June 08, 2011
The Importance of Proactive Sever Security
Security is a major issue that impacts both web hosting providers providing hosting services and clients managing websites on a daily basis. While in reality there’s a 100% tamper-proof solution ceases to exist, there are several platforms that tend to offer more enhanced security measures as compared to others. With much debate lent to Microsoft Windows and Linux regarding security concerns, each has its strengths and weaknesses when discussed in relation to web hosting.
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a popular platform that leads simply with brand recognition hosted on ASP and ASP.NET. Perhaps the greatest strength of Windows hosting is a focus on limiting privileges for users. In simple terms, users are automatically logged in to a Windows’ Server as standard users and then prompted to enter passwords and begin using administrative privileges once granted by the main server’s administrator. This prevents novice users from accessing secured files as well as thwarting malicious programs. Upon a security breach, Microsoft assigns the issue to an authorized Microsoft security team.
Linux
In general, Linux is considered to be a safer option as compared to Windows as it has fewer known threats and breaches to the severs. Windows is notorious for being the target of security infringements from hackers and attacks from malware. Simply put: Linux has fewer known targeted malware issues. Perhaps the reason for fewer attacks can be contributed to the fact that as an open-source community, Linux responds immediately to security issues providing patches as soon as possible for user download.
Server Hardening
Regardless of the chosen platform, server hardening is vital to ensure security measures. The process focuses on making improvements to the server’s default configuration. Server hardening includes tasks such as changing passwords frequently, specific extensions and granting secure access to user accounts.
Windows Server Hardening
Windows offers a variety of security features depending on respective versions. Windows 2003 utilizes the Security Compliance manager to analyze and upgrade security issues. Later versions including Windows 2008 allows users access to the Security Configuration Wizard to ensure security measures.
Linux Server Hardening
The most common versions of Linux, CentOS, offers similar security features including SELinux security extensions somewhat comparable to Windows’ security software. Additionally, AppARMOR is also an open-source alternative utilized in kernel level Linux server hardening.
Ultimate Server Security
Despite the preferred operating system choice, the ultimate sever that guarantees optimal security measures is a managed dedicated server to support web hosting needs. The secure hosting prevents unauthorized users from accessing accounts, thwarts malware attacks and places responsibility for server hardening on the web hosting provider.
While a dedicated server is not always a viable option, especially for small business ventures, the security measures and convenience is a worthwhile investment. For those that can’t afford such hosting options, then taking responsibility for server hardening and other proactive steps to prevent security breaches is essential.
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