Most servers around the world run Linux. The same goes for almost all supercomputers. That’s astonishing in a capitalist world where absolutely everything is commodified. Why can’t these big tech companies manage to sell their own software to server operators or supercomputers? Why is an open, free project that is free for users so superior here?
I want to add; MS actively discourages running Windows Server with a GUI. It’s meant to be headless and managed by PowerShell.
Yeah, and I’m not here to say Windows Server is always the wrong choice. Windows Server is the champion of directory services, because Active Directory is king. Windows Server can also do neat things like run WSUS and stuff. It has its place. In larger deployments, it’s likely typical to run a variety of servers in GUI-less mode, and then have one GUI-equipped install for management.
That being said, my experience is that almost all Windows Server deployments I’ve found in the field have had the GUI, and have therefore been rather sluggish. It’s just part of how it works.
Which IME almost no one does. If you’re already going to be interacting with a server solely through a CLI, why not just use Linux on the first place.
Sometimes you’re stuck running IIS or SQL Server or the like. Can’t think of anything personal I’d have to run on Windows Server, but commercial is another world. In any case, I always ran headless given the option.