The State of Enterprise Linux
For more than 20 years, Unix played the role of the 800 pound gorilla in the server space, especially in enterprise, scientific, government and academic environments. But traditional Unix vendors have faced increasing competition on two fronts. Microsoft Windows Server products have made significant inroads, particularly in the business back-end. To a lesser extent, but cutting closer to the bone, is competition from Linux.
While Microsoft servers represent a wholesale platform shift from Unix options, luring customers to Linux is less of a sea of change. Since it first began as a hobby project in 1991, Linux was inspired as a free alternative to proprietary Unix implementations. Although Linux is closely modeled after popular Unix systems in both form and function, its code is freely available and open source, without derivation from protected Unix code.
There is no single platform or product that singularly represents Linux. Because it is essentially an open source kernel surrounded by a set of open source tools, Linux has been packaged, customized and distributed by enthusiasts in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Some distributions are optimized for end-user desktop use, some for lightweight servers, some for embedded applications, some for general purpose use, and so on.
While the motivation behind the original Linux development was driven without interest in the marketplace, its free nature has left open the possibility for vendors to build and sell their own Linux-based platforms.
- Login or register to post comments
- Printer-friendly version
- 1359 reads
- PDF version
More in Tux Machines
- Highlights
- Front Page
- Latest Headlines
- Archive
- Recent comments
- All-Time Popular Stories
- Hot Topics
- New Members
digiKam 7.7.0 is releasedAfter three months of active maintenance and another bug triage, the digiKam team is proud to present version 7.7.0 of its open source digital photo manager. See below the list of most important features coming with this release. |
Dilution and Misuse of the "Linux" Brand
|
Samsung, Red Hat to Work on Linux Drivers for Future TechThe metaverse is expected to uproot system design as we know it, and Samsung is one of many hardware vendors re-imagining data center infrastructure in preparation for a parallel 3D world. Samsung is working on new memory technologies that provide faster bandwidth inside hardware for data to travel between CPUs, storage and other computing resources. The company also announced it was partnering with Red Hat to ensure these technologies have Linux compatibility. |
today's howtos
|
Recent comments
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago