While looking up web hosting services, web admins must clearly understand the nature of their proposed website and the type of control they would like to have over the possible changes to be incorporated. Websites differ in the type of upgradation required over time. Some may constantly require textual changes, while others may include photographs, graphics, etc. Control panels offered are varied according to the packages that are subscribed to. All the packages provide some essential components that are mandatory for the client. Options to add new domains, password change and addition of new accounts are some of the main features. Cpanel cPanel (control panel) is a graphical web-based control panel to simplify administration through the changes in the interface. The software is not freely available and is to be paid through a monthly subscription. CPanel is versatile enough to run on PHP, FreeBSD, Redhat Enterprise Linux, CentOS, and Windows Server. Since cPanel has become a commonly accepted tool for web hosting, a web admin can install and be linked to the website. Cpanel provides a statistics tool covering all details like disk space being used, domain name, monthly bandwidth changes, e-mails, secondary domains and SQL database. Managing FTP data and editing CGI scripts is more accessible with cPanel. CPanel supports Fantastico Deluxe and allows web admins to install 50 or more free scripts without any specific programming required. Switching the interface to suit particular needs becomes more accessible with cPanel. A cPanel-enabled computer allows the webmaster to access the website and upload, edit or delete files. The tool offers a provision for the backup of files in case of a system crash or accidental deletion of important data. Backup of mailing lists and e-mail information is also available.

Earlier web hosting was meant to hire computer memory for one’s website. However, with technological advances and a decrease in hardware prices, hosts have provided increasingly ready-made features to attract potential clients. Microsoft Windows is one of the operating systems commonly used on servers by web hosts. It supports advanced technologies like Cold Fusion that are required to create and maintain dynamic websites. Managed host servers may also provide services like ASP, ASP.net Access, and MS SQL support to maintain websites. Linux and UNIX servers are meant for clients who require websites based on open-source technology, such as PHP and MySQL. It ensures better data security compared to other technologies. The easy availability and open knowledge about the codes help in upgradation and customization. Unlike Windows, it does not require renewal of license frequently. A list of tools has become an accepted standard for web hosts. These include CGI, Ruby (RoR), Perl, PHP, MYSQL, etc. These enable the webmaster to maintain and upgrade their websites without worrying about unsupportive platforms. Often, hosts provide easy-to-set-up functions that are common to all websites. These include incorporating PayPal services, mail servers, virus prevention, etc.

To see why the Internet and open source are a good fit for each other, we first have to look at the origins of the Internet as we know it today. Before the mainstream explosion of the web in the 1990s, the Internet was still very much the domain of universities, colleges, laboratories, and governments. It was still mainly under research, which gives us our first clue because the scientific community has long valued the open cooperation of its members. Initially, all software was open source simply because nobody had the idea of charging money for it. Sir Tim Berners-Lee, widely recognized as the father of the World Wide Web (before this, there was just “internet”), created the first web server while working at CERN running his HTTP protocol. His system was NeXTStep – a derivative of Unix and the BSD operating system. The web browser which first popularized the World Wide Web was Mosaic by NCSA, built on a Unix system and released as open source. So there was open source and Unix at the very beginning. Both of the major web browsers in use today, Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox can trace their roots directly back to the Mosaic web browser. As for the World Wide Web, one need only consider that to this day, directory paths for website URLs follow the forward-slash (/) convention of Unix file systems rather than the back-slash () of DOS systems.

1. A Surprising Twist in the Tech World On the desktop, for home and office users, Microsoft Windows still has the highest market share, followed by Apple, Linux, BSD, Solaris, and other niche systems. This landscape dramatically changes once we shift our focus from the single-user desktop to the World Wide Web. In the realm of the web, free and Open Source Software (FOSS) is either in the top position or rapidly ascending. 2. Apache: The Web Server Titan Apache, the open-source server software package, has the most significant market share, not just by a small margin but by a vast percentage. Apache’s HTTP Server is a remarkable success story, which began in 1995. In those days, most web servers ran on the NCSA HTTPd. However, eight developers started working on patches for the NCSA code to enhance its functionality. Over time, this work evolved into the Apache HTTP Server, which now powers an impressive 24.7% of all active websites, according to W3Techs. 3. Linux: From Obscurity to Ubiquity The most popular Unix-like system Linux has a sizable chunk of the server market. Its versatility extends to communication devices like routers, smartphones, and GPS systems. Linux’s story began with Linus Torvalds, who released the first kernel in 1991. It wasn’t a significant competitor initially, but the open-source nature of Linux made it a platform that developers and tech enthusiasts embraced. Companies like IBM and Red Hat started to invest, and today Linux runs on everything from supercomputers to home appliances.