Choosing an operating system
You can run whatever you like on your machine. Here is how we would decide, in the order that matters.
Take the one you already know
At three in the morning, familiarity beats every feature list. If your team reads Debian, install Debian. The distribution that costs you least is the one whose error messages you recognise.
Then look at the support window
A server you install today may well run for four years. Pick a release with security updates for at least that long: a Debian stable, an Ubuntu LTS, an enterprise-class Red Hat derivative, or a FreeBSD release branch. A short-lived release means a reinstall you did not plan.
Then what your software expects
Panels, hypervisors and vendor packages are often tested against a short list of distributions. The free DirectAdmin licence that comes with your server is a good example — check the supported list before you install, not after.
BSD and anything exotic
Our engineers run Linux and BSD daily, so neither surprises us. Anything we do not offer as a ready image you can install yourself over remote KVM from your own media. It is your machine.
What we do not do
We do not pick for you and we do not maintain it afterwards. The server is unmanaged: the operating system is yours from the first boot.
Still stuck? Mail support@novogara.com — an engineer answers, at any hour. Back to the knowledge base