Availability, price and familiarity, often determines which operating systems are offered on dedicated servers. Variations of Linux, an open-source operating system, are often included at no additional charge to customers, whereas, Microsoft requires additional license fees, which can increase the monthly cost of a dedicated server operating on a Windows operating system. The Microsoft Windows Server, is offered through the Microsoft SPLA program. Commercial versions of Linux are offered to web hosting providers on a monthly fee basis. The monthly fee typically provides OS updates through a network, using specific applications. Other operating systems available from the open source community at no charge, include centOS, Fedora Core, FreeBSD, Debian, among others.

Support operating systems utilized, usually depend upon the management level afforded by individual dedicated server plan. Operating system support may include updates to the core system in order to acquire the latest security fixes, patches, and system-wide vulnerability resolutions. Updates to core operating systems include kernel upgrades, service packs, application updates, and security patches that keep server secure and safe. Operating system updates and support relieves the burden of server management from the dedicated server owner.