best distribution of linix for server hosting?

[grindcorex23]

What is the best distribution of linix for server hosting?

[Derek]

There is no "BEST" version. Thats like asking whats the best car.

[blik]

Linux 2.6.26.2 is best version at time of writing.

[grindcorex23]

Quote: There is no "BEST" version. Thats like asking whats the best car.

I assumed as much I just wanted to see what everyones opinion was.

[Mooga]

blik Wrote:Linux 2.6.26.2 is best version at time of writing.

haha, very funny.
I think he's talking about Distros, not the latest kernal...

[defex]

I find Ubuntu is a good and common distro, with a decent following that means you can find answers to almost any question using google. In the same category, debian would be just as good, if not better since it doesn't assume so much about what you're going to use it for.

Although many other distros seem pretty good as well. Not having tried them extensively, openSuse looks like a very stable distro (especially coming out of the offices of novell), but could do without the extra baggage (i.e. lose KDE, and recompile the kernel would be a definite plus for openSuse). Fedora Core could be a good choice coming from the offices of RedHat, but I haven't actually tried it before myself. Gentoo seems to be pretty solid as well, but as a user that was introduced to linux via debian, I easily get lost in gentoo and find myself relying on google for answers more than usual.

Since all linux distros tend to be treated like equals by the masses, you may get better results by asking more specific questions about each distro, i.e. which one is generally easier to use, easier to modify, easier to secure, more compatible, has better community support. because as blik helpfully pointed out , they are all just different takes on the same underlying kernel that have taken different development paths.

[trewq]

You will find everyone has a different opinion on this, I like Ubuntu Server Edition and OpenSUSE.

[ClanWoof]

Yeah I have used a few myself, Ubuntu Fedora, OpenSUSE, damn small linux, and many others. Like others said they all run with the same kernels petty much, find one you like and use it. I'm still playing with what type I want to use.

[G-Nugget]

I use Fedora for my server. Before I put srcds on it, I was (and still am) using it for local filesharing, music serving via DAAP (iTunes), FTP, Folding at Home, and torrenting. It was easy to set up as almost all of that stuff is installed by default or is included on the install disc.

[ClanWoof]

Yeah, fedora was great but I was super new to linux when I started with it. Asked for help and it took way to long for a reply so I went to ubuntu to learn more. I'll be playing with fedora on my new server I got.

[mimic]

I've personally be using Debian. It's fast, easy to setup, and doesn't come loaded with a lot of useless features that the other distro's do.

[m0-]

There is no such thing as the best distro (when referring to the main ones).

I would not use ubuntu. It has way too much software prebuilt and it has a UI. Gnome and KDE is not needed for a server and I personally don't like that. If you want to install a dedicated server...There are many to choose:

Code:

Current Distributions      Min Space
Arch Linux 2007.08    436 MB
Centos 5.0         594 MB
Debian 4.0         200 MB
Fedora Core 9         1175 MB
Gentoo 2007.0         1800 MB
OpenSUSE 11.0         850 MB
Slackware 12.0         315 MB
Ubuntu 8.04 LTS     400 MB
Ubuntu 8.04 LTS 64 Bit     350 MB
CentOS 4.0 (RHEL)    800 MB
Mandrake 9.1 (Small)     775 MB
OpenSUSE 10.3         605 MB

I personally would use debian, slackware, or gentoo. Cause I have experience in them, and I could customize them while compiling the kernel step by step. So my server will be just dedicated to what I need it to be. No extra mods, plugins, etc.

[CarVac]

My experience shows that ubuntu has the same performance as gentoo. And, ubuntu server has no gui by default. So don't disregard it.

[ClanWoof]

Yeah like Car said, it does not come with gui. It's a little larger than just Debian and slackware as it also has more drivers and so on. As you said it's all about who has the experience on them. I need to try Debian again myself.