Red Hat Linux 7.2
Server |
Workstation |
Red Hat was one of the first Linux-distribution companies to market its product to end users and vendors alike. By placing its distributions in retail stores and establishing alliances with companies such as Dell Computer Corp. and IBM, Red Hat now has the largest installed base of any Linux product. The development and adoption of Red Hat Package Manager (RPM), the preferred packaging application used in almost all distributions on the market, also played a major role in Red Hat's market dominance. According to Gartner, 8.6 percent of U.S. server shipments in the third quarter of 2000 were Linux-based systems. Of that, a full 8 percent were Red Hat.
We were pleased to be one of the first labs to test Red Hat's new 7.2 release. New features include support for MIT-Kerberos authentication, enhanced firewalling features and the new Ext3 by default (see "Journaling File Systems to the Rescue").
The Red Hat server package offers a large selection of applications, but not all are available at installation time; some commercial applications must be installed afterward from the accompanying CDs. And, having become quite attached to the handy Webmin configuration tool, we were disappointed that Red Hat does not include a Webmin RPM (though downloading it from the Webmin site is quite easy).
X-based utilities abound in this distribution of Red Hat. Management of printers, print jobs, firewalls and the like is made easier through the Red Hat suite of configuration tools. Red Hat is one of the major commercial sponsors of GNOME, so it's not surprising that GNOME is the default desktop environment (see "The Mystery of X Unveiled"). However, Red Hat's use of KDE was equally impressive. We did have some stability issues with a couple of X tools -- the package manager locked up and reported software incorrectly -- but these problems should be resolved by the time 7.2 begins shipping.
As you might expect after reading about Mandrake, Red Hat also offers the Setup text-based application for configuring hardware outside of X. This tool lets you configure users and groups, passwords, networking configuration and more, but it suffers from the configuration file bloating described earlier.
Red Hat's support department is more mature than most. It offers development support, multiplatform implementation support and traditional end-user support. Support is divided into several categories ranging from 12x5 with two-day response up to premium 24x7 immediate response services. Online support was also top-notch: Red Hat responded to an issue submitted online within eight hours.
Security updates are timely and can be installed through X using the update manager or the CLI using Up2 date, Red Hat's custom update utility.
Red Hat Linux 7.2, $59.95 (Standard), $199.95 (Professional). Available: Now. Red Hat, (919) 547-0012, (888) REDHAT1; fax: (919) 547-0024. www.redhat.com
Caldera International OpenLinux Server 3.1 and Workstation 3.1
Server |
Workstation |
The big sleeper in the group, Caldera OpenLinux gave us something to think about. It was one of the most polished and stable distributions we've used, and the installation is well-thought-out and allows an extensive customization.
We'd like to see a few items supported at installation time -- namely, NTP synchronization, remote printing, a crypto file system and a way of enforcing strong security. For example, there was no password quality check when choosing a root password. Although it didn't offer the largest selection of applications, OpenLinux Server 3.1 provided us with ample choice.
One weakness is that, though Caldera has invested a tremendous amount of time in the development of its OpenLinux X-based administrative utilities -- including tools for patching, network and modem configuration, and X setup -- the tools didn't always work as expected. For example, whenever we attempted to alter the video resolution from within the GUI configuration utility, all other video settings would reset to an unconfigured state and would prevent X from initializing properly in the future. Sadly, text-based counterparts for configuration are almost nonexistent, so if these tools are important to you, OpenLinux might not be the best choice.
On the other hand, we found OpenLinux Workstation 3.1 to be both user-friendly and feature rich. It comes prepackaged with the StarOffice suite, making it a fully functional and productive desktop environment. Security options are lacking during install, but it does come with security tools such as Tripwire, for a form of host-based intrusion detection called binary integrity-checking; iptables (formerly ipchains) for firewalling; PortSentry automated defense against port scans; and Logcheck, for monitoring and alerting of log files. Security patches can be installed through the X-based update facility or downloaded and installed manually.
Caldera added a large Unix support group with its acquisition of UnixWare and OpenServer from SCO. The Caldera support department handles calls for both Unix and Linux.
We had a few issues with OpenLinux. Support for wireless network adaptors is lacking, and the low-level disk and partition setup had some functionality issues. If you let OpenLinux partition your drive for you, as we did, you'll end up with a 2-GB root partition. This may be a little tight depending on how much software you install. Also, unless you drop to manual setup, the root partition will not have the ReiserFS JFS (journaling file system) but will have the stalwart Ext2 file system. Finally, make sure to select "Write Boot Sector" during install; otherwise you won't be booting to that new OS anytime soon.
OpenLinux Server 3.1, OpenLinux Workstation 3.1, $599 (Server), $59.99 (Workstation). Available: Now. Caldera International, (801) 765-4999, (888) GOLINUX; fax (801) 765-1313. www.caldera.com
TurboLinux Server 6.5
TurboLinux has positioned itself differently from the other vendors simply because of the variety of high-end platforms it supports. The company has aligned itself heavily with IBM by incorporating the distribution into many of IBM's mid- and high-range platforms, including the S/390, the eServer iSeries and the eServer pSeries. TurboLinux also offers several high-end clustering products. We evaluated only the server portion of TurboLinux because, halfway through our tests, the company discontinued general distribution of its workstation product, which will now be available by OEM only. The company asked that we not include Workstation Pro 6.1 in this evaluation.
Installation options on TurboLinux 6.5 were fairly comprehensive, offering the largest selection of file systems to choose from; however, only Ext2/Ext3 were permitted for the root partition.
TurboLinux hard-drive requirements are lean. A standard Internet install requires only 250 MB, while the more complete intranet install jumps up to just 572 MB. Obviously, TurboLinux doesn't offer the breadth of software available in some of the larger distributions, such as SuSE and Mandrake, which have typical installs of about 1 GB, but if your needs are servercentric, TurboLinux may be the choice.
If X was selected for install, GNOME will be the desktop environment, as KDE support is not offered. Interestingly, TurboLinux seems to have focused much of its development on the text-based side of the house, so almost all tools are executed from the command line. The scripts all begin with turbo, so finding them is not a chore. You'll find tools for user and group administration, TCPwrapper configuration and network service setup.
Unfortunately, there is no slick GUI tool for patches and updates, as we've come to expect -- this too is a text-based utility. Given that, TurboLinux is clearly geared for experienced administrators familiar with Linux and not afraid to work from within the boundaries of the command line -- not a bad thing, just not for everyone.
Server 6.5, $199.95. Available: Now. TurboLinux, (650) 228-5000; fax (650) 228-5001. www.turbolinux.com
Kevin Novak and Patrick Mueller work for Chicago-based security consultancy Neohapsis. Send comments on this article to them at knovak@neohapsis.com and pmueller@neohapsis.com.
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