Linux vs Unix

In this series of articles based on Linux, we have already compared the world’s best operating system – Linux, with Windows and found that Linux is greater than Windows by a colossal difference! Today, we are bringing an opponent that is actually worthy of competing with Linux!

Let us not compare Linux with operating systems like Windows and macOS. Instead, let us directly compare it to the mother of all operating systems – Unix.

In this article, let us compare Linux and Unix and find out which is the best and why as we go through various factors. So grab a snack, pay attention, and read right to the end!

Why compare Linux and Unix?

One main reason to compare Linux – the greatest operating system the world has ever seen, and Unix – the mother of all languages, is that Linux Torvalds wrote the source code of Linux based on the course code of Unix.

In other words, we can say that Linux is based on Unix. Why? Well, Linus Torvalds thought of creating a freely available version of UNIX. It was initially a personal project for him, which turned out to be the world’s best operating system.

Linus wanted to develop a better version of UNIX, and even today, it continues to be better than UNIX in every aspect despite UNIX being the mother of Linux. Unlike Linux, Unix is available for use only by their copyrighters. Even now, Unix has only one common environment called GNOME, whereas Linux uses many desktop interfaces like KDE, LXQt, GNOME, and many others.

Difference between Linux and Unix

Now let us get to the point: Linux Vs Unix. Let us compare both operating systems based on various topics and determine a winner.

Users

You may think Unix is a widespread operating system that is available for everyone, like other operating systems like Windows, Linux, macOS, and more. But the hard truth is that it is available only by its copyrighters.

Unix is available only for vendors or users with a source code copyright. On the other hand, Linux is open to all of the 8 billion people on planet Earth. So anyone can install and use Linux at any given point in time.

Winner: Since Linux is more widely available, it is a win for Linux. However, there is a reason why Unix is not mass-used. It is because Unix is developed mainly for servers, workstations, and mainframes and is not very user-friendly.

Development

The development of an operating system is very much related to the ownership of the operating system. Unix and Linux prove to be excellent examples. Unix is developed and owned by AT&T labs. Therefore the only developers are the programmers at AT&T labs and the various commercial vendors who share the copyright.

However, Linux is community-driven, meaning that with regular monitoring from every nook and cranny of the world, any problem will be solved quickly. Apart from the constant debugging of problems, they also contribute to the advancement and development of the Linux operating system.

Winner: Since Linux is community-based and not privately owned like Unix, the developer working on it are higher in number, meaning faster development, and users can use an up-to-date OS with all the latest features.

Cost

As we saw above, Linux is owned by AT&T labs and is available only to its copyrighters. These copyright vendors decide on different costs for their respective Unix Operating systems.

But Linux is an entirely free-to-use operating system. So, of course, there are apid distributions or options of Linux, but you can get its free counterpart that works just fine!

Winner: One of the most important aspects of a sound operating system is user-friendly and pocket-friendly. Linux shoots, and Linux scores!

Open-source

The source code of Unix is not open source, meaning it is not available for free for anyone to tinker with it. That is precisely why it has a copyright; you will have to pay some amount out of your pocket to obtain it.

This is where Linux takes the lead! Linux’s source code is entirely free, and it means two things. First, it is free to obtain, and you have the total freedom to modify and even sell the modified source code.

This is how distros like Debian, Ubuntu, Mint, and a thousand more are born! Moreover, since Linux is under the GNU GPL license, you can obtain the source code free of cost.

Winner: It is really obvious that Linux is the winner.

Distributions

This field is slightly hard to distinguish. Since the source code of Linux is completely free, you can make any modification you wish and later publish this altered source code as another distro. Linux has thousands of distributions, and with these thousands of Linux distros, it is tough not to find the distro that will match all your needs. Won’t believe me, let us look at some examples:

If you want the allrounder, go for Ubuntu; if you want to game, you go for manjaro; if you want the best GUI, go for mint. If you want a sinister OS for network security and digital forensics, go for Kali; if you want a lightweight operating system that uses your system’s resources efficiently, you go for Slax. I can go on and on forever.

However, Unix does not lag behind here because despite Unix being a hardcore operating system with very few users, there are so many distributions of Unix too. Here are a few examples: FreeBSD, IBM AIX, Oracle Solaris, HP – UX, OpenBSD, and many more. The mind-boggling part is that even Linux is considered a distribution of Unix as it is based on the source code of Unix.

Winner: It may seem that Linux is the winner as it has lots of distribution, but we all know that quality prevails over quantity. Therefore it would be a tie between Linux and Unix when it comes to distributions.

GUI

Unlike Microsoft Windows and macOS, Linux and Unix are known for their terminal. But to make up a user-friendly operating system, it needs good graphics too. Thankfully Linux has many desktop interfaces like GNOME, KDE, Xfce, cinnamon, and many more.

Over the years, the GUI has gotten so better that mint is now the most desired Linux-based operating system in the world. It even has the feature to mimic windows. The desktop interfaces in most Linux distros are very customisable, and if you feel like it isn’t much pre-packaged for you, you can always download more from the web.

But on the other hand, Unix does not shine that well with its story of GUI. Initially, the GUI was a command-based OS, but a Common Desktop Environment called GNOME was created later. I am not saying that GNOME is not good. However, it is the most used desktop interface on Linux distros, so command that even Ubuntu uses it.

Gnome is one of the best interfaces offered on Linux-based operating systems. It is simple, beautiful, and elegant. Most importantly, you can customise it to your will as it already comes with many pre-installed themes, and if at all you need more, feel free to download them from the internet.

Since Ubuntu is not a very mainstream operating system, The GNOME desktop interface is more than enough. In addition, the desktop interface “MATE”, used in Mint OS (The most used Linux distro), is also based on GNOME!

Winner: When it comes to GUI, both Linux and Unix are tied. Linux offers desktop interfaces for particular purposes. For example, the Xfce desktop environment is for lightweight operating systems like Slax to run on mediocre hardware and use the device resources efficiently.

Security

This is another place where Linux and Unix both shine equally. They both provide extremely high-level security. For example, both operating systems ask for user authentication in the form of a password before running any application or program if you need to be the root user or have elevated privileges even to install anything.

Linux and Unix are multiuser architectures, yet they are more secure than a single-user OS like Windows. These operating systems are so secure that they have recorded less than a hundred viruses.

Winner: well, there is no sole winner between Linux and Unix regarding security. Both of them are highly secure, but on the downside, if there is any threat, the community will resolve it faster in Linux, while Unix users need a longer wait time to get the proper bug-fixing patch.

Kernel

We discussed the GUI and saw that both Linux and Unix are tied. It is the same story when it comes to the terminal. The terminal is a godsend boon for many people. With the many command and options, you can do so many things that you can’t do with the graphical user interface. The terminal is solely about efficiency, as there are no extra clicks or nicks.

In the initial stages, Linux’s default and only shell was BASH, and Unix’s was the Bourne shell. But today, both operating systems support multiple command interpreters like KORN, FISH, CSH, POSIX, TENEX, ZSH, and more. 

Winner: Well, there is no winner, the terminal being the sole heart of these operating systems, and both of them have a good heart.

Stability and performance

Another field where Linux and Unix shine alike is stability and performance. What more do I need to say than “98% of all supercomputers run Unix-based operating systems”? We all know that supercomputers need epic stability under high loads of processing data, and that is the exact reason they don’t run windows!

Many Linux and Unix servers on the internet have been running for years without failure or even being restarted. Even though they both support multitasking and multiuser, multiple users can run multiple applications and tasks simultaneously without hindering the system speed, which helps in workflow efficiency. The best part of all of this, Linux and Unix are never known for slowing down or crashing!

Winner: none. Linux and Unix are designed to run mainly on servers, workstations, and mainframes. To do so, they need excellent stability and performance unheard of.

Architecture

The Linux operating system was initially developed for Intel’s x86 hardware processors. It was only later that it was available for over twenty types of CPU, including an ARM.

Unix is also versatile enough for the few users and purposes it is used for. It is available on Itanium and PA-RISC machines. These are the types of devices that are used primarily for servers, workstations, and mainframes.

Winner: none. Since Linux is more widely used, it has a point being available for many system configurations, unlike Unix, which is hardcore.

Supported file type

Linux supports various file types like xfs, nfs, cramfsm, ufs, devpts, NTFS, Ext2, Ext3, Ext4, Jfs, ReiserFS, Btrfs, FAT, FAT32, and so many more. On the other hand, Unix also supports many filesystems like fs, gpfs, hfs, hfs+, ufs, xfs, and zfs but is lesser than Linux.

Winner: Since Linux supports more filesystems than Unix, it is only fair to give a point to Linux.

The verdict: Linux vs Unix

Though I want to say that Linux is the winner, I would like to also say that Unix played a very worthy opponent, so tough that it tied 5 out of the nine fields we compared them with!

At the end of the, it does not matter how many fields you win or lose. What matters is if you are doing your job properly. Unix is doing an excellent job of being a hardcore operating system focused solely on servers, mainframes, workstations, and more. It was never meant to be user-friendly or mass used. That is why it is costly and not open source but still competes with Linux in every other criterion.

The fact that Linux is open-source made it the winner before we even started comparing. Since it is open source, there are many distributions, bug fixes, updates, faster development, and countless other reasons. Since Unix is not user-friendly, the only option is to go for Linux, which has thousands of distros you can choose from.

Should you switch to Linux?

YES! simply yes. You must switch now because you are missing a lot in life! At first, when you begin, there might be a learning curve, but you will get the hang of it and may even prefer the terminal over the GUI!

On a serious note, beginners usually quit using Linux and give excuses, saying it is very technical and complicated. However, in the past few years, Linux operating systems have improved in terms of their GUI. They are better than windows, mac, and Solaris now. This is because there are so many distros you can choose from, all based on the same Linux kernel and sharing the same features.

If you don’t want such a sudden shift in your life, I recommend you download a Virtual box. Then download any distro of Linux you prefer on the virtual box. Now you can switch between your current operating system and also get the hang of Linux. Of course, if you really like Linux, you can always install it directly to your PC, and if you think that Linux is not for you, you can continue using your current operating system – your loss.

Summary

As you have seen, the fact that Linux is free to use and open source makes it the greatest operating system in the world. Nonetheless, Unix also proved to be a worthy component as we compared the operating systems under many criteria like stability, security, GUI, kernel, distros and more.