Linux Players Join Forces To Take On Red Hat
Unveiled late last month by Caldera, SuSE, TurboLinux and Conectiva, UnitedLinux is aimed at taking on Red Hat's Linux in enterprise markets and Sun Microsystems' Linux x86-based server distribution, slated to ship this year.
The UnitedLinux distribution, which is backed by IBM, Advanced Micro Devices, Computer Associates International, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, NEC, Fujitsu and SAP, represents another major Linux standardization effort and perhaps signals the predicted consolidation of the Linux market. Red Hat controls more than 80 percent of the North American Linux market, according to Gartner.
Linux solution providers support the UnitedLinux move but say the quality of the final product remains to be seen.
"It's meeting with general approval around here," said Anthony Awtrey, vice president and director of integration at Ideal Technology, Melbourne, Fla. "Each of the distributions brings certain advantages to the table. Conectiva offers the APT [Advanced Package Tool package manager for RPM [Red Hat Package Manager distributions and some real polish on the user interface. SuSE offers a great configuration system in Yast2 and good European localization. TurboLinux has good Far East localization and clustering technology, and Caldera has a good service arm and experience working with independent software vendors. Of course, it depends on how they pull this off."
There are more than 180 Linux distributions, with about 10 leading Linux distributions globally. The number of Linux shipments rose to 92,100 during the first quarter of 2002 from 62,300 in the first quarter of 2001, according to Gartner.
UnitedLinux and the convergence of technologies "is a good first start" toward adoption of a strong alternative Linux OS, said George Weiss, a Gartner analyst. "ISVs will now have two [Linux targets to write to, which is better than before, but it's a work in progress," Weiss said.
Analysts say the timing of UnitedLinux is also significant as Linux expands beyond traditional Web serving and edge network functions to core enterprise infrastructure services.
The expected release of the Linux 2.6 kernel late this year or in 2003 should also drive more enterprise use. It will offer SMP support beyond eight-way systems, as well as a new process scheduler and support for asynchronous I/O, which will enhance database performance.
UnitedLinux distributors are expected to continue bundling value-added software and services and will sell UnitedLinux under their own brand-name products. UnitedLinux members will collaborate on streamlining development and certification around a single distribution,a significant benefit to solution providers, ISVs and OEMs.
Analysts and solution providers say there is, however, a potential downside: fragmentation. "The Red Hat organization and this UnitedLinux could diverge and create portability problems," Weiss said.
Even Red Hat said a three-horse race is better for the overall Linux market but hinted that it intends to remain ahead of the pack. "Too many distributions hamper the migration of applications to Linux, so if this effort by Caldera and others consolidates distributions, it is a good development," said Mark de Visser, vice president of marketing at Red Hat.