We performed a comparison between CentOS and Windows Server based on our users’ reviews in four categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.
Comparison Results: In this comparison, CentOS has a slight edge over Windows Server because it is free whereas Windows Server is considered expensive. Users also favor the technical support they receive from CentOS.
"CentOS is very efficient and very powerful with many capabilities."
"CentOS' best feature is that it's the standard product for Linux, so it's well-supported."
"The most valuable features of CentOS are it is built from Linux, has good performance, and can we can create scripts. The scripts are you to do minor work automatically."
"We particularly like that we can remove the graphic user interface to minimize attack settings for the operating system."
"It's a good and stable system. It provides everything you need for web servers and database servers."
"I like the command prompt of CentOS. It's very simple."
"The product is very efficient when it comes to virtualization."
"CentOS is very easy to use, and all the commands are user-friendly."
"The installation process is great."
"This product works well for the applications that we have hosted on it."
"If everything is configured correctly this solution provides high performance. Building a Failover Cluster is comparatively much easier in Windows Server than any of the Linux-based solutions."
"The solution is very easy to configure."
"It is easy to use, and its performance is good."
"The capabilities and beta securities are important features. The IP directory is the most valuable feature."
"I like that Windows Server is easy to use."
"From the very beginning, I have been using a Windows-based OS so for me, it's very easy because it's GUI compared to command line or something Linux-based."
"There is no notification before updates are applied to the solution, which occasionally means that new functionality isn't compatible with how the product is currently being used, and causes issues."
"It would be ideal if Red Hat would continue the CentOS versions in an open-source format. They seem to be moving away from that. Now only paid versions are available."
"In terms of commands, it's all CLI and there isn't any GUI which can make it challenging to use for some people."
"The server system is a little bit tough to manage."
"CentOS NetworkManager is an area of concern in the solution that needs improvement, and it is the same with other products from Red Hat."
"The tool has no official support."
"If CentOS could add Office features then that would be beneficial. Additionally, the UI could improve."
"If a proper GUI-based tool was connected remotely or on the machine, it could be a great addition to CentOS."
"With Microsoft, there are always bugs, and the stability could be improved."
"I would like to see better performance and more integration options in the next release of Windows Server."
"The solution is old so it is not user friendly. I assume that he newer versions would be better than our current one."
"It would help if there was a possibility to postpone some updates. If some are not required, it could speed up the process of starting up the operating system. Sometimes big workloads related to services are running directly on the system itself and not the application. This is what I have noticed"
"Support for direct USB recognition for the virtual machines would improve this solution."
"The security is not good."
"The stability could be improved."
"It would be nice if the solution was a bit cheaper. The product is a little pricey."
CentOS is ranked 5th in Operating Systems (OS) for Business with 63 reviews while Windows Server is ranked 4th in Operating Systems (OS) for Business with 180 reviews. CentOS is rated 8.2, while Windows Server is rated 8.0. The top reviewer of CentOS writes "Allows you to securely store data, and command prompts make it simple to use". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Windows Server writes "Easy to setup, stable and caters to my wide range of use cases but lacks user-friendly interface". CentOS is most compared with Oracle Linux, Ubuntu Linux, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), SUSE Linux Enterprise and openSUSE Leap, whereas Windows Server is most compared with Ubuntu Linux, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), Windows 10, Oracle Linux and SUSE Linux Enterprise. See our CentOS vs. Windows Server report.
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We monitor all Operating Systems (OS) for Business reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.
