The Linux Warehouse, local open source distributor, has announced the availability of Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 4, based on the 2.6 Linux kernel and according to the vendor bringing with it the promise of displacing Solaris in the corporate market.
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is one of the leading distributions for the enterprise space, from a vendor which has chosen to squarely place its focus on the business market," explains Robin Edser, manager at The Linux Warehouse. "Since its first iteration, RHEL is designed to bring innovation, performance and security to the enterprise in a stable manner."
An important factor for enterprise adoption, RHEL boasts support for multiple architectures, allowing corporates to choose their processor platform from a myriad of options and protect investments in existing infrastructure.
"With support for Intel x86-compatible (32-bit), Intel Itanium (64-bit), AMD64 and Intel EM64T (64-bit), IBM POWER Series and IBM Mainframe architectures, customers are guaranteed support on virtually any server or workstation architecture," Edser continues.
"RHEL has also been tested and certified with solutions from respected names in the IT industry like Dell, EMC, Hitachi, HP, IBM, the OSDL (Open Source Development Labs), Rackspace Managed Hosting, SGI and Wind River," Edser says, "and based on these vendors` support, many corporates are beginning to take the Linux route.
"Inclusion of the 2.6 kernel will also be a key factor in its success," Edser says. "While the previous version of RHEL contained many of the key features from the 2.6 kernel through Red Hat`s backporting efforts, the latest version includes some significant improvements including selectable I/O elevators, Reverse Map Virtual Memory, support for multi-core processors, and the sys_epoll system call.
"RHEL 4 is also the first commercial Linux product to include Security-Enhanced Linux (SELinux), a Mandatory Access Control (MAC) security system for Linux, which allows finer-grain control over which users and what processes can access the file system," Edser says.
"This release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux is a defining milestone in the evolution of Linux as the backbone of the enterprise," says Paul Cormier, executive vice-president of engineering at Red Hat.
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux in 2002 marked the entrance of Linux in the enterprise. The second version one year later put us at par with Unix in terms of reliability, and ahead in terms of value. Red Hat Enterprise Linux v.4 has the performance, scalability, security and application portfolio needed to make Linux the sensible choice for every deployment, from servers connected to client and desktop systems. This methodical delivery of innovation is helping create unprecedented value for the customer," Cormier concludes.
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