Almost two thirds of Irish IT experts say the main motivation for migrating to the Linux operating system from UNIX for use in servers is cost, according to a recent survey from Novell’s Open Enterprise Summit in Dublin.
While cost may be a key driver, 48pc of those surveyed felt that hardware obsolescence and modernisation issues were contributory factors, while 39pc felt that support issues relating to UNIX was a concern.
The survey also looked at what both current and potential Novell customers thought and found that 61pc were confident that Linux met with the security requirements of enterprise users and the same percentage found it more attractive cost wise to virtualise on Linux rather than UNIX.
Jill Henry, director of channel development for Novell, said: “It’s not surprising that a majority of attendees view cost as the main business driver for migration from UNIX to Linux.
“Linux is the best-engineered, most interoperable platform for enterprise computing and is becoming the clear choice for organisations.
“Compared to proprietary software, Linux is proven to save enterprises money. The price typically includes maintenance, meaning that organisations get patches, security updates and new releases of Linux as part of the subscription fee.”
Although the case for moving from UNIX to Linux is compelling to many IT professionals, they do find some business challenges — with 57pc finding software certification to be the main obstacle.
By Marie Boran
