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Amazon Linux vs Windows Server comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Amazon Linux
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
16th
Average Rating
9.0
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Windows Server
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
5th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
194
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

Henry Rivera - PeerSpot reviewer
Reliable documentation and support streamline deployment and troubleshooting
The best features with Amazon Linux include the integration with AWS and other services. It is an operating system that AWS manages, and I feel I can trust it regarding the updates without interfering with or interrupting services. The performance of Amazon Linux with AWS services is perfectly fine. I use it and change the instance type to give it more resources at times, and for the sandbox, I give it less, and it satisfies what we want. Amazon Linux reduces the time it would take for setup or deployment because I rely on the documentation for AWS since it's streamlined, and the commands I need to run are easily accessible whenever I need to look up anything. We've used the application load balancers with Amazon Linux, and that's the main one I can think of regarding advanced networking capabilities. That feature has definitely helped us enhance the scalability and reliability of our cloud applications by easing administration, as the application load balancer is managed by AWS and ties in with Amazon Certificate Manager, ensuring I do not have to concern myself with scalability and any updates. The main positive impact of Amazon Linux on my company has been no interruptions of services. The public website is up and running, which allows us to monetize with virtually no staff hours for downtime or service interruptions.
Jai Prakash Sharma - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient Management Achieved with Internal Resources and Reliable Technical Support
Maintenance of Windows Server varies by organization, but for us, it's not very difficult as we have in-house resources managing these tasks. However, it can become a bit tricky when we want to see a collated view of our security posture. Regarding AI integrations with Windows Server, Copilot adoption is progressing, though I have only experienced it on endpoints and not on the server side. We operate significant workloads on AI, but we consume those primarily on Linux rather than Windows Server. I don't have much experience regarding integration capabilities in Windows Server for AI workloads, so I may not be the right person to provide insights on that. Overall, I am quite happy with my experience using Windows Server. I don't have many constraints or concerns, so I would rate it eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Whenever I deploy solutions on Amazon Linux, I almost never have to worry about the operating system."
"Windows Server is most commonly used and practiced."
"Operating system with a good interface that can run applications."
"The product offers in-house servers. It helps us update them and check any technical issues easily."
"The solution is user-friendly, the UI looks good, and there are new versions every year. Each new version is very different, better, and cleaner."
"The stability and performance are great."
"This solution is easy to use."
"The tool supports many applications."
"One of the most valuable features of Windows Server is that it is easy to use. Also, with Windows, everything is integrated."
 

Cons

"I have honestly never had any problems with Amazon Linux, aside from disk space issues."
"The solution's licensing cost is expensive and could be improved."
"They could provide a lot of patches for the platform."
"It would be better if the license had a longer lifetime."
"While the solution is stable, it could be more so."
"We encounter issues related to the product's UI when multiple users access the same machine."
"The initial setup is simple for some but difficult for others."
"Windows Server could always be more secure."
"As for additional features, we are very interested in the new feature released by Windows: Azure Virtual Desktop. We are currently exploring it so that instead of people depending on their own desktop, we could work on Azure Virtual Desktop. Integration with Azure Virtual Desktop would be cool."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"I rate the product's pricing an eight out of ten."
"The solution requires licencing."
"We have purchased a perpetual license to use the solution."
"We had to purchase the solution and also the licenses to go on each computer system."
"It's expensive, but we have a need for it and have to purchase it."
"I'm not involved much in the payment part, but I believe that we pay a yearly subscription for licensing."
"The price of the solution could be reduced and there is a license required."
"We pay these on an annual basis."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Government
8%
University
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Amazon Linux?
In my opinion, for improvement, Amazon Linux could make better integration with third-party vendors, perhaps enhance user experience or lower the price compared to other Linux solutions. For the fu...
What is your primary use case for Amazon Linux?
My use case for Amazon Linux is mostly for running containers. I am using SELinux for enhanced security in Amazon Linux, and it is helpful for me.
What advice do you have for others considering Amazon Linux?
I am not using IPv6 and I'm okay with that. On a scale of one to ten, I rate Amazon Linux an eight.
What needs improvement with Windows Server?
I don't have experience with Windows Server containers and Kubernetes for deploying cloud-native applications. I cannot provide specific improvements for Windows Server because I don't have extensi...
What is your primary use case for Windows Server?
At the office, the main use case for Windows Server involves different functions, for example, file server or firewall and the IIS server, Microsoft Internet Server, Internet Information Services. ...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Rakuten, Rackspace, Tyco
Find out what your peers are saying about Amazon Linux vs. Windows Server and other solutions. Updated: August 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.