An Operating System is the fundamental software which controls a computer system. It controls how your hardware behaves, the communication with peripheral devices like a monitor, a printer or a keyboard, the allocation of memory between various applications, and the prioritization of apps if several run at the same time. Each program that is installed on a PC works by sending requests to the OS for different services using an application program interface (API). The interaction with the OS can be done via a Graphical User Interface (GUI) or a command line. In the web hosting field, the Operating System is what commands a hosting server together with all the software installed on it, which includes not only website scripts, but, in addition every other application for example a VOIP or a game server. When there are virtual machines created, they work with a guest OS which is run on the server host OS.
Multiple OS in VPS Servers
In case you pick one of our VPS server plans, you'll have as many as 3 different Operating Systems to pick from - CentOS, Debian and Ubuntu. They're all Linux distributions and we offer them instead of offering just one OS, as the apps that you might choose to run on the server could have specific requirements for the software environment. Each of these three has some pros in terms of the available packages that you can later on install, but what's common between them is that they're very secure and reliable and have large communities that support them. The internet hosting Control Panel options for the VPS accounts depend on your Operating System choice, in order to give you more flexibility. In case you order the virtual server with one OS and you need another one later, our tech support team can easily reinstall the VPS with the new one in a matter of minutes. We also offer you the option to keep the Operating System on your server up-to-date weekly.
Multiple OS in Dedicated Servers
If you decide to get one of our dedicated servers, you will find three Operating Systems on the registration page since we want to give you a broader choice with regard to the system environment on your machine as different apps can have particular requirements. CentOS, Ubuntu and Debian include different modules developed by their vast support communities, so you can select any of these OSs and take advantage of a stable and safe hosting service. Based on your selection, you'll also have different Control Panels to choose from. Of course, we can always change the Operating System if the one you've selected initially does not meet the requirements of the software which you want to run. We can also upgrade your OS routinely to keep it as secure as possible using our Managed Services upgrade package.