Unix is giving way to Linux

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: Linux and Open Source technologies have caused a tremendous inflection point in the enterprise space. Enterprises in India are transitioning towards supported and certified Open Source solutions to address critical business requirements. Looking back through the years that we have served the Indian market, Linux has come a long way in the enterprise space. Back in 2000, India was primarily a Unix market in the enterprise. With the entry of certified and supported Linux solutions, Unix users in India found Linux an attractive proposition to migrate to. Transitioning skill sets from Unix to Linux was fairly simple. Moreover, Linux reduced costs drastically, delivering the latest technologies that Unix vendors were struggling to offer.

The large installed UNIX base in the Indian enterprise space has generated a natural leeway to Linux adoption. Greenfield sites have also contributed significantly to Linux adoption, as new projects automatically eliminate migration overheads. Another segment that is quickly emerging as a significant driver for Linux adoption, comprises enterprises that have been pushed to the limit by the aggressive lock-in policies and hardliner tactics used by proprietary vendors. This segment understands the negatives of using overpriced, buggy and poorly designed software from firsthand experience, as they have paid significant damages over the years for virus attacks and downed systems. With the stability, reliability and unbreakable security offered by Linux, this segment is quickly embracing Linux, turning away from proprietary vendors.

Today, proprietary vendors are struggling to offer value, as enterprise customers feel locked into a single solution from a single vendor – with no flexibility to move from that model. Despite several misleading studies floating around, the value proposition of Linux is becoming stronger and more evident. Linux has established itself as the most cost effective platform for enterprise wide deployment. Operating systems are complex products with many dimensions that govern their proliferation; including functionality, reliability, scalability, cost of purchase, cost of ownership, support for chip architectures (32/64 bit), and market acceptance and popularity, which determines the availability of supported software and hardware.