Best Operating Systems Comparisons Reviews Smart Upgrade Linux Suse Open Source Solaris 10 Indemnify: When "good enough" is no longer good enough. The open source Solaris 10 OS has emerged as a compelling alternative for IT organizations skeptical over the long-term benefits and cost-effectiveness of Linux. Sun EVP for Software Rich Green takes a look at advanced Solaris OS features that have fueled more than seven million licenses — and ways you can smoothly move up from Linux.

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When "good enough" is no longer good enough

Like many IT veterans, Sun Executive Vice President for Software Rich Green witnessed numerous enterprises adopting Linux in the 1990s to meet the demanding requirements of Web applications and services. Now Green is witnessing a new trend: Issues surrounding the long-term benefits and cost-effectiveness of Linux are causing IT managers to reassess the places where the operating system makes sense.

In this issue of Sun Inner Circle, Green explains why many enterprises today are opting to upgrade from Linux to the Solaris OS and how that's helping enterprises scale IT infrastructures to meet pressing business challenges.

Green is responsible for defining the vision and roadmap for Sun’s software strategy, including the Solaris OS, Java Enterprise System suites, N1 management software, and Sun Studio and Java Studio developer tools. Green’s perspective is based on more than 20 years of industry experience, 16 of which have been spent at Sun, and close involvement with industry-standards efforts and open source communities have contributed to his insights into the evolution of developer platforms and enterprise software.

INNER CIRCLE (IC): Let’s start out by asking a basic question: What was behind the initial appeal of Linux to support the Web tier of applications and services?

GREEN: People picked Linux in the past for a number of very good reasons. First, starting in the mid-'90s, the adoption of Linux was largely fueled by fast processors. Intel, for example, was producing processors for the desktop at a price-performance level so attractive that it made a lot of sense to start using commodity-based or volume-based application infrastructures. With the rapid growth of the Web tier, a free UNIX-like operating system coupled with inexpensive servers proved pretty attractive.

Second, the same period witnessed the increasing popularity of the open source development model.