Close
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home IT Management
    • IT Management
    • Networking
    • Servers

    It’s the Directory, Stupid

    By
    Jason Brooks
    -
    November 27, 2007
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      I’ve been covering Linux and open-source software closely since the dawn of this millennium, and over those seven or so years I’ve become a believer in the potency of the open-source development model.

      Consider SUSE Linux 6.4, which shipped about a month after Windows 2000 was launched. From that 2000 SUSE release to the recently-minted OpenSUSE 10.3, this Linux distribution drew from and added to an impressive cache of code, including multiple, well-crafted solutions to more than a few computing problems that Microsoft has not yet or is only beginning to address itself.

      And yet, for all this development vitality, Linux’s worldwide desktop and midmarket server share trails that of its proprietary competition (mostly Windows) by a huge margin—even in parts of the world where Linux’s cost advantages carry more weight than they do here in the United States.

      If the vendors and projects that comprise the Linux and open-source community are to unlock the potential of Linux, they should let Windows 2000 serve as a lesson. In addition to a handsome new blue background, Windows 2000 saw the debut of Active Directory. Ever since, Windows clients and servers have enjoyed the option of membership in an relatively accessible and reasonably scalable directory service as a birthright—certain SKUs excepted, naturally.

      While the Linux and open-source community has been busily constructing data center goodies and scratching individual developers desktop itches, there’s no rallying point for Xen or GNOME project of open-source directory services. It’s this piece that’s required to enable the multiseat deployment scenarios that should be driving Linux share growth.

      Right now, the open-source directory server options boil down to Red Hat/Fedora Directory Server, and OpenLDAP, neither of which are positioned to challenge Active Directory. Despite its name, Fedora hasn’t done much at all to push the Fedora Directory Server in its Linux releases, and Red Hat’s sights are trained on the portion of the market in which a preexisting directory is assumed.

      Then there’s OpenLDAP, which some question on scalability grounds, and most coil away from for its rough edges and its lack of anything approaching AD-like integration with Linux distributions.

      Returning to SUSE, that distribution’s current steward, Novell, seems like an obvious champion leader for an open-source directory services initiative, but concerns over cannibalizing the company’s proprietary eDirectory sales might keep Novell from becoming a rallying point in such an effort.

      Until Red Hat, Novell, or another party steps up to focus the community’s development resources around this goal, these vendors and the rest of the Linux and open-source ecosystem will remain stuck playing catch-up with Windows 2000.

      Check out eWEEK.coms for the latest open-source news, reviews and analysis.

      Jason Brooks
      As Editor in Chief of eWEEK Labs, Jason Brooks manages the Labs team and is responsible for eWEEK's print edition. Brooks joined eWEEK in 1999, and has covered wireless networking, office productivity suites, mobile devices, Windows, virtualization, and desktops and notebooks. Jason's coverage is currently focused on Linux and Unix operating systems, open-source software and licensing, cloud computing and Software as a Service. Follow Jason on Twitter at jasonbrooks, or reach him by email at jbrooks@eweek.com.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Big Data and Analytics

      Alteryx’s Suresh Vittal on the Democratization of...

      James Maguire - May 31, 2022 0
      I spoke with Suresh Vittal, Chief Product Officer at Alteryx, about the industry mega-shift toward making data analytics tools accessible to a company’s complete...
      Read more
      Cybersecurity

      Visa’s Michael Jabbara on Cybersecurity and Digital...

      James Maguire - May 17, 2022 0
      I spoke with Michael Jabbara, VP and Global Head of Fraud Services at Visa, about the cybersecurity technology used to ensure the safe transfer...
      Read more
      Applications

      Cisco’s Thimaya Subaiya on Customer Experience in...

      James Maguire - May 10, 2022 0
      I spoke with Thimaya Subaiya, SVP and GM of Global Customer Experience at Cisco, about the factors that create good customer experience – and...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      GoodData CEO Roman Stanek on Business Intelligence...

      James Maguire - May 4, 2022 0
      I spoke with Roman Stanek, CEO of GoodData, about business intelligence, data as a service, and the frustration that many executives have with data...
      Read more
      Cloud

      Yotascale CEO Asim Razzaq on Controlling Multicloud...

      James Maguire - May 5, 2022 0
      Asim Razzaq, CEO of Yotascale, provides guidance on understanding—and containing—the complex cost structure of multicloud computing. Among the topics we covered:  As you survey the...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×