Feasibility of Using Linux in both the Server and Workstation Research Paper

Feasibility of Using Linux in both the Server and Workstation Environments - Research Paper Example It is also available in source codes as well as binary forms. However, most of its applications are created by governments and organizations from across the world. Notably, the Linux OS is free to be used by individual as well as industrial users playing an active role in contributing to its overall system development. Linux is also termed as open source software which offers various benefits to individual users as well as organizational users in terms of security, speed and stability (Negus, â€Å"Linux Bible 2010 Edition: Boot Up to Ubuntu, Fedora, KNOPPIX, Debian, openSUSE, and 13 Other Distributions†). In the current day context, its distributors can be observed to have much in similarities, possessing minor differences in their application forms. Contextually, some of the major distributors offering Linux server and workstation facilities currently active can be identified as Red Hat, Debain, SUSE, Ubuntu, Slackware and Mandriva. Irrespective of their high degree of similarities, each distributor has been examined to comprise their unique strengths and weaknesses when compared with other players or their rivals. Thesis Statement The paper intends to compare and contrast Linux workstation and Linux server emphasizing on the operations performed by three different vendors namely Red Hat, SUSE, and Debain. The factors to be considered when evaluating the similarities and differences based on this context can be accounted as the total cost of ownership, training, support, performance, reliability and application availability. Linux Server and Linux Workstation and the Three Vendors A Linux server can be termed as a ‘high-power variant’ of the Linux open source operating system. The Linux server has been designed with a fundamental intention to deal with the needs of modern day business applications which is becoming majorly depended on networking and systems administration, virtual database management and web services. Linux servers are often selected over available other server operating systems due to its benefits in relation to stability, flexibility and security aspects. Similar ly, workstation is commonly regarded as a high performance desktop computer used for various purposes such as for business and trade as well as for personal and educational uses. To be specific, the Linux workstation can be noted as a computer system installed with Linux server and other Linux Operating System (OS) packages (Negus, â€Å"Linux Bible 2010 Edition: Boot Up to Ubuntu, Fedora, KNOPPIX, Debian, openSUSE, and 13 Other Distributions†). Red Hat Red Hat was established in the year 1993 which has headquartered at Raleigh, NC. Currently, Red Hay has more than 60 offices located in different parts of the world. Essentially Red Hat is considered to be the largest publicly traded technology company that is fully committed to open source. Red Hat Enterprise Linux server can be identified as a high scalable system which can effectively manage the underlying systems complexities. One of the competitive features possessed by Red Hat Enterprise Linux server products over its su bstitutes can be identified as its tendency to reduce data bottlenecks. Its mechanism which allows lower power consumption can also be considered as another competitive feature. This particular Linux server system tends to improve application performance and further ensure end to end data integrity. The Red Hat Enterprise Linux server products also provide a complete portfolio of security technologies with solution to various security challenges. Red Hat