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Linux is the most popular operating system so far as security and performance is concerned .It is a Unix-like operating system and is the best example of open source development and free software; generally all underlying Linux source code can be modified, redistributed and used freely by anyone. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.2 is the latest version of Linux operating system.

As we all know every operating system has its demerits or failures and can give errors at any time with out any prior information. There are some common error messages faced by Linux users while using this operating system. Some of the most common ones are the following:

• Unknown terminal type Linux.

• Unrecognized option ‘-m486′.

• bdflush not running

• cannot read table of mounted file systems

• Unknown terminal type Linux.

• Cannot initialize drive XYZ?

• EPERM Operation not permitted.

• Unrecognized option ‘-m486′.

• Modprobe can’t locate module, “XXX,” and similar messages.

• Mounting unchecked file system.

• EINTR Interrupted system call.

In most the situations given above a user faces any of the mentioned problems, it becomes difficult for him/her to access or manage his data. He/she won’t be able to do normal tasks which can otherwise be performed effortlessly. If the data which has been rendered inaccessible is important then it becomes essential to recover that data as soon as possible. In this case, he/she would need the help of Linux data recovery software.

Linux Data Recovery Software is an ultimate way out for all Linux related data recovery problems. It also recovers data from formatted hard drives also where file systems have been changed. It recovers lost logical drives and data from physical disk or any removable media.

Stellar Phoenix Linux Recovery software provides data recovery from Ext2, Ext2 and Reiser FS file systems of Linux operating system.

By: allen

Lora Bentley spoke with Amanda McPherson, marketing and developer programs VP at the Linux Foundation. She and two colleagues recently released a new paper, “Estimating the Total Development Cost of a Linux Distribution.”

Bentley: Your study found that it would cost $1.4 billion for a company to build the Linux kernel from scratch today, and $10.8 billion to build an entire Linux distribution similar to Fedora 9. Can you explain how you reached those figures?

McPherson: The conclusions were reached by using David Wheeler’s well-known SLOC tool, SLOCCount, which makes use of the industry standard COnstructive COst MOdel (COCOMO). This methodology takes into account lines of code written, the appropriate number of labor years, and salary adjustments for inflation. We wanted to come up with a real number based on the one thing you can quantify in open source — code. We used a well-regarded methodology and tool that had been used before. Instead of making random projects, we thought this was the best way to approach it.

Bentley: Why the Fedora community distribution and not another?

McPherson: Fedora is the basis for Red Hat Enterprise Linux, which represents a large percentage of the Linux market. This provided us with a very relevant model to assess. Also, David A. Wheeler had used Red Hat for his study in 2002. OpenSuse and Debian/Ubuntu would, of course, also be great targets for this study. We may do that at a later date. We also would like to use an embedded distribution.

Bentley: What do or should these findings mean to proprietary software vendors?

McPherson: I think it means the future of software development is collaborative. These systems have grown so powerful and so important that for any one company to fund the development on its own would be a foolish and possibly financially untenable decision. Software development today actually requires collaboration in order to innovate at the pace the market demands. Consider devices like the Kindle and Gphone. They wouldn’t likely be available today were it not for the billions of dollars worth of R&D that they can use from the Linux kernel. You see companies like Intel using Linux and open source components in the Moblin project to expand the use of netbooks running its products. Intel could instead develop proprietary software in-house to meet this need, but why would they when they can make use of billions of dollars of free R&D? Things have changed since the desktop computer revolution.

Bentley: Don’t many proprietary software vendors recognize the value of open source now given that so many use open source in some way or another?

McPherson: Absolutely! You can also look at our “Who Writes Linux” report to see that hundreds of companies support Linux development directly. This study shows that those companies (such as IBM, Intel, Red Hat, Novell and HP) have made a very smart decision. They can fully participate in a large ecosystem and make use of free R&D without having to shoulder the burden all alone.

Bentley: So why is a study like this one helpful?

McPherson: Sometimes it’s easy to take a ubiquitous piece of technology for granted, especially one you can use for free. I think it’s not just Linux we take for granted: Just imagine the R&D value of the Internet itself and what that means for our economy. Compared to that, Linux seems small, yet when you think about all the innovation it’s powered or is powering, you start to get the idea. I honestly can’t imagine where we would be if Google had had to pay a company a per-server fee for its servers. I do not believe the economics would have been there to build out the powerful search network that we all use everyday. This study makes us appreciate the sometimes-unheralded piece of software and the license that has powered this innovation.

Bentley: Do the findings have added significance in light of the current economic climate?

McPherson: I think so. Linux has always been a lower-cost alternative to Windows, but this report illustrates its economic impact on technology innovation. It’s exciting to see how the collaborative development model is fueling a new category of devices and technologies that would be at least a decade into the future if it weren’t for Linux. Let’s remember that in software, time is money; oftentimes time is more important than money. For a company like Google or Intel to be able to make use of this code that has taken years to develop, drives innovation and keeps costs low for consumers.

By: Lora Bentley

Although we are aware of Linux adoption by large enterprises, most people do not know that there are sizeable numbers of installations in small and medium businesses (SMBs) as well. This base is set to grow as server vendors lob tailor made Linux servers and applications at SMBs.

Country manager, pSeries & Open power, IBM says, “Unlike large enterprises, SMBs do not have to face the challenge of migrating legacy applications. The popularity with SMBs has helped Linux grow at 30 percent globally”.

The general consensus is that Linux did better in 2004 than anyone had predicted. Director Enterprise Marketing & alliances, Customers solution Group, HP India says, “ As per IDC India, Linux in the server market grew by 48 percent in OND, 2004 over JAS, 2004, while the windows and Unix markets showed a modest 3 percent and 3.4 percent growth respectively during the same period.”

For any OS to succeed, applications need to be made available. SMBs can be major draw for Linux servers as it offers them lower TCO and tighter control on their IT spends. Since many SMBs already have home grown applications, a proprietary OS will be the single largest area of spending. It is here that Linux offers a big advantage.

The availability of version 2.6 of the Linux kernel in Red hat Enterprise Linux 4 and Novell’s SuSE 9 will give a big boost to vertical scalability. As SMBs become a part of the global supply chain, they want enterprise applications on Linux to keep their investment low. This trend will be a key enabler for the Linux server market worldwide.

Why Linux Based servers?

Cost is a factor and Linux offers better security as the source code of proprietary software is always kept a secret. With a community supporting it, any security hole in Linux is quickly found and patched.

Linux not only lets an organization save on software costs, it also offers long term long term saving on hardware. Instead of being forced to upgrade software with Linux, an SMB can take control of its IT strategy. Chief technology officer of IDBI bank says, “You decide when you wish to upgrade, not the vendor, hence you get tighter control on your spending.” This can be particularly important for users, such as SMBs that cannot afford to keep up with the pace of change in commercial software.

Business application and Linux

There is credit to Oracle for driving the Linux server market. During the early part of 2004, Oracle came up with a value offering. It offered pre- configured Oracle E-Business Suite special edition on Lintel Boxes for a 10 user License for $36,000USD. The traction of this offering was seen towards the end of 2004 when we closed a dozen deals that were in various stages of implementation, says General Manager, Oracle India. This is a testimony that SMBs are opting for Linux servers. SAP is following Oracle in making application available on Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Customized and certified

All server vendors including HP, IBM and SGI are throwing their weight behind Linux and each has a SMB specific business strategy with significant initiatives to lure them.

HP has announced that some of its high end computing tools from the HP-UX environment are ported onto Linux and made available to SMBs. This includes a clustering solution called HP service guard for high availability of applications and management tools such as Systems insight Manager(SIM) and open view that offer third party integration. Additionally HP is creating a reference architecture stack, including hardware, OS, database and Middleware. HP certifies a stack so that customers can feel more confident on deploying their core business application on Linux. Linux servers are popular in high performance computing(HPC) environments such as research labs.

IBM has recently launched a new family of eserver Openpower systems based on its Power5 processor specially designed for Linux. The Power5 comes with a micropartitioning technology called Virtualisation Engine(VE) wherein each processor can be sliced into ten virtual partitions with each partition acting as a new server. IBM’s eserver Openpower 710 is a single CPU processor with 3 HDDs and 512 MB memory with RAID level 1 and 5. This eserver offers SMBs an affordable alternative to higher priced entry level Unix or Linux system. Openpower offers a 64bit platform at a price point of a 32 bit offering. We believe that it is the right product for the mass market.

Sun Microsystems has the Sun fire V20 and V40 severs based on the 64 bit AMD Opteron processor, which has been successful with SMBs. It also offers the Solaris 10 Opetron combination. Sun is aiming to position Solaris 10 as its trump card to take the fight to commercial Linux with support – email, phone and onsite – available at a small price. Advanced scientific research, elite foods, Sage Design systems, Centre for DNA fingerprinting and diagnostics, are Sun customers running there core application on Linux.

Linux servers are used by SMBs for CAD analysis, CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) and FEA(Finite Element Analysis). Linux systems are rugged as they come with SGI Propack over and above the standard Linux Kernel. This gives customers the ability to scale there computing environments with independent I/O, memory and power supply.

Banking on Support

Linux is getting traction and getting into commercial business applications in verticals such as manufacturing, small banking and hospitality. Availability of tally o Linux will result in a new chapter being inked in the Linux server market. Red hat has 950 ISV partners who develop applications that run on its Linux distributions. Linux offers secure and scalable solutions to meet SMB requirements. IBM has 35 to 40 pure Linux partners that offers consultancy and assist it in integrating and implementing services for its customers who are using Linux.

jayant@jkserverlink.com

By: Jayant Kowe