A virtual or a dedicated hosting server is a standalone machine, which has its own Operating System and keeping the latter up-to-date is an important, albeit underrated task. Not only can an update improve the functionality of your internet sites, but it can also save you a lot of issues down the road. An update can be released for a number of reasons, the most prevalent being to fix recently found security holes, which may permit third-party individuals to access and change the content that you have on the hosting server. You might also see an improved efficiency of your web programs because updates might also be released for better compatibility between the Operating System and the configuration it works on as a way to get the most out of the hardware. Also, if you keep your applications up-to-date, they may need a later OS version that will have the necessary software dependencies and will allow them to work adequately.