SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 is the highly reliable, scalable and secure server operating system that powers your physical and virtual workloads. It features the fastest Linux update stack and diskless server capabilities. It provides Green IT innovations and performance optimizations to run as a virtual guest on VMware, Xen and Hyper-V. In every way it sets the standard for enterprise-class server computing.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11 delivers dozens of essential applications and seamless interoperability with your existing systems. What’s more, it gives users an easy-to-use and highly secure desktop experience. With application and multimedia enhancements, Green IT innovations and maximum interoperability with Microsoft Office and Exchange, it will help you reduce costs and increase productivity.

Two additional extensions for SLES 11 were also announced:

SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension provides proven, enterprise-class high availability clustering and data replication, at a much lower price than proprietary solutions.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Mono Extension enables you to run .NET server applications on Linux, with the performance, scalability and hardware support of the SUSE Linux Enterprise platform, including support for .NET applications on IBM System z.

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Users should benefit from Novell’s collaboration with Microsoft to run Windows virtualized on SUSE Linux Enterprise and vice versa. Systems should deploy faster through improvements to the YaST manager and configuration framework, including the YaST partitioner and AutoYaST.

Users wanting to test SLES 11 before the official release end of March can download alpha version from Novell’s sneak preview website.

With IDC reporting that the Linux thin client market will grow substantially in the next few years, Securelinx believes that a Thin Client option will be considered more and more by organisations in Ireland looking to reduce costs, mitigate risk and provide fit for purpose computing platforms. As both a Novell SUSE solution Partner and Dell Professional Services Partner for Linux, Securelinx is ideally placed to create secure and customised thin-client images tailored to meet customer needs, roles, and responsibilities.

This new thin client solution provides centralized data and image control for tighter security, easier image management, and better reliability — all without compromising the end-user workspace experience. To request more information on this topic from Securelinx please email us at info@securelinx.com or click on the link below to read the full Novell press release.

Read full Novell announcement

The Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.3 Release Notes note over 150 updates and upgrades, but here are a few key highlights:

Virtualization enhancements: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.3 supports larger x86-64 systems. The number of supported physical CPUs is increased to 126, while maximum memory is increased to 1TB. Virtual server CPU and memory limits have been increased to 32 and 80GB respectively – far higher than competing virtualization products. Additionally the per-guest limits for disks and network interfaces have also been increased. The performance and range of paravirtualized device drivers has been increased, enabling ever more applications to be deployed on virtual servers with near bare-metal performance.

Next-generation hardware enablement: The soon-to-be-released Tylersberg/Nehalem platform is the next-generation of Intel x86-64 hardware. Support for the virtualization and performance features provided by this processor combined with numerous optimizations have already demonstrated exceptional performance over previous processor generations in internal Red Hat testing.

OpenJDK: Red Hat is taking a leadership position in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.3 by shipping the first productized implementation of OpenJDK. OpenJDK in 5.3 has passed the full Java SE 6 TCK and is compatible with all applications written for Java SE 6 and previous versions. With the integration of OpenJDK, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.3 is the the first enterprise-ready solution with a fully open source Java stack when combined with JBoss Enterprise Application Platform.

Systemtap: This is an application development tool targeted at dynamically allowing applications to be monitored and diagnosed. With Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.3 support for User Mode (i.e. application level) tracing and profiling is provided for the first time – adding to the Kernel Mode support that was provided in earlier releases. The operative word here being “dynamically,” as the key benefit of Systemtap is the ability, on-the-fly, to add instrumentation, probe points, and memory tracking to running applications. This is key to enable identification and resolution of issues in live environments. Extremely powerful — both for user and kernel space.

Power management: With “green IT” gaining increasing focus, we have been implementing a progression of power-saving enhancements in every update of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. 5.3 is no exception, with improved handling of low-level power management low-power sleep states.

Disk encryption: Critical for laptop use, but also becoming increasingly important in server deployments (due to concerns with hardware disposal at the end of its lifecycle), Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.3 includes full support for encryption of storage, either at the block level or file system level. Installer enhancements enable encryption to be configured at installation time, and includes support for the root and swap devices.

More information about Securelinx and Red Hat partnership.

Securelinx provides customers with unrivalled experience in delivering highly secure Linux builds and software images optimised for specific workloads. Complex platform solutions required for distributed IT environments are specified, built, documented and delivered at low cost. While auto-installation features allow image builds to be rolled out across multiple platform nodes and office locations – facilitating management and lowering IT overheads.

Skills

Our Linux engineers are amongst the most highly skilled and experienced in Ireland with full technical accreditations backing up field assignments in areas of individual interest and specialization. Their expertise cover a range of Linux platforms and ensures that all work is properly specified from the outset and that it integrates seamlessly with existing IT landscapes and customer requirements. Linux has a well-earned reputation for delivering enhanced IT services at lower cost and TCO – key considerations in todays more challenging economic environment.

Performance

Linux platforms are deployed to fulfill specific enterprise solutions – database servers, email servers, web solutions, file and print etc. Securelinx integrates and reviews these implementations, highlighting performance bottlenecks and tuning operating systems for specific applications and throughput optimization.

Security

Securelinx CISSP qualified engineers conduct security audits and highlight potential security vulnerabilities to ensure compliance with security standards adopted by organisation.

Dublin – 03rd July 2008 – QUINN-direct Insurance, the second-largest insurer in Ireland has deployed Novell® SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) in order to support its rapidly growing internet sales channel. Running on more than 20 servers, the SLES environment handles over 85,000 insurance quotes daily, combining high availability and performance to deliver optimal service to existing and new customers.

With more than 1 million customers and an expanding presence in Europe, the insurance company needed to upgrade its core Web-serving platform to ensure it could handle a rapidly increasing number of customers. Quinn-direct Insurance chose Novell’s SLES over competitive Linux distributions due to the solution’s resilience, security and performance.

The company also cites a lower support burden for its IT personnel as a key driver for the deployment. All of the company’s internet-based activity is supported by one operating system now – freeing up highly skilled employees to work on other projects.

The company undertook intensive testing to find the right platform to support its web-based business looking in particular at integration with IBM WebSphere and the ability to handle very heavy loads. Securelinx provided hands-on Linux expertise and support to the project which took three-months from start to finish.

Commenting on the deployment, CJ Johnston, IT Server & Desktop Manager, Quinn-direct Insurance said: “We’ve already started to see a healthy return on investment from our standardisation on Novell SUSE Linux Enterprise Server…The website is considerably more responsive for end users and we now typically handle four times as many quotes as before. Automated XML requests from partner websites are completed and returned within seconds.”

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server is one of the leading Linux server distributions on the market today. Novell’s Linux server solutions give businesses greater flexibility, are scalable, inexpensive and easy to maintain.

Atefeh Riazi, Senior Partner and CIO for Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, says, “Everyone roots for the underdog: Linux vs. the operating-system giants. The stakes are huge. Linux takes many of the best features of other operating systems and integrates them into anelegant and simple solution.”

In order to reduce its total cost of ownership for IT, while increasing flexibility, reliability and security, Ogilvy has embarked on a project to migrate email and file-and-print servers to Linux®. The strategic drivers behind the move include cost efficiencies as well as improved flexibility—the ability to support small office environments as well as larger regional hubs where new business requirements can be satisfied rapidly and intelligently with only a marginal impact on costs.

The migration to Linux began with a pilot project in Ireland, where Ogilvy worked with Securelinx (www.securelinx.com), an IBM “Leader for Linux” Business Partner. Formerly a division of a leading Irish systems integrator, Securelinx was launched as an independent company in August 2002, specialising in the deployment of secure Linux-based platforms for enterprise computing. Says Yuri Aguiar, Ogilvy’s CTO,

“We made a strategic decision to adopt Linux globally, and teamed up with Securelinx to start the rollout. This was, and continues to be, a major project – it’s not just about the technology, but also about building the right internal skill sets and changing the way we work within the organisation.”

Ogilvy Case Study (PDF)

Securelinx Profile in the Sunday Tribune

“The upcoming event will be a great opportunity for Irish Organisations to gauge the level of progress that Linux has made in the last 18 months, both in terms of its true enterprise capability and its key adoption areas” said Brian Farrell, Technical Operation Director of SecureLinx.

“Our aim has always been to ensure that Irish Business’s achieve the same benefits from Linux adoption that their counterparts across Europe currently enjoy” “Linux is no longer just a Technology discussion…it is a business decision”…he added.

Join us at this key event to learn how Linux can help your organisation gain competitive advantage.