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Linux receives enterprise support, NEW STRAITS TIMES-MANAGEMENT

Posted on: Wednesday, 6 August 2003, 06:00 CDT

xfdws LINUX-RECEIVES sked Emerging Markets Datafile

August 06, 2003

NEW STRAITS TIMES-MANAGEMENT TIMES

MALAYSIA

ENGLISH

Linux receives enterprise support, NEW STRAITS TIMES-MANAGEMENT TIMES

Izwan Ismail

ASIA WorldSources, Inc. 322 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE 2ND FLOOR, NE WASHINGTON, DC 20002 COPYRIGHT 2003 BY WORLDSOURCES, INC., A JOINT VENTURE OF FDCH e-Media, INC. AND WORLD TIMES, INC. NO PORTION OF THE MATERIALS CONTAINED HEREIN MAY BE USED IN ANY MEDIA WITHOUT ATTRIBUTION TO WORLDSOURCES, INC.

THIS operating system (OS), once regarded as a ``kiddie'' software, has taken major steps into the enterprise world as more companies worldwide are using it to run critical business applications. The OS is none other than Linux, the open source software which came to existence about 10 years ago. Slowly over the years, the Linux OS has been improved and gained support from major IT vendors, and now it is ready for mission-critical business tasks-thanks to its open source concept which allows anybody or any company to make improvements on it.

According to research company International Data Corp (IDC), Linux currently holds 27 per cent of the server OS market, and it has become one of the fastest-growing server platform with a projected compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31.5 per cent worldwide. IDC predicts the Linux OS market would be worth US$7.6 billion (RM28.8 billion) by 2006.

SUPPORT ISSUE However, despite its improved capabilities, many companies are still in dilemma over the adoption of the Linux OS. According to a recent Forrester Research Inc's study on 50 companies in the US, nearly half cited worries about enterprise support, while others worry about lack of applications, OS maturity, and version fragmentation. Even though companies like Red Hat and UnitedLinux are distributing Linux software, many still do not consider them in the same service class as major IT vendors like IBM, Oracle, or Hewlett-Packard.

ORACLE'S STRATEGY In view of the issues, enterprise solutions provider Oracle Corp has taken the lead to offer support and services for the Linux platform.

V.R. Srivatsan, managing director of Oracle Corp Malaysia, says among the initiatives Oracle has made in its support for Linux platform include product, customer support, partners, education, and internal deployment commitment.

''Product-wise, we have made all our key solutions Linux-enabled,'' he says, claiming that Oracle is the first enterprise vendor to have enterprise database, application server, enterprise application suite, and collaboration suit to run on Linux platform.

Addressing the support issue, Srivatsan says customers would be more comfortable if they can get the Linux support from major IT vendors, and Oracle is doing just that by offering direct support for its customers who are using Red Hat Linux Advanced Server or UnitedLinux's Conectiva Linux enterprise edition, SCO Linux Server 4.0, SuSE Linux Enterprise Sever 8, and TurboLinux Enterprise Server 8.

''If they encounter problems that prevent the operation of their Oracle solutions while running Red Hat and UnitedLinux servers, they can contact Oracle support service for help at no additional cost,'' he assures.

Srivatsan says Oracle has also established strategic partnerships with Red Hat and UnitedLinux to make further enhancements to the Linux kernel to support enterprise-class functionality, and enable the Linux OS to effectively run mission-critical applications.

To drive its support for Linux further, Oracle has also pledged US$150 million to Linux independent software vendors (ISVs) this year to develop, market, and sell Oracle solutions based on Linux. There are currently about 4,000 ISVs using Oracle database on Linux, and the 550 ISV-certified solutions with Oracle9i Database on Linux.

LOCAL PICTURE On the local front, even though the adoption of Linux is still in the infancy stage, there have been encouraging signs that the open source platform is getting the attention of local companies and the Government.

According to Christopher Yong, marketing director of Oracle Malaysia, for the past six months, the interest in Linux has been growing.

''Companies have been asking us about solutions to be implemented on the Linux platform as an alternative to existing platforms, and this is mainly from the health, education, manufacturing, and the Government sectors,'' he says.

''The early adopter of Linux in Malaysia is the Government, and this has got to do with the Government's direction of moving to Linux,'' he adds.

Yong says customers that migrated to Linux are attracted by the advantages they can get like cost-effectiveness, speed, and reliability.

He claims that with Linux, companies can save between 45 and 80 per cent in total cost of ownership over RISC/Unix platform.

According to Yong, Oracle itself has already migrated all its key systems to Linux. By year-end, all of Oracle operations will be running on Linux, he says. ``This is to set an example to our customers that we are not just selling the technology, but put it in practice as well,'' he concludes.

Copyright 2003 NEW STRAITS TIMES-MANAGEMENT TIMES all rights reserved as distributed by WorldSources, Inc.

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