UNIX

UNIX is an interactive time-sharing OS that comes in many variations or “flavors.” UNIX is not a single operating system; it is a family of operating systems with each vendor providing its own version of UNIX. Although these various versions of UNIX are similar, there are enough differences that you might have problems if you decided to move (or “port”) your application from one version of UNIX to another.

Some examples of the various manufacturers’ UNIX versions are:

IBM’s AIX L5, which is an integrated UNIX operating environment that provides full interoperability and coexistence between 32- and 64-bit applications with processes that may run concurrently or cooperatively, sharing access to files, memory, and other system services. The inclusion of Internet technologies such as Java and XML parser for Java as part of the base operating system enables AIX to be Java-ready for both Java client and Java server applications.

Silicon Graphics (SGI) IRIX 6.5, a scalable 64-bit operating system based on UNIX standards for high-performance graphics and scalable server systems. The IRIX operating system allows you to take full advantage of MIPS processor-based SGI systems. IRIX 6.5 was specifically designed for users with the most demanding technical compute and visualization needs, IRIX 6.5 readily scales to tackle huge data sets, compute-intensive problems, and real-time 3D visualization enhancements with ease.

Compaq/HP Tru64 UNIX V5.1B is a 64-bit operating system offering a choice of management interfaces, including web-based operations. This system reduces the complexity of installation, setup, and management compared to other UNIX systems. It supports multiple terabytes of data, increases performance in file system, storage management, and system networking, and delivers very high integration between UNIX and Windows operating systems.

NetBSD is a free, highly portable UNIX-like operating system available for many platforms, from 64-bit AlphaServers to Macintoshes and handheld Windows CE devices. Its clean design and advanced features make it excellent in both production and research environments, and it is user-supported with complete source code. Many applications are easily available.

Santa Cruz Operation (SCO) OpenServer systems are among the most popular of operating system platforms for small- and mid-sized businesses. The latest generation of SCO OpenServer systems allows you quickly to expand your computing environment as your business’s computing needs grow. SCO’s integrated support for email and Internet services ensures that your business can leverage the Web to give your company the exposure it deserves and to communicate more efficiently with customers and prospects. Aside from critical business applications, SCO OpenServer Enterprise System provides various network services including file and print services for UNIX and Windows systems, email services, web services, Internet connectivity, and calendar services. Built-in support for Windows File/Print services means that a single multi-functional server platform can be utilized to run your entire operation, while the field-proven reliability of SCO OpenServer keeps you in business.

Sun Microsystems (Sun) Solaris 9 is a UNIX operating system. There are various flavors of Solaris 9 including a SPARC version and an Intel version. If you have the budget and you are self-hosting your website, the Solaris 9 operating system should be considered since it sports some hefty security features, including IPSec with Internet Key Exchange (IKE), extensible password encryption, secure LDAP, and Kerberos. The Solaris 9’s strength is its enterprise-class reliability and scalability and its mature networking kernel. Solaris 9 supports hot-swapping of processors and has a management console that provides a simple, customizable utility for maintaining and monitoring Solaris 9 servers, along with wizards for installation of applications.

Linux

Linux (which is a variant of UNIX) is a free operating system and therefore can be copied and redistributed without paying a fee or royalty. It is a multi-user, multi-tasking operating system that runs on many platforms, including Intel processors. Linux interoperates well with other operating systems, including those from Apple, Microsoft and Novell. There are many Linux packages offering a full and rich set of utilities, connectivity tools, and a development environment. There is even free software available that turns Linux into a very nice web server. The main drawback is that there is no formal technical support for Linux.

Most programs written for either Linux or UNIX can be recompiled to run on the other system with little reconfiguration. Linux in most situations will run faster than UNIX on the same equipment. You can download a copy of Linux from the Internet or purchase an inexpensive CD set. You’ll find Linux is a first rate operating system with capabilities beyond what you expect from more expensive products.

A crucial issue to consider when making your operating system decision is that UNIX (and Linux when configured properly) are inherently more secure than Microsoft products. Since UNIX was designed as a multi-user multi-process platform for interconnected computers, guaranteeing security has been an issue ever since the beginning. All UNIX vendors publish fixes for their software whenever a security problem is found. Microsoft is still somewhat secretive about security problems and thus there can be quite a lag time from the moment Microsoft learns about a security problem and when the public is notified about it.

Windows 2000 and Windows 2003 Server

While Windows 2000 Server is essentially an upgrade of Windows NT, Windows 2003 Server is much more. Although both Windows 2000 and 2003 include a bundled web server — Microsoft’s Internet Information Server IIS — the version is different: IIS 5.0 is bundled with Windows 2000 and IIS 6.0 comes with Windows 2003.

Both operating systems offer a great array of innovative network tools and business features; however these features can cause the OS to be a challenging operating system to install and maintain, especially if you are unfamiliar with the inner workings of Microsoft operating systems.

Nonetheless, if you feel you are up to the technical challenges of Windows 2000 Server and/or Windows 2003 Server, these operating systems do offer features that make building and maintaining a website more productive. For example, there are numerous ways to access the administrative functions: the “old” Control Panel; an Explorer-like Computer Management, and a wizard-like Configure Your Server, which has ample help and support information. Another nice feature is the Microsoft Management Console (MMC), which makes it easy to access options.

Windows 2000 Server and Windows 2003 Server operating systems are faster, more reliable, heavier-duty, and easier to use than the older Windows NT operating system. Most of their more important server functions, such as, network, storage, and security have been centralized; although, TCP/IP and other Internet features are still not very well organized. Still with the introduction of Windows 2000, Microsoft at last made inroads into the Internet environment.

NOTE
The Windows 2003 Server Web Edition is available at a significant discount when compared to the Windows 2003 Standard Edition.

Windows XP Professional Edition

If you want to use a Windows product for your web server, your best bet is to use Windows 2003 Server Web Edition. However, if you must use Windows XP, get the Professional Edition (not the Home Edition) since like Windows 2003 Server the Professional Edition includes Microsoft’s new Internet Information Server IIS 6.0 version, and support for dual processors. As long as you use the Windows XP Professional Edition along with secure open source and freeware tools (many are available via the Web), this operating system is adequate for a website’s purposes. But note that Windows XP doesn’t support Java, which may cause some problems. Also it may be difficult to use any web server other than the bundled IIS product.

NOTE
According to a mi2g Ltd. report, for the twelve months ending September 2003 Linux was the most breached operating system followed by Microsoft Windows operating systems. The report states that 59.2% of all overt digital attacks were on systems running Linux and 20.8% were on systems running Windows. However, the report also acknowledged that the known, onerous difficulties with administering a Windows-based system — the effort that must be expended in 24/7 configuration management, reboot-patch-reboot (open source systems usually can be patched without the reboot drill, which is a valuable commodity in an e-commerce environment), etc. — when compared to open source solutions such as Linux and OpenBSD, the necessity of such hands-on administration could actually be serving to help Windows-based systems block many attacks.

The report also found that the reason for most Linux breaches were due to poorly configured or updated third party applications and servers running on Linux systems. In fact, in mi2g anonymous interviews with hacker groups, it found that hackers prefer attacking Linux systems because of the plethora of configuration errors within those systems, which makes mounting attacks easier. However, mi2g also found that individuals hacking for intellectual gain or fun (rather than cybercrime) are generally more attracted to the perceived greater challenge associated with hacking well-configured BSD, Linux, Solaris and Unix systems (and any high-profile organization’s online systems). Although the relative market share of different operating systems ought to be reflected in the proportion of digital attack suffered by each of them, the precise proportions fluctuate considerably — generally in a way that is coupled with the preferences of the hackers and the announced vulnerabilities still to be patched.

In the opinion of mi2g, there were several motivations and issues involved when a Windows-based system was targeted over Linux or vice-versa, “ranging from the reasons for an attack down to number of vulnerabilities being announced for Operating Systems, Servers, Applications and Libraries at a given moment in time and the ease with which the patches can be applied across a large scale deployment.”