Web Hosting vs. Windows Hosting: What’s the Difference?

Web hosting refers to the service of storing all the files and data of a website on a server that is connected to the internet. When users visit your website, they access the files on this server. Web hosting typically runs on Linux-based operating systems and supports a wider range of software and programming languages.

Windows hosting, on the other hand, runs on the Microsoft Windows operating system. It is ideal for web applications developed with Microsoft technologies such as ASP.NET and .NET Core. Windows hosting often offers more specialized and customizable solutions, catering more to the needs of businesses and organizations.

Key Differences Between Web Hosting and Windows Hosting

Feature Web Hosting (Typically Linux) Windows Hosting
Operating System Linux (Ubuntu, CentOS, etc.) Windows Server
Supported Software PHP, Python, Perl, MySQL ASP.NET, .NET Core, MSSQL
Use Cases Wide range of uses (blogs, e-commerce sites, personal websites, etc.) Specifically for applications developed with Microsoft technologies (enterprise websites, intranets, etc.)
Performance Generally higher performance Optimized specifically for Microsoft applications
Security High security standards High security standards, but with specific security features for the Microsoft ecosystem
Price Generally more affordable More expensive (especially for custom requirements)

Which Hosting Type Should You Choose?

  • If your website is developed with PHP, Python, or Perl: Web hosting may be more suitable for you.
  • If your website is developed with ASP.NET or .NET Core: Windows hosting would be a better choice.
  • If you need high performance and custom customization options: Windows hosting may be a better option.
  • If your budget is limited: Web hosting may be a more affordable option.

Conclusion

Web hosting and Windows hosting offer different solutions for different needs. Choosing the right hosting type based on your website’s technology and requirements is crucial for your site’s performance and security.

How to Install a LAMP Stack on Ubuntu 18.04

What is a LAMP Stack?

A LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP) stack is a common, free, and open-source web stack used for hosting web content in a Linux environment. Many consider it the platform of choice on which to develop and deploy high-performance web apps.

This guide shows how to install and test a LAMP stack on Ubuntu 18.04 (LTS).

Install LAMP Ubuntu 18.04

Using the tasksel command the procedure of installing LAMP on Ubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver is a rather trivial matter. First, make sure that you have the tasksel package installed:

$ sudo apt install tasksel

To install LAMP server using tasksel execute:

$ sudo tasksel install lamp-server

Test your LAMP Install

Create a simple PHP Info page to test your LAMP installation:

$ sudo bash -c "echo -e '<?php\nphpinfo();\n?>' > /var/www/html/phpinfo.php"

The above command will create a new /var/www/html/phpinfo.php file with the following content:

$ cat /var/www/html/phpinfo.php
<?php
phpinfo();
?>

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How to Install Apache on Ubuntu 18.04

Prerequisites

  • A system running Ubuntu 18.04 LTS (Bionic Beaver)
  • An internet connection
  • Access to a user account with sudo privileges

How to Install Apache on Ubuntu

Before installing new software, it’s a good idea to refresh your local software package database to make sure you are accessing the latest versions. This helps cut down on the time it takes to update after installation, and it also helps prevent zero-day exploits against outdated software.

Open a terminal and type:

sudo apt-get update

Let the package manager finish updating.

Step 1: Install Apache

To install the Apache package on Ubuntu, use the command:

sudo apt-get install apache2

The system prompts for confirmation – do so, and allow the system to complete the installation.

Terminal command to install Apache on Ubuntu.

Step 2: Verify Apache Installation

To verify Apache was installed correctly, open a web browser and type in the address bar:

http://local.server.ip

The web browser should open a page labeled “Apache2 Ubuntu Default Page,” as in the image below:

apache2 the default welcome page on ubuntu

Note: Replace local.server.ip with the IP address of your server. If you are unsure what’s the IP address, run the following terminal command:

hostname -I | awk '{print $1}'

The output will return your server’s IP address.

Step 3: Configure Your Firewall

Although the Apache installation process is complete, there is one more additional step. Configure the default UFW firewall to allow traffic on port 80.

Start by displaying available app profiles on UFW:

sudo ufw show app list

The terminal should respond by listing all available application profiles, as seen in the example below.

Available applications:
  Apache
  Apache Full
  Apache Secure
  OpenSSH

Use the following command to allow normal web traffic on port 80:

sudo ufw allow 'Apache'
Image of how Apache traffic is allowed in Ubuntu terminal.

Verify the changes by checking UFW status:

sudo ufw status
Check UFW status and verify that Apache traffic is allowed.

If you have other applications or services to allow, make sure you configure your firewall to allow traffic. For example, using the sudo ufw allow 'OpenSSH' command will enable secure, encrypted logins over the network.

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Resetting Your MYSQL Root Password

  1. The first step to resetting your root MySQL password on a Linux server is to stop MySQL. If you have a monitoring service for MySQL that will restart the service if it is down, make sure that service is also stopped for the time being, such as checkservd and cPanel. 
    /etc/init.d/mysql stop
  2. Next, start MySQL in Single User Mode and enter without a password.

    Warning:
    Restarting MySQL this way will allow anyone access to every database. To avoid this, stop eth0 and fuser -k any logged in user and touch /etc/nologin. 
    mysqld_safe --skip-grant-tables & mysql

    Note:
    Make sure to add & or the command prompt will not show.
  3. Enter the following commands in the MySQL prompt. The password below is only an example, replace 123456ABCDEF with the password of your choice. Our article Best Practice: Creating a Secure Password provides you with information on secure password best practices. 
    UPDATE mysql.user SET password=password("123456ABCDEF") 
WHERE user='root';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
exit;
  4. Stop MySQL safe and start MySQL and all other services that kept it from restarting like checkservd and cPanel normally. 
    /etc/init.d/mysql stop
/ect/init.d/mysql start
  5. Test your change by doing a test login, to log into MySQL, type it into the command line. 
    mysql
  6. You will be prompted to enter your password. Enter the new password, if you are logged in then you have successfully reset the MySQL root password.

Note:
If the MySQL user has been deleted, run the following query to recreate it:

INSERT INTO `mysql`.`user` ( `Host` , `User` , `Password`
 , `Select_priv` ,`Insert_priv` , `Update_priv` ,`Delete_priv` 
 , `Create_priv` , `Drop_priv` , `Reload_priv` , `Shutdown_priv` 
 , `Process_priv` , `File_priv` , `Grant_priv` , `References_priv` 
 , `Index_priv` , `Alter_priv` , `Show_db_priv` , `Super_priv` 
 ,`Create_tmp_table_priv` , `Lock_tables_priv` , `Execute_priv` 
 , `Repl_slave_priv`, `Repl_client_priv` , `Create_view_priv` 
 , `Show_view_priv` , `Create_routine_priv` , `Alter_routine_priv` 
 , `Create_user_priv` , `max_questions` , `max_updates`
 , `max_connections` , `max_user_connections` ) VALUES ( 'localhost'
 , 'root',PASSWORD('password1234'), 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y'
 , 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y','Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y'
 , 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', 'Y', '0', '0', '0', '0' );

Troubleshooting

You may encounter an error when trying to change the root password that looks like the example below:

mysql> show warnings; +---------+------+-----------------------------------------------+ 
| Level | Code | Message | +---------+------+-----------------------------------------------+ 
| Warning | 1265 | Data truncated for column 'Password' at row 1 | 
| Warning | 1265 | Data truncated for column 'Password' at row 2 | 
+---------+------+-----------------------------------------------+

 

If MySQL is giving you warnings when changing the password, type the following:
mysql>prompt

 

Then leave MySQL and run:

/usr/bin/mysql_fix_privilege_tables

Once this is complete, try to set the password again. If you have further issues, please contact our Support team and we will be happy to assist you!