietary code. A Windows-based server is required for running Windows applications.

With Linux servers, you often must interact with the web server using command line statements. With Windows hosting services, you can provide all of the tasks required to interact with the web server through the standard Windows desktop using the functionality that you already know Drag and drop, the tree structure and the way you interact with files is the same as what you already know. No need to learn how to interact with a new operating system.

What are the benefits of Windows Hosting Services?

The benefits of using Windows hosting services are:

1. You are most likely already familiar with the basics of working within a Windows environment. No need to learn another system. Windows hosting services allow you to interact with your web server just like you would interact with any other program in Windows. If you use a Linux-based host, you may need to learn some Unix/Linux languages in order to deploy your web applications.
2. Windows hosting services are generally more secure than Linux-based hosts. This is because Linux is an open-source operating system. Windows, being a proprietary product, implements strong security for their web server operating systems.
3. Windows hosting services web servers will run Microsoft Windows applications and technologies. If you would like to use Visual Studio to develop web applications, you will need a Windows-based server to deploy the applications on.
4. Windows hosting services are nearly as inexpensive as Linux-based servers. For a dollar or two a month, you can host a site on a Windows server instead of Linux.

Why Should I Use Windows Hosting Services?

Using Windows hosting services usually demands less training and support because users are already familiar with how Windows works. Therefore, a quick session on the phone with a support representative, or perusing through the training documentation, should give you enough information that will get your website up and running on the host server.

Simply by using features you are already familiar with, like the tree structure found in the Windows Explorer file manager, you will transfer your files to the IIS web server hosted by your hosting service. Getting a site up and running on a Windows server is a very straightforward process.

With Linux-based servers, you will need to interact with the web server, at times, using command line statements. With Windows hosting services, you interact with the web server through the Windows desktop. No special commands and no need to learn new computer skills. Just drag and drop files into an FTP client and upload them to your web server. Some Microsoft programs will automatically deploy your applications to an IIS server.

With the security framework, ability to run Microsoft applications and efficiency, in addition to the lack of training necessary to learn, Windows hosting services are a great choice for a hosting provider.