Open EMR - 5.0.2. - Windows or Linux

Which platform is more reliable and easier to use for Open EMR - 5.0.2. - Windows or Linux. I’m using Windows base, and every upgrade have some problems.
Please give me your advise

Thank You

Nerik

Hi @ncavalier ,

If I were to rank them from best to worst, I would rank them as:
1.Linux
2.Linux
3.Linux

100001.Windows

3 Likes

If I were to rank them, Windows would not make the list. Things to remember:

Linux was built for running a server. When you are running an Xampp server on Windows you are still confined to the constraints and problems of Windows.

The Linux command line interface (CLI) is powerful and efficient. Windows, not so much. You can install tools that emulate the Linux CLI but it still can be a PIA to maintain.

Windows comes with many security issues and back-doors are being discovered everyday, but usually after its too late. Linux is much easier to lock down and is as close to air-tight as possible.

Windows constantly runs processes in the background that slow your computer down the longer it ages. Unless you know what you are doing, you will experience speed issues. If you take an old labtop that runs super slow on Windows, uninstall Windows and install Ubuntu. The computer will run like new.

Do you know how Windows picks and chooses the absolute worst time to force an upgrade? This doesn’t happen with Linux. When or if you upgrade is up to you and its a one-line command in the CLI.

I could go on and on, but to be completely honest I flipping hate Windows with a passion. When I have to work on a Windows machine, it ruins my day.

2 Likes

Now hold on folks. I’m not going to get in a OS war here and I do generally agree, for running a server, I prefer linux. However, one simply can’t discount Windows Server 20xx. Big difference when talking desktop to server offering.
That wasn’t the question though!

If you don’t mind spending a lot of time at the command line then generally, linux makes life easier for many tasks but, you’d still need to qualify if using xampp or windows server. Antway, if using xampp then by all means pick linux but if comfortable on windows server then stay there.

1 Like

I am in the industry for nearly 40 years and windows is a “disgrace” to the industry. They made it BIG because of ease of use by compromising everything else like security etc.
I agree 500% with Brady et al. Go Linux!
It is free and a no brainer!
-Visolve001

1 Like

Well i’m still only convinced 499% :slight_smile:

Thanks everybody for the feedback and advice. Now I definitely moving to Linux.
I never used Linux before, and found a lot of versions of it. I found mostly users on Ubuntu version. And now I need your recommendations regarding Linux installations.

Good Decision!
If you ever need any help, please post it here and we will be more than happy to answer your question!
-ViSolve-001

Hi @ncavalier ,
Ubuntu is a good OS to learn linux on. And would rec using the OpenEMR docker on top of that.
-brady

Yeap - Sorry - We should have added that earlier and agree with Brady’s view.
In few mins, you will be ready to go with OpenEMR docker Express Edition in AWS!

I agree that Ubuntu is the best choice for beginning Linux and its also a great choice if you are advanced in Linux. One of the top reasons would be that there is a large number of resources and information for Ubuntu. I installed Ubuntu on a friends computer that was old and slow. We removed Windows and installed Ubuntu and the computer ran like new. She isn’t the most technical person but she learned how to use Google to fix problems that she ran into. Rarely does she need assistance with her computer now.

1 Like

I found very good instruction-article - how to install OpenENR on Linux

1 Like

After spending my whole weekend to learn Linux, I did step by step installation, and stuck on the step 2 OpenEMR setup.

Step 3 - Creating Database and First UserConnecting to MySQL Server… ERROR . Check your login credentials. unable to connect to database as user: ‘openemr’

We did this process twice on two separate computers, and got the same problem.

You are selecting the option that the database already exists, so it is looking for a database called openemr on your server. If this is a fresh install on a new operating system, chances are the database isn’t on this server. My recomendation is to select “have setup create a database”, call it openemr_test, then import the existing database once the OpenEMR install is complete.

Thank you Daniel.
I tried your way, but receiving same error message.
I did step by step installation, by article I posted before, created openemr database, before started setup process. No any errors till Step 2.

You may want to verify that you are using the correct root password.

Yes root password is correct
I check all passwords, and did them all the same, reinstalled Linux Mint 19.3 twice, did all over again, same problem again and again.

can you login to mysql on the command line with the user you created with the guide?

really cool way to spin up openemr is with docker :whale:
install docker and docker-compose then place the yml file in the directory of your choosing and docker-compose up -d :sunny:

Is a docker cloud base server, or it can be used on local server?