According to W3Techs' July 2023 data, Ubuntu Server leads with 36.8% market share among Linux web servers, followed by Debian (30.2%) and CentOS (17.5%). However, CentOS's share has dropped 12% since Red Hat's EOL announcement.

# Quick server distribution check (works on most Linux distros):
$ cat /etc/*-release
DISTRIB_ID=Ubuntu
DISTRIB_RELEASE=22.04

CentOS Stream has replaced CentOS Linux as the rolling-release upstream for RHEL. For production environments, consider:

• RHEL through developer subscriptions (free for small deployments)
• AlmaLinux (1:1 RHEL binary compatible)
• Rocky Linux (community-driven RHEL alternative)

For accurate market share data:

1. W3Techs (https://w3techs.com) - Web server breakdown
2. StackOverflow Developer Survey - Self-reported usage
3. DistroWatch - Page hit rankings (not perfect but indicative)

For those migrating from CentOS:

# Migration script for AlmaLinux:
$ curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/AlmaLinux/almalinux-deploy/master/almalinux-deploy.sh
$ sudo bash almalinux-deploy.sh
# Verify after reboot:
$ cat /etc/redhat-release
AlmaLinux release 8.7 (Sapphire Caracal)

Always verify the distro's support lifecycle. For example, Ubuntu LTS offers 5 years standard support (extendable to 10 years).

As of 2024, the Linux server distribution landscape has shifted significantly. According to recent surveys from W3Techs and Netcraft:

• Ubuntu Server: ~38% market share (growing steadily)
• Debian: ~28% (stable choice for enterprises)
• RHEL (Red Hat Enterprise Linux): ~18%
• CentOS Stream/Rocky Linux/AlmaLinux: ~12% combined
• Others: SUSE, Arch Linux, etc.

Since Red Hat's shift to CentOS Stream, many sysadmins have migrated to alternatives:

# Migration script example (CentOS to Rocky Linux)
sudo dnf install -y migrate2rocky
sudo migrate2rocky -r
sudo reboot

Key alternatives to consider:

• Rocky Linux: 1:1 RHEL compatible, community-driven
• AlmaLinux: Backed by CloudLinux, excellent for cPanel servers
• Oracle Linux: Free RHEL alternative with ksplice

For up-to-date technical documentation:

1. Rocky Linux Docs (comprehensive guides)
2. Ubuntu Server Documentation (excellent for cloud deployments)
3. Red Hat Knowledgebase (even for non-subscribers)

Consider these factors with example use cases:

# Example: Checking OS version (works on most distros)
cat /etc/os-release

# For Ubuntu/Debian package management:
sudo apt update && sudo apt install nginx

# For RHEL-based systems:
sudo dnf install nginx

Enterprise environments often prefer RHEL or Ubuntu LTS, while startups might choose Debian or Rocky Linux for cost efficiency.

Useful resources to track changes:

• DistroWatch (for general trends)
• Stack Overflow Annual Survey (developer preferences)
• Cloud provider reports (AWS, Azure, GCP default images)

Remember that market share isn't everything - choose based on your specific needs, available expertise, and hardware compatibility.