• 0

Which free server OS to use?

Asked by whitebread,

 Share

Question

Grand Master

whitebread

Posted
Posted

I need to setup a basic no-frills LAMP server. The machine I'll be running it on is fairly old but was originally (about 6-8 years ago) some sort of enterprise server. I don't have the specifics ATM but it has 512MB of RAM and 4 processors (2 2-die Xeon).

What OS should I use? I was thinking of Ubuntu because of the wide-availability of how-to guides, but as I was researching I found guides claiming OpenBSD was the "paragon" of security for server OSes and that OpenSolaris/MySQL are the most "compatible" because Sun (and now Oracle) developed both.

The server will only be used for https requests coming to/from a BlackBerry application and making outgoing http requests to RIM's servers (for their PUSH APIs).

Which OS should I use?

Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/888126-which-free-server-os-to-use/
Share on other sites

21 answers to this question

Recommended Posts

  • 0
Proficient

bolerodan

Posted
Posted

Honestly.. I dont realllly feel it matters too too much for a personal or small project such as this. You will find a lot of people will suggest different things

From Linux Distros like Ubuntu, CentOS to the BSDs like FreeBSD, openBSD.

I know openBSD strives on being a hardened OS, however I feel this can be accomplished with some patience on other OS or distributions as well.

i say just pick one that catches your eye.

  • 0
Grand Master

Brian M. Veteran

Posted
  • Veteran
Posted

Use whichever linux distro you feel more comfortable with (or, to say it another way, which you've had the most experience with).

I personally use Debian on all linux servers, because it's the distro I've had the most exposure to (can't remember why I chose it in the first place). At the end of the day, if it's properly managed, any linux distro is as secure/reliable as any other.

  • 0
Mentor

Jen Smith

Posted
Posted

For my own uses, I like BSD but that's just because I'm used to it.

The software itself (Apache/lightttpd/whatever, MySQL, PHP, etc) is going to be pretty much the same regardless of which one you pick, just make sure that the distro in question is current with security fixes and whatnot.

Debian (or Ubuntu) is a pretty decent platform to work with. I've set a few up with that, pretty easy to deal with. Ubuntu has an install specifically catered to a server setup, kernel's tweaked a little differently, console only, etc etc. Tons of help out there for it. Last time I worked with it, it was pretty solid. Throw on Webmin for easymode administration.

If you want something a bit more user friendly if you're new to the Linux end, ClearOS is pretty decent too. Complete setup right out of the box. Personally, I think you're better off building from the ground up yourself though, learn how things work, but this one looks pretty good. Based on Centos, the free version of Red Hat Enterprise.

Nothing stopping you from using a Windows based server too, you can get Apache, MySQL, PHP, etc etc going as well, if that's what you're used to. (Granted, not free unless you qualify for DreamSpark, or 'alternative methods'). I've messed with the Abyss server which is actually rather good for a freebie too. Pretty fast, seemed secure, and easy to set up. (There's a better paid version if you need multiple domains and the like.)

  • 0
Grand Master

boogerjones

Posted
Posted
I need to setup a basic no-frills LAMP server
Then don't listen to all these people recommending the OS used in their "corporate setup" or that "the hosting industry has largely standardised on RHEL/CentOS so I think you'd be best using it"

There are a few people who said "stick with what you're most comfortable with" and that's the best advice you're going to get. Ubuntu will install a LAMP server as part of the initial install. And you're considering OpenBSD because some online tutorial said it's the "paragon" of security? LOL. Keep things simple for yourself, homie.

I've got Ubuntu running on a 12 year-old laptop with 512 MB of ram that's able to serve up 20-50 concurrent LAN connections to a PHP/MySQL stack without breaking a sweat.

  • 0
Enthusiast

crawling_nanny

Posted
Posted

I need to setup a basic no-frills LAMP server. The machine I'll be running it on is fairly old but was originally (about 6-8 years ago) some sort of enterprise server. I don't have the specifics ATM but it has 512MB of RAM and 4 processors (2 2-die Xeon).

What OS should I use? I was thinking of Ubuntu because of the wide-availability of how-to guides, but as I was researching I found guides claiming OpenBSD was the "paragon" of security for server OSes and that OpenSolaris/MySQL are the most "compatible" because Sun (and now Oracle) developed both.

The server will only be used for https requests coming to/from a BlackBerry application and making outgoing http requests to RIM's servers (for their PUSH APIs).

Which OS should I use?

Personally just used Ubuntu Server. I usually have some very silly questions and the forums at Ubuntu always seem to hold an answer.

When I was working with a professional developer (15+ years experience) he used CentOS. But I always came back to Ubuntu..

This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share
Go to question listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.

  • Posts

    • Epic Games says Unreal Engine 6 will help developers "build content faster" using AI models

      By Konstantine · Posted

      Lego Batman 2026 hahahaha. You thought I couldn't reply back???
    • Epic Games says Unreal Engine 6 will help developers "build content faster" using AI models

      By +pmrd · Posted

      Which game runs at 20fps with framegen?
    • Epic Games says Unreal Engine 6 will help developers "build content faster" using AI models

      By +pmrd · Posted

      The problem isn't with Epic, it's with the platform holders like Steam and Nintendo, they should be a lot more strict in their review process.
    • Nvidia 610.62 driver lands with big bug fixes and Empulse support

      By goretsky · Posted

      Hello, Installed here without issue. Regards, Aryeh Goretsky
    • Microsoft updates Visual Studio Code with easier language model discovery and in-app search

      By zikalify · Posted

      Microsoft updates Visual Studio Code with easier language model discovery and in-app search by Paul Hill Microsoft has released Visual Studio Code 1.125, its latest weekly release. This week, the company has focused on discovering and installing extra language models via the Marketplace; searching the web and securely browsing over remote connections without leaving VS Code; choosing how long VS Code waits before installing extension updates; and delivering managed Copilot settings through existing device management tooling. In older versions of VS Code, extensions could contribute their own model providers, but to find these extensions, you needed the right tags to search for in the Extension view. Now, the Language Models editor gives you an Install Model Providers button that opens the Extensions view, which is filtered to extensions that contribute model providers, making it easier to find and install them. Once you install a provider, its model will appear in the model picker. If you use the integrated browser much, you can now look up information without leaving VS Code by typing a query into the integrated browser’s address bar. It will use your configured search engine, the same way a standalone browser does. You can use workbench.browser.searchEngine to pick a search engine. When the browser is opened in a remote workspace, it's now possible to proxy HTTP(S) traffic via the remote connection. This allows you to connect to any ports or services that can only be accessed from the remote machine. If you read our coverage from two weeks ago about VS Code 1.123, you might have seen that extension updates have a two-hour delay as a safety measure. In this update, Microsoft is giving you the ability to configure the time of the delay. You can find it under extensions.autoUpdateDelay. Finally, with this update, admins can deliver managed GitHub Copilot settings through native device management (MDM) channels on Windows and macOS, in addition to account-based enterprise settings files. Settings delivered via MDM appear as policy-enforced in VS Code and can’t be overridden locally. Future updates will extend the supported policy keys across Copilot surfaces. You can download the update from the Visual Studio Code website now.

  • Recent Achievements

    • Week One Done
      Classifyskilleducation earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Month Later
      eurospharma62 earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      With What earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Week One Done
      Harris Gilbert earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Month Later
      Vincian earned a badge
      One Month Later

  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      543
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      171
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      83
    4. 4
      ATLien_0
      64
    5. 5
      neufuse
      64
    Show More

  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!