Every single personal computer or web server is run by an Operating System - the low-level software which communicates with the hardware equipment, including peripherals such as a mouse or a printer, as well as any apps that are currently installed on the system. Any program input using a command line or a Graphical User Interface (GUI) is processed by sending an Application Program Interface (API) request to the Operating System. On a web server, every single app runs within the parameters set by the OS as well - priority, physical memory, processing time, etc. This goes for both standard site scripts and server-side software such as a media server. In case a virtual server is created on a physical one, there can be two separate Operating Systems, named guest OS and host OS, which means that you will be able to set up a different software environment on a single machine.

Multiple OS in Dedicated Web Hosting

If you decide to purchase one of our dedicated servers, you'll find three Operating Systems on the order page since we want to give you a larger choice for the system environment on the machine as different apps may have particular requirements. CentOS, Ubuntu and Debian include different modules developed by their large support communities, so you can select any of these OSs and take advantage of a stable and safe Internet hosting service. Based on your decision, you'll also have different Control Panels to choose from. Of course, we can always replace the Operating System if the one you have selected initially does not meet the requirements of the software that you intend to run. We can also upgrade the OS routinely in order to keep it as secure as possible using our Managed Services upgrade package.