Windows or Linux hosting: which one you need

In short

• “I have Windows on my laptop” doesn't mean you need Windows hosting. What matters is what the website is written in, not what you manage it from.
• PHP (WordPress, WooCommerce, PrestaShop, Laravel) → Linux.
• ASP.NET on .NET Framework, Classic ASP, applications that require IIS → Windows.
• Modern .NET and SQL Server also run on Linux, but on a server you configure yourself.
• Windows hosting usually costs more, because the Windows Server license has to be paid for.

A common confusion

Many people look for “Windows hosting” because they use Windows and think they won't be able to manage their website otherwise. That's not the case. The hosting control panel opens in your browser, you upload files with FileZilla, which runs on Windows, Mac and Linux, and you read your email in Outlook just the same, wherever the server is.

The right question is a different one: what technology is the website built on?

What runs on Linux

Linux hosting runs:

• PHP, with everything built on it: WordPress, WooCommerce, Joomla, Drupal, PrestaShop, OpenCart, Laravel;
• MySQL and MariaDB databases;
• static websites: HTML, CSS and JavaScript, with no server-side code.

On a Linux VPS server, you can also install almost anything: Node.js, Python, Go, Java, Docker, PostgreSQL. Even modern .NET (formerly .NET Core) runs on Linux, and Microsoft SQL Server has had Linux versions since SQL Server 2017.

When you really need Windows

• ASP.NET applications on .NET Framework (version 4.x and earlier): Web Forms, classic MVC. These run only on Windows, with the IIS web server.
• Classic ASP: .asp pages, common on older websites.
• Applications that depend on IIS or on Windows components: IIS modules, COM components, Microsoft Access databases.
• Software whose vendor requires Windows Server: some business management or remote access applications for teams.

If your website falls into one of the situations above, moving to Linux isn't a simple copy: the application would have to be rewritten or ported.

How to find out what your website needs

1. Look at the URLs and the files. Pages ending in .php or a wp-config.php file → Linux. .aspx or .asp pages, a web.config file and a bin folder with .dll files → Windows.
2. Ask whoever built the website what technology it's built on.
3. Check your current hosting. If you have a cPanel panel, you're on Linux; cPanel doesn't exist for Windows. Plesk exists for both.

What Windows hosting means in practice

• The web server is IIS, and settings go in web.config, not in .htaccess.
• The control panel, if there is one, is usually Plesk: of cPanel, Plesk and Enhance, it's the only one that also manages Windows servers (cPanel, Plesk or Enhance).
• The Windows Server license has to be paid for, so with equal resources, a Windows server costs more than a Linux one.
• Remote access is via Remote Desktop. You don't need extra licenses to administer the server; if you want several people to work in applications on the server every day over Remote Desktop, Microsoft requires separate RDS CAL licenses. Let us know in advance if you need them.
• SQL Server: the Express edition is free, with limits; the other editions are licensed separately.

What to choose at NBT Host

For PHP websites (WordPress, WooCommerce, business websites): web, WordPress or cloud hosting. They run on Linux, with the Enhance panel, your choice of PHP 8.2, 8.3 or 8.4 for each website, MySQL databases, daily backups and an automatic SSL certificate. Plans start from €5 per month, or €3.75 per month when paid for 36 months.

For applications that require Windows: a VPS server with the Windows Server option, €33 per month (€396 per year) on top of the plan price, instead of the Linux system. For example, VPS 1 (4 vCPU, 8 GB RAM, 100 GB SSD) with Windows Server costs €15 + €33 = €48 per month. What you should know:

• it's an unmanaged server: installing the application, Windows updates, security and backups are up to you;
• Windows Server can't be combined with a control panel license (cPanel, Plesk or Enhance) on the same server;
• automatic daily backups can be added as an option, from €4 per month depending on the plan;
• access details arrive within 8 business hours of payment confirmation.

How to choose the server size: how to choose a VPS.

Moving from Windows to Linux

A PHP website currently hosted on Windows usually moves to Linux without problems. Two differences worth watching out for:

• Linux is case-sensitive in file names: Logo.png and logo.png are different files. Because of this, a website that worked on Windows may have missing images after the move.
• The rules in web.config (redirects, friendly URLs) have to be recreated in .htaccess.

If the website is PHP and comes from a host with cPanel, DirectAdmin or Plesk, we move it for you, free of charge, at the start of your contract: free migration. ASP.NET websites can't be moved to Linux hosting; for those, there's the Windows VPS.

Frequently asked questions

Can I manage a website hosted on Linux from a Windows computer?

Yes. The panel opens in your browser, you upload files over encrypted FTP with FileZilla or from the file manager, and you read your email in Outlook or in Webmail.

Does WordPress run on Windows?

It can be installed, but it's not its usual environment. WordPress is written in PHP, and on Linux it has the best compatibility with plugins and themes.

Can I put an ASP.NET website on NBT Host web hosting?

No. Web hosting runs on Linux, with PHP. For an ASP.NET application on .NET Framework, you need a VPS with Windows Server, where you install and manage the application yourself.

Does a modern .NET application need Windows?

Not necessarily. Modern .NET also runs on Linux, so the application can work on a Linux VPS, as long as it doesn't use components that exist only on Windows. Ask whoever wrote the application.