Search Engine Optimisation And Different Server Types – We Define The Core Differences And Advantages

Many people order their webhosting without giving the options at hand a lot thought, however the truth of the matter is that there are some very important differences between the choices of server on offer. These variations can have a huge impact on how SEO friendly your website will be. The principle issues at hand relating to server selection that any website owner needs to pay attention to are the fact that URL’s ought to be case sensitive, and server configuration should be in the hands of the domain owner and not the web host. As knowledgeable provider of SEO Services I have experience of working with a variety of servers, and thought I might share my findings relating to the advantages and disadvantages of each server type.

Microsoft IIS 6.0

The Microsoft IIS 6.0 server has been around for a long while now, and was launched around 2003. Many websites are still hosted on this type of server and in reality the Microsoft IIS 6.0 has a market share of just over a quarter of all web sites at 27%. You would be forgiven for thinking that a server with a following of so many users must have some Organic SEO benefits, however in truth the reverse is true, from an search engine optimization perspective the Microsoft IIS 6.0 is a bit of a dog, the total lack of case sensitivity in urls for example, implies that your web site is wide open to abuse should competitors wish to construct links to case variations of your urls and cause you all kinds of canonical problems. Additionally, the fact that server configuration cannot be changed by means of a user edited file comparable to Apache’s .htaccess, means that even the most mundane server configuration activity, such as resolving non www. queries straight back to the www. domain can become a chore.

Microsoft IIS 7.0

Microsoft marketed this server as “new and improved” but the reality is that from an Organic SEO standpoint there is little to smile about. Microsoft still failed to acknowledge the need for case sensitive urls, and in true Microsoft style they also failed to hand over control of server configuration to the end user, instead opting to keep the existing server side control panel server management arrangement which was employed in their earlier IIS releases.

Lightspeed Servers

Lightspeed servers are an enormous step up from the servers on offer from Microsoft, and are, as their name suggests lightspeed servers are very fast performers. The intelligent individuals at lightspeed recognized the need to provide the end user with a method of configuring their server, and therefore the lightspeed supports the .htaccess technique of configuration as used by apache servers. Lightspeed supports all commonly used apache .htaccess configurations. The improved caching for .htaccess means that the lightspeed actually outperforms apache servers regarding the time required to serve a page. Nevertheless, there remains one deadly flaw with lightspeed servers, and that is the lack of a case sensitive file system. Any skilled SEO will tell you that search engines like google will view two different case variations of the same url as two different locations, and therefore two separate pages. If the folks over at lightspeed actually tackle this one major drawback they will then have a server that might potentially wipe the floor with the only real competitors they have, that’s to say the top dog of servers, the apache/linux.

Apache Linux.

The apache / linux server is the most popular server on the market, and for good reason. It supports case sensitive URL’s as standard and is highly configurable, urls can easily be rewritten by the end user through a .htaccess file, that is small text file that permits server configuration to be altered by way of FTP. Resolving non www. queries can be achieved in a matter of two minutes, and server security may be configured just as quickly and easily. No other server in the marketplace can match the Apache server for its SEO friendliness, even though apache servers are actually now quite old. Apache has been the worlds hottest server since 1996, and continues to be the one which providers of SEO Services, across the globe will recommend.

High Impact SEO Services, are an award winning search engine optimization company based in Leeds. HISEO boast a formidable record of attaining results in highly aggressive markets. For details of the SEO Packages on offer at High Impact SEO, check out our website today.