So, your business runs software that needs Windows. Maybe it’s a SQL server, a .NET application, a line-of-business package, an accounting or ERP system, remote desktop for staff, or something else entirely. How do you run your Windows business software somewhere that’s reliable, properly licensed, and not eye-watering to manage? That’s what we’ll look at in this article.
Note: We’re not going to make Windows battle Linux here. Linux has its own advantages over Windows, and this article is going to assume that Windows is the only option for you because of something unique it has (most likely software that’s exclusive/better for Windows).
Just in case you’re not 100% sure that you need Windows, here’s a quick checklist for the situations where Windows makes most sense:
If your stack is web/open-source and nothing requires Windows, Linux is usually cheaper.
Let’s map workloads to specific services that you might need.
Unlike Linux distros, Windows is much easier to pin down. There are standard, 64-bit versions including 2016, 2019, 2022, and 2025. Generally speaking, the latest is the best. It comes with the best security, cloud optimization, and support for newer software and components.
Note that our pricing includes the Windows Server license. Also, we have a provision for Plesk-on-Windows as a separate add-on (A$15 for 100 domains). We have dedicated plans for any of your needs. For example, if you specifically want to run a SQL server, we have four plans to choose from, starting from A$93/mo to A$2195/mo, depending on your needs.
The key question to ask here is this: What does my business software vendor actually support? There are many programs that might prefer an older version. Some just used to have features that you might be used to, which have been updated/changed/replaced in newer versions for newer Server editions, and you might want to stick to the older variant. In all these cases, it makes sense to align your needs with your OS version.
We offer predictable, all-in pricing with no licensing surprises. Sourcing and managing Windows licenses yourself can quickly become a pain.
Windows business software, especially SQL Server, Remote Desktop with multiple users, and ERP, is genuinely resource-hungry. Performance isn’t a nice-to-have here; it’s whether the thing is usable. That’s why dedicated RAM and CPU matter more for Windows than almost anything else, because RDS and SQL fall over fast when starved. NVMe/Flash storage is standard for disk I/O.
When your team logs into a hosted desktop or your business app lives on this server, downtown means the whole team is unable to work. Self-healing failover (the VPS keeps running if host hardware fails), network redundancy, high-availability options, and managed server backups are all non-negotiable for mission-critical apps.
Also, with our Australian servers, your data stays onshore. But beyond privacy, security is another concern you might have.
Windows has a different and very visible patch cadence (Patch Thursday). That’s why one of the top questions here is who’s keeping this patched and locked down. It’s no secret that a Windows server will need regular patching, but it also needs a sensible firewall and proper attention when (not if) vulnerabilities land. Routine hygiene is extremely important.
We offer managed hardware firewall from the control panel and managed backups. Our semi-managed model means that you’re not solely responsible for keeping Windows current. If you’re not an expert Windows admin, a co-managed option is preferred (though we do offer fully self-managed and fully managed options as well).
Our semi-managed servers come with ITIL-defined Level 3 Australian support technicians, freely available over call, chat, and email. Support covers everything from technical OS stuff to common application installs, troubleshooting, updates, backups, and even performance issues.
If you’re a business owner who can’t tell a GPO from a registry key, semi-managed is the way to go.
VPSBlocks supports both Windows and Linux properly, which is rare among providers. For a business with a mixed estate (a Windows app plus a Linux web front end, let’s say), one provider for both is a real operational win. Plus, we got some nice perks you’ll like: