Canonical, promoter of Ubuntu Linux, has plenty of momentum on the desktop. But as Canonical gears up for a server push, one key Ubuntu partner plans to sit on the sidelines. Indeed, Dell has no plans to ship Ubuntu on its servers, according to a Dell source who spoke with The VAR Guy today.
First, a little history lesson. Dell in mid-2007 began pre-loading Ubuntu on selected desktops and notebooks. (Yes, The VAR Guy now has one.)
Plenty of folks — The VAR Guy included — assumed Dell would jump on the bandwagon as Canonical makes a stronger Ubuntu server push this year. That assumption was wrong, according to a member of Dell’s Linux team who chatted with The VAR Guy today.
Dell does plan to support Ubuntu 8.04 (code-named Hardy Heron) on selected desktops this spring or summer. (Here’s an early look at Ubuntu 8.04.) But it’s hard to blame Dell for taking a “wait and see” approach to Ubuntu on the server. After all, Red Hat and Novell are both firmly entrenched in the Linux server market.
And for Ubuntu to succeed on the server, it will need a critical mass of integrators, consultants and software developers willing to sell, service and support Ubuntu-centric systems.
To be sure, some companies are testing the Ubuntu server waters. Sun Microsystems continues to get cozier with Ubuntu on the server. And servers will be a big theme at the Ubuntu Live event scheduled for this July in Portland, Oregon.
Also, Canonical has introduced an administration tool — called Landscape — that could make Ubuntu servers and desktops easier to manage.
But this isn’t going to be a sprint. For Ubuntu to succeed on servers, Canonical will need to prepare for a marathon.
Related Coverage:
- April 7, 2008: Ubuntu Linux Converges With Network Security (from MSPmentor.net)
- April 2, 2008: Update: Sun Getting Cozier With Ubuntu
- March 26, 2008: Highlights of Ubuntu 8.04 (from All About Ubuntu)
- March 14, 2008: Ubuntu Linux Server Push Coming in May?
- March 5, 2008: Will ‘Landscape’ Give Ubuntu A Lift In Business? (from All About Ubuntu)
Read More About This Topic
Share This Post
Tags: Canonical | Dell | Landscape | Open Source | Servers | Sun Microsystems | Ubuntu Linux
Interact: Add a Comment | Trackback Link | Permalink
Subscribe: RSS Feed
HP? Hello? Any update from Hewlett Packard with regard to Ubuntu?
Historically, HP has had decent (but still less than ideal) support for Debian. Theoretically they could easily leverage the talent pool that was working on that effort and apply it to Ubuntu. Since Ubuntu has corporate backing from Canonical they may be willing to commit more whole-heartedly than they did with their Debian efforts.
Clearly some sort of announcement would be great, but given their track record with Debian, it wouldn’t surprise me much.
[...] Dell: No Plans for Ubuntu Linux Servers Contrary to recent rumors, Dell has no plans to introduce Ubuntu pre-loads on its servers, according to The VAR Guy, our sister Web site. Details here. [...]
[...] a server push, at least one major server vendor says it has no plans to make an Ubuntu server move. Here are the details, from The VAR Guy. Canonical, promoter of Ubuntu Linux, has plenty of momentum on the desktop. But [...]
[...] a server push, at least one major server vendor says it has no plans to make an Ubuntu server move. Here are the details, from The VAR [...]
Perhaps DELL does not want to upset the delicate “family” relationship they have with the Monopoly. Lest they get their knee-caps broken?
Fact 1: Sun will eat you alive and has NO interest in supporting Linux.
Fact 2: Ubuntu Server is UNPROVEN. It’s difficult enough to get companies to commit to Red Hat or Novell. Companies ARE NOT looking at Ubuntu, the only reason Sun looks at them is for their OWN agenda (which will be Solaris and NOT Ubuntu).
So… wither Ubuntu Server? No. Of course not. This post was just VERY premature. Eventually I think we will see Ubuntu Servers and most likely, Dell will be one of the players in that. That is… IF and only IF, Ubuntu on the Server proves to be viable (depends on Canonical’s ability to deliver corporate, very intimate and personal, support to customers).
Blogs == The National Inquirer of the internet
Next entry: Lack of Linux is Killing Planet Earth
Chris: Your facts don’t seem like facts.
Fact 1) Sun’s CEO is transforming the company through open source.
Fact 2) You are correct. Ubuntu server is unproven. But Canonical has been prepping a server software initiative. So it IS important to say who’s onboard (Sun) and who isn’t (Dell) so far.
Buzz (#6): I disagree. Dell introduced Ubuntu desktops the year Vista shipped. That was a GUTSY move. And Dell has aggressively promoted NOVL and RHT linux, despite the ongoing relationships with Intel and MSFT.
Ubuntu server seems pretty stable & solid to me – I run my low powered but busy server on it, with no problems…
[...] First, a little history lesson. Dell in mid-2007 began pre-loading Ubuntu on selected desktops and notebooks. (Yes, The VAR Guy now has one.) Read more at The VAR Guy. [...]
You can get OSes pre-installed on servers … ? I’m running abunchof Ubuntu Server installations on Dell servers …
So long as Dell ships its servers with some kindof linux support (or they bear it in mind when choosing components), does this really matter?
remi: I think it does matter whether Dell gives its blessing (or not) to Ubuntu on the server. It would be a huge vote of confidence to customers who would otherwise choose Windows Server, Red Hat or NOVL.
Dell does???… DID… sell RedHat based servers (I bought some!). I don’t know if the still do. If they do still sell those, they really wouldn’t need to also sell Ubuntu based boxes too. …not really.
Using ubuntu on server would be insane. I would not take Dell seriously if they would ship Ubuntu on their servers. Ubuntu is buggy as hell. Who would use distro like that on server, or on business desktop? If someone hacks to the server he can make big damage and if your business depends on that server, then you don’t want that to happen.
I really would like to hear from Canonical if they are ready to take responsibility if someone hacks to server using security hole which is in ubuntu because Ubuntu packages are development versios which are not tested well. Canonical knows that their distro is based on development version of Debian, and still they are marketing ubuntu as a reliable and tested server OS. They are not telling their customers that most of the ubuntu packages are recompiled directly from Debian unstable which is not even meant to be used by end users. Is Canonical going to pay the possible damages for those whose server is hacked? i think not, so it’s server maintainers responsibility to choose distro which is well tested, and Ubuntu sure is not.
I have to say I would not use ubuntu on business desktop workstations either. Ubuntu is newbie home user’s distro, not any professional business distro which can be trusted and which works reliably.
If you want reliability on server or on destop, and if you like Debian style system, then use Debian stable release, which is wery well tested. Current Debian stable release is now one year old and next version will most likely be released next september or before the end of the year 2008.
Story added…
This story has been submitted to fsdaily.com! If you think this story should be read by the free software community, come vote it up and discuss it here:
http://www.fsdaily.com/Business/Dell_No_Plans_for_Ubuntu_Linux_Servers…
[...] * Dell: No Plans for Ubuntu Linux Servers – Canonical has plenty of momentum on the desktop, but as Canonical gears up for a server push, one key Ubuntu partner plans to sit on the sidelines. Dell has no plans to ship Ubuntu on its servers according to a Dell source. Dell does plan to support Ubuntu 8.04 (code-named Hardy Heron) on selected desktops this spring or summer. It’s hard to blame Dell for taking a “wait and see” approach on the Ubuntu server. After all, Red Hat and Novell are both firmly entrenched in the Linux server market. For Ubuntu to succeed on the server, it will need a critical mass of integrators, consultants and software developers willing to sell, service and support Ubuntu-centric systems. http://www.thevarguy.com/2008/04/10/dell-no-plans-for-ubuntu-linux-servers/ [...]
[...] Dell : pas de projet de serveurs Ubuntu – Dell va sans doute fournir des machines équipées d’Ubuntu 8.04 d’ici cet été, mais n’a pas l’intention de proposer pour le moment des serveurs sous Ubuntu. [...]