Linux is nothing but an operating system that was started by Linus Torvalds, at the University of Helsinki in Finland. Linux is used for a large number of applications such as networking, development of software and as end-user platform. People often consider Linux to be an excellent and a not very expensive substitute to a lot of other expensive operating systems. Because of Linux’s good functions and its availability, it is quite in demand all across the world and a large number of s/w programmers are making use of the Linux’s source code in order to meet their individual needs.

Linux is a total operating system, which has stability, reliability and is extremely powerful. It is also equipped with excellent networking facilities thus allowing you to share CPU’s, share modems etc. It also provides an operating system that is easily upgradeable. Linux has the largest market share as far as the Internet is concerned and also has a major share as a server operating system.

A server is nothing but a computer that sits on a network waiting for clients to ask for things. It communicates with the world through its network cable. Many different server programs can be running at once and a server can thus be responding to many kinds of requests. The server is capable of responding to several requests in a quick and a simultaneous manner.

Linux is a very good Internet server and it often outperforms Windows NT, Novell and many other Unix systems. It is also used by several leading businesses for its better network performance.

Linux servers are a less expensive alternative to Microsoft servers

Linux is not own by any one person. There are companies out there that have packaged this operating system for particular users. There are quite a few of them since it is still being developed as we speak of today. Some of the versions out there are:

Red Hat- This distribution is the best know in the United States. There are chances of it being supported by large server hardware vendors like IBM, Hewlett-Packard and Dell. If you were considering using Linux as the server for your company, this would be considered to be the best due to the hardware support for it.

SuSE – If your needs are more oriented towards home and small office, then this distribution is more suited for those first time users who want to experiment with it. This Linux version also offers support for large-scale servers.

Linux-Mandrake- its reputation is that it is the easiest distribution for new Linux users to install and learn. There are quirks to its operations, but they are not harmful.

Many other distributions exist out there. It is recommended to seek advice from LUGs (Linux User Group) which can provide advice you need to get started.