Standard Moodle distribution
A standard Moodle distribution is a compressed file (or package) of generic Moodle files. Current versions can be found in the Moodle.org download area in the "Generic packages" tab. They are typically used to update an existing Moodle site with a newer version. The updating of one standard generic version with another is generally a self detected and automated process that will not lose site or course or student information.
While the updating process is as simple as unpacking a zip or tar file into a web server's moodle foldler, great care should be taken with installing any update by following best practices. Most users will find that a standard Moodle distribution is very robust and can be customized without alterating the code base.
However Moodle's code, which is open source, can be altered in many ways by third parties or site administrator to meet special needs. Please remember that the less alterations to the standard distribution files on a Moodle site, the less issues will come up with installing a standard Moodle distribution over the older altered version.
There are also packages of compressed files that contain more than the generic Moodle files in the download area. These included programs which will allow the user to create a webserver version of Moodle in Windows and Mac operating systems.
