Operating Systems

Operating Systems

Glen Barnhardt, James Bowlin, Cynthia Fonfana, Brad Furby,

Edwin Jordan, Jacob Painter, Gregory Matsuura

University of Phoenix

POS/355 Introduction to Operating Systems

February 5, 2012

Jibing Xiao

Operating Systems

Wikipedia says, “An operating system (OS) is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software.” Operating systems can be found on anything from small devices, computers, to phones. It is the intention of this document to compare Windows 7, Windows 2008 Server, and Red Hat for Servers Version 6 operating systems. We will describe the general information, technical information, security, and commands associated with each OS.

General Information

The cost of all three of these operating systems varies a lot. The cheapest of the three is Windows 7 which costs between $119.99-$219.99 from the developer. The cost of this product depends on which version is being purchased different versions offer more features. The other two OS's can range from relatively cheap to very expensive. Windows 2008 Server can cost between $500 and $1,000. This wide disparity in price depends on how many Client Access Licenses are needed. The cost of Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Servers Version 6 can cost between $349 and $18,000. The low range is for few sockets with little support. The high range is for many sockets on mainframes.

The developer of both Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 is Microsoft. Windows 7 is Microsoft's successor to Windows Vista. Windows 7 was released for retail on October 22, 2009. Windows Server 2008 was Microsoft's successor to Windows Server 2003. Windows Server 2008 was released for retail on February 27, 2008. Red Hat developed Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Servers Version 6. The original version of this product was released on March 31, 2003, and version 6 was released on November 10, 2010.

All three of the operating systems are still supported by...