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.
"The product's initial setup phase was straightforward and not complex, especially if you are familiar with CLI."
"The scalability of CentOS is good. We can deploy the operating system in many hardware, laptops, and servers."
"The user access level is most valuable. When you do administration with CentOS, the number of customizations that you can do for each user is higher than other solutions. It is very customizable."
"The user interface of CentOS is intuitive, we can also use the command prompt."
"The most valuable feature is that it is compatible with RedHat."
"It is a scalable and cost-effective product compared to public cloud solutions."
"The stability of this solution is its most useful feature. It is a high quality product and you know what you're getting. You also receive wide support from the community."
"CentOS' best feature is that it's the standard product for Linux, so it's well-supported."
"Nothing is required for the maintenance of the solution, Microsoft does everything. It is very good and robust."
"The performance is good."
"Overall, Windows Server 2016 provides a stable environment for some of the very large workloads that it is subjected to in our organization, and it is very easy to use."
"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 easy to use. We are satisfied with its performance."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is Hyper-V Live Migration for Critical applications."
"The stability of the Windows Server is good."
"The installation of the solution is becoming easier every year after new releases. The first installation can take an hour but you can use templates to make the installation very quick."
"The solution could improve by being more user-friendly."
"We would like Red Hat to keep supporting the solution but they have decided to get rid of it and there isn't much we can do about it."
"CentOS is not easy."
"The solution is stable, however, it could always be even more stable if possible."
"If a proper GUI-based tool was connected remotely or on the machine, it could be a great addition to CentOS."
"The interface could be improved."
"There could be more integration features included in the product."
"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."
"The performance could be a bit better."
"Better integration with more platforms would be useful."
"If an architecture is complex, the setup phase takes time."
"Resolving problems in the Windows environment should be improved."
"The stability could be improved."
"The solution needs container compatibility."
"Windows Server should lower pricing."
"We encounter issues related to the product's UI when multiple users access the same machine."
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 Windows 11. 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.
