Why Do Most Servers Run Linux? Uncover the Historical and Technical Reasons

1. Answer from Zhihu user “熊大你又骗俺”

About twenty years ago, the Windows Server + IIS + ASP + Access stack was popular for small‑business sites because it was simple and required little configuration. Forums like “动网论坛” used ASP + Access without even needing ODBC. Later, a company released an ASP.NET‑based news system and a DLL‑protected version called “动易”. Windows hosting often bundled these components, while PHP rose quickly due to its ease of use.

2. Answer from Zhihu user “Sental Cristar”

IIS bears much of the responsibility for Windows losing the server market. Early on Windows Server had advantages such as built‑in FTP and a GUI for ASP configuration, which appealed to novice admins. However, its closed nature, poor support for languages like PHP and Ruby, and tight coupling with ASP.NET created many deployment issues. Around 2005, Apache, Nginx, and Lighttpd—built on lightweight poll/epoll models—offered far higher concurrency and easier configuration, causing the web‑server business to shift to Linux.

3. Answer from Zhihu user “Kero”

When setting up a game server, the author first tried Windows Server because tutorials were Windows‑centric, but the required VC and DirectX runtimes were hard to obtain. Switching to Ubuntu allowed a simple apt install of steamcmd and the server binary, and the server ran smoothly with a modest 4 CPU × 8 GB instance, something impractical on Windows for similar workloads.

4. Answer from Zhihu user “hyu jj”

Windows server licensing is expensive—around ¥100,000 for a legitimate copy—whereas Linux is free.

5. Answer from Zhihu user “Sven”

From an infrastructure perspective, Linux offers several advantages: a massive ecosystem that drives tool adoption, lightweight distributions (e.g., Alpine) that reduce resource footprints, and native container support. Windows and macOS face many limitations that prevent them from being first‑class container hosts, making Linux the natural choice for modern server‑side deployment.

6. Answer from Zhihu user “水雷”

Historically Microsoft opposed open source; Bill Gates once wrote a famous letter denouncing piracy. Microsoft’s revenue relied on selling Windows and Office, and the company viewed software as something that must be paid for. Over time, open‑source projects—often started by academia and hobbyists—grew into a dominant ecosystem, eventually forcing Microsoft to embrace open source.

7. Answer from Zhihu user “没有人”

The prevailing question should be “Why does Linux dominate now?” rather than “Why not Windows?”. Early Windows server versions were limited, and Linux, released in 1991 as a free kernel compatible with Unix, quickly gained traction because it was cost‑free, had a rich ecosystem, and matched the skill set taught in schools. As the industry matured, the “Matthew effect” cemented Linux’s position, while Windows remained niche for server use.