The Real Cost Of Adopting Linux

For many years, Microsoft has made the case that, although Unix costs less, enterprises ultimately pay less when they run Windows servers--after businesses factor in ease of integration, the ready availability of programming talent, and the cost of appropriate hardware.

As Linux gains popularity in corporate settings, that argument is playing itself out again. Linux proponents say that an open-source-based operating system is so much less expensive and effective that it blows Windows out of the water. Windows proponents, meanwhile, contend that it's better to stick to a known quantity supported by hordes of existing programmers and enterprise users.

There is a logical series of steps you can take to evaluate the real costs involved in adopting Linux in your enterprise.

Look At Existing Use

In many cases, Linux may unobtrusively be at a company, running under a small department's intranet. You may also want to look around and see if some staff members are running Linux at home for telecommuting purposes. "A lot of high-tech people have a Linux box at home and access a corporate intranet," says Michael Tiemann, chief technology officer of Durham, N.J.-based RedHat Software.

If Linux is already present in your client's computing infrastructure, don't miss the opportunity to learn from practical experience. Find out how Linux has been performing in this environment and what resources are needed to adjust its performance to the optimum level.

Multiply out these costs and you'll begin to get a crude but still useful sense of what the cost drivers would be in a larger Linux installation. While telecommuting use or low-volume intranet installations aren't on par with running all network services over Linux, looking at how they're doing is a starting point.

Gauging Performance Needs

The cost of bringing in Linux will vary, depending on what you need to get done. Before making any cost calculations, decide what applications you'll be implementing and what performance levels they'll need to achieve.

If you're thinking about running Linux under a Web server, for example, you might consider how many users you're going to support. If you're going to support transactions, the key issue may be how many transactions per second have to pump through per minute, per user session, or some other relevant measure.

Hardware Needs

Hardware requirements may change if you move to Linux. "You can't compare apples to apples," says Laurent Meynier, CEO of San Francisco-based open source consulting firm Olliance. "Maybe the hardware that you need to get the same performance from Linux is different than hardware that Windows NT requires."

Another issue to consider is whether your customer needs Linux-installed hardware or whether it plans to use its existing infrastructure. Buying hardware with the OS pre-installed, a step both Tiemann and Meynier strongly recommend, can help clients save money.

Training Cost

If your staff members are particularly motivated, or already have some grounding in Linux stuff, there's always the wealth of open source tips, tactics, and collegial support available over the Net. That is, of course, the cheapest way to get your staff rolling.

Formal training is another matter. Linux training and certification options are multiplying. Prices vary, and some training outfits merely stamping a seal of approval on skills the user must develop primarily on their own.

Perhaps the most intense training comes from RedHat, whose Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) program was based on Microsoft's MSCE curriculum. IT staffers learn just about everything they'd need to keep a Linux installation functioning effectively in courses that start at $2,500.

Support

Before you scope out support costs, you'll need to know whether your clients need day-to-day help or just a helping hand now and then.

Prices for a la carte, per-incident support vary, of course. Independent support vendor Linux Support Services, for example, range from $100 per hour to as much as $200 per hour if you need an immediate response. Yearly support prices also range widely. Linux Unlimited offers a range of plans scaling up from $499 per year for e-mail-only support to $3,500 per year for its "Gold" annual package. Linux systems vendors, meanwhile, typically offer per-incident, per-year, and on-site consulting options.

Per-incident support may be good enough for companies that have a strong base of Linux expertise, but a long-term contract will probably be necessary for most others.

"Companies do need to be able to support their own infrastructure, but when it comes to components and tools in the infrastructure, a company is wise to go to the original manufacturer," Tiemann suggests.