UNIX is indeed a multi-user and multi-tasking operating system. For that, it has been known to be used for web servers and high workloads. In this article, we’re reviewing UNIX benefits and drawbacks.
UNIX is guaranteeing great features for its users. And what’s awesome is that their drawbacks are really few which doesn’t happen in larger operating systems.
In 1969, UNIX has been re-shaped from being a limited operating system into a larger one. It has been made to offer tons of additional features for businesses and larger corporations.
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UNIX at that time has intended to serve the business world and the everyday transactions and operations. Yet, Windows – until right today – is the most preferable operating system in the world.
History of UNIX Operating System:
Around the 70s, UNIX has been approved to be used in universities and high researching institutes. While it has been agreed to be used for educational purposes, they restricted it for marketing purposes at that time.
A group of programmers was working on computer development. It wasn’t very big at that time. And UNIX since then has been ignored for a long time. Their trials and errors resulted in UNIX operating system development.
UNIX has been written originally in the C programming language. Right today, UNIX is using a wide range of varieties such as; AIX, POSIX, and HP-UX.
The popularity of the system has widely increased in 1974. And by 1966, the UNIX operating system was being used in 500 different locations. 125 of them all were universities and research institutes.
By the beginning of 1984, there were about 100,000 UNIX system installations all over the world, running on microprocessors, mainframes and on machines across different manufacturers’ product lines.
Uses of UNIX:
UNIX is very ideal for utility servers such as; Domain Name Systems (DNS), Web Servers, and Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP).
It has been built to preserve the server resources for running applications instead of utilizing them all in operating and booting. By doing this, It allows running applications effectively and smoothly.
UNIX can basically provide you with a stable and safe platform for running advanced web applications. And this was exactly how the internet has come to what it is today!
UNIX Benefits & Advantages:
On choosing the UNIX operating system, you will definitely get to enjoy a huge list of features and advantages. Like I’ve mentioned, UNIX is ideal for running web servers. And here are why it is features-packed:
- Portable Operating System: UNIX can be used on either PC or Macintosh computers. And this makes it portable to be used on different platforms for different users.
- Performing Complex Tasks: UNIX is among those few operating systems that let you perform complex tasks easily with minimal load on server resources. Thus, it has been intended to serve specific business tasks.
- Minimal Memory Usage: While you may be running various commands and utilizing server resources, UNIX has been intended to run these tasks flawlessly with the minimal level of physical memory usage.
All these features are orbiting around the same idea of serving more tasks for as minimal resources as possible. This is exactly why this system is really favorable for webmasters and server owners.
UNIX Disadvantages & Drawbacks:
While being so efficient in serving complex tasks, UNIX is having a few other limitations. Let’s dive in further to mention the drawbacks and how it may be affecting server resources and tasks handling.
- Command-line based: It’s mainly designed for programmers who know commands very well. Accordingly, it will be very different for basic or casual users. Recently, they’ve launched a graphical user interface (GUI). Yet, the traditional interface is only available as command-line based.
- Cryptic Commands: the commands have cryptic names and give little response to direct the user through their activities. The majority of the commands used in the UNIX entail the use of special characters. And this makes it very hard for casual users to understand or deal with the operating system.
Conclusion:
That was it all in details about the benefits and disadvantages or UNIX operating system. It’s indeed a strong operating system. Yet, it requires experienced users to deal with since it’s all command-line based.
Since the 70s, UNIX has been growing in users base. Many are using UNIX. Furthermore, UNIX is being widely used for web servers and clusters to serve websites and web applications.
Please let me know in the comments below shall you’ve got any questions or inquiries. That was it all and in details around the benefits and drawbacks of UNIX operating system.
