Linuxcare OKs Cubix Multi-Servers

Technical services provider Linuxcare, Inc. has certified key Linux distributions to run on the Cubix multi-server Density series.

The move, coming on the heels of the Microsoft antitrust ruling, could add fuel to the already-significant Linux expansion into the online business arena.

“Deploying Linux on Cubix systems can be a very cost-effective platform for Web services,” observed Jim Zakzeski, vice president of marketing and sales for Cubix. Additionally, LinuxCare will provide customers that deploy Cubix solutions with support — a critical component of any Linux market offering.

Linuxcare tested the Density series with the Linux kernel and certified the Caldera, Debian, Red Hat and SuSE distributions as compatible with the multi-server systems. “LinuxCare Labs certification gives Cubix customers the assurance that their systems will perform reliably with the Linux operating system,” stated LinuxCare CTO David Sifry.

“Fault-tolerant Cubix systems provide a great platform for deploying multiple Linux servers,” added Sifry. Cubix manufactures consolidated network server systems.

IBM Linux Collaboration

Linuxcare also recently entered into an agreement to provide support for customers of IBM Global Services who are working with open-source Linux environments. The deal is the latest in a long series of Linux-related moves made by Big Blue, which has also aligned with key market players to open up both the viability and availability of open-source e-commerce solutions through its support of Linux for the Netfinity server series.

Level 3 Support

Under the terms of the agreement, Linuxcare will back up IBM support engineers on level 3, or highly critical customer issues. The 24×7 technical support services offered by Linuxcare, covering all Linux distributions, will also help to “isolate and resolve Linux source code defects and address complex technical issues.”

“Linuxcare is committed to providing Linux customers with the best support available, regardless of which Linux distribution they prefer,” commented Fernand Sarrat, president and CEO of Linuxcare. “We’re pleased to work closely with IBM to help them deliver world-class Linux solutions to the marketplace.”

A Big Blue Penguin

“Even though Linux is an open-source code environment, customers still want the same level of support they get for their other computing environments,” said Larry Bucklew, Linux business executive for IBM Global Services. “By leveraging Linuxcare’s Linux expertise, IBM Global Services can enhance its ability to deliver uncompromising support to customers who choose Linux.”

IBM, which maintains a Linux Web site, has helped to move the open-source operating system in the direction of broader business acceptance by striking up strategic partnerships with emerging leaders Caldera Systems, Red Hat, SuSE and TurboLinux. The company has also stepped up competition with industry titan Oracle by developing a Linux version of DB2, its database software.

The industry mainstay also administers its ServerProven Solutions program in order to test software compatibility with Netfinity, and last summer expanded the scope to include vendors that support Linux. Applix, Inc. (NASDAQ: APLX), maker of the Applixware office productivity suite, was the first Linux-based product to meet ServerProven criteria.

More recently, Austin, Texas-based Pervasive Software, Inc. (Nasdaq: PVSW) moved its SQL 2000 server for developing e-commerce applications into the Linux arena, making it available to developers who work with the Linux environment and garnering IBM ServerProven status.

About Linuxcare

Linuxcare, which has recently moved operations into the Asia/Pacific market, has been at work on other strategic partnerships at home. In October, the San Francisco, California-based company reached an agreement to provide e-mail, fax and Web-based support for MacMillan USA’s distribution of the MandrakeSoft Linux OS.

Linux is a freely distributed OS, based on UNIX, which was created in 1991 as an alternative to Windows. International Data Corp. (IDC) numbers indicate that Linux grew more than 212 percent and captured more than 17 percent of all server OS shipments in 1998. More than 12 million end users and organizations now use Linux technologies worldwide.