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HP Announces Support for Debian Linux
Bain writes "PC World reports that HP is to offer support for Debian Linux on its ProLiant and HP BladeSystem servers. Support will be provided by HP telephone operators rather than the discussion-group method that current Debian users rely on. The move to support Debian continues HP's relationship with the community-based OS, which stretches back to 1995."
For me it's useless, but I'm sure it will help give Linux a more serious look for the PHB out there..
factor 966971: 966971
So when I call HP for support, I can watch for their posting on the Debian mailing list to find out the answer? This should be fun!
Still, good for HP.
*Ring Ring*
Hello, I.T.
Have you tried turning it off and on again?
How many of these do we get nowadays? I've read enough bits about many companies "supporting" linux in one form or another. Dell, HP, Real, even Microsoft has a Linux lab. Yahoo loves the Linux, Google loves the Linux, IBM loves the Linux, SCO owns the Linux.
So where is Linux in all of this? Sure, some of the companies mentioned above have actually shown their support for Linux. Some others seem not to go much further than lip service. Dell comes to mind -- couldn't hunt down a preinstalled Linux box easily. (Not sure if that has changed since I last tried that).
I guess Linux is like that weird looking new kid in school (no offense to Linus) whom everyone just didn't know what to do with so everyone stayed away from him. Hell, some of 'em probably made fun of him and bullied him, too. Then it turns out he's pretty cool and everyone all of a sudden wants to be his friend.
Knoppix is a linux distroy anyone can use, the automated hardware detection etc is supurb. The DVD 4.0 version does demonstrate a lot of the incompatability issues he's talking about though. because knoppix has about 6 GB of applications (they're compressed on the DVD image) many of the applications are broken.
Debian is the distro Knoppix is based of of, so it has really good hardware detection, but the "stable" version is using the "older" proven stable detection routines. That means it doesn't configure everything perfectly; for instance I had to enable DMA on my DVD-ROM, and I had to use k3b to "configure the system" for CD/DVD burning.
I also have the advantage of having prior experience, So I know how to install Flash support for my secondary browser, and how to configure Java (which isn't included in Debian because it's not FOSS). I knew that the FOSS drivers suck compared to the proprietary ones, so I knew where to find them, and I knew what settings to set in the "install" script for them, because I've been messing around with X11 config files for years now!
So basically, initial set up is probably beyond most users, but the same is true of Windows XP. Most Windows users can't even install applications by themselves, and when they try to the end up with a million spyware programs.
Debian is "ready" for the desktop: the installer is painless for geeks, and simple enough for rice boys. A few noobs might even get lucky with it. The stable version while old, has a very simple gui based app finder that anyone who can use Download.com can learn how to use.
I'm sorry, are you from the past?
I'd be interested to know how much this gentleman had to do with it:
http://www.gag.com/~bdale/
He's a former Debian Project Leader and now Linux/OSS CTO at HP.
I think this is a distro for people who already know/whant to learn GNU/Linux. pretty useless for me.
But it's a start. HP offers Debian support. Next comes Company X. Then Company Y. Now there is competition, cause 3 companies support Debian. HP decides they want to jump out ahead of the crowd, so they start supporting Ubuntu and Fedora. Company X and Y slowly follow suite. The process continues. Boom, Linux is now part of every Server company's business plan.
Outsourced HP Linux support? This could get ugly.
the mods may say you posted flamebait, but to me it's a flame that warms my heart. rock on, brother! --chebucto
Somebody ought to say it:
Well done, HP! I hope this boosts your sales!
And on the day HP overtakes Dell in PC sales, I'll be opening the champagne.
HP can barely handle the point and click associated with RHEL and Windows. I'm at a loss as to who in that company is going to support Debian. I know it's surely not their L1 or L2 phone techs.
Support is vital for any OS to be taken seriously where downtime is unacceptable. I know way too many IT guys who would love to run some form of *nix for their servers, but their CEO's wouldn't let them. The reason? If there's a problem they can't fix, they resort to googling, mailing lists, forums, etc: they're pretty boned.
If there's a Windows problem they can't fix they can fly someone in from Redmond to get the job done in a few hours. Unfortunately Red Hat can't compete with that (yet). If minutes of downtime = millions in losses, Official support that always gets the job done is a requirement that can't be ignored.
Remember, this won't be troubleshooting Apache/SSL or anything. This will be determining why the OS doesn't like the hardware and whether it is an OS problem or hardware problem.
I would guess this is going to be very inexpensive for HP to do. The article doesn't say, but I assume they're going to be selling the servers with Debian preinstalled, in which case not much should go wrong, and it should be easy to support. And if a lot of their customers have already been buying servers and installing Linux distros on them themselves, HP is probably already getting tech support calls from them (even if they're phrased as hardware support calls). The difference would be that now, the customer gets a machine that has had everything set up correctly by HP, and HP will only be supporting a single distro, which will be easier. Sounds like a win-win.
Servers are a lot easier to configure than desktop systems, too. The amount of software is small, and most of it is relatively mature. None of this insanity with rapidly changing versions of GTK+ libraries, etc.
Find free books.
That's what this means. As soon as a winner became apparent in the OSS Distro fog, the major players would join in to try to make a buck. Good for them! Good for Debian. Good for you. Charles
I've read a lot of replies in this thread knocking the HP support by making comparisions with what sounds like (to me) their home support line. The technicans that you talk to when you call for support on a Proliant server are not the same guys you are going to talk to when you call with a problem on your Pavillion Media Center PC. HP has been supporting *nix for a long time now and I'm sure that they will do a good job with Debian. If their Debian SmartStart CD is anything like the Windows and Novell ones, then getting the OS up and running on a Proliant will be SIMPLE. Like another poster said, all the HP techs are going to be doing is helping you figure out why the OS and the hardware aren't getting along with each other. Based on past experience with HP, the only reason something wouldn't work is because of an actual hardware failure. I've never, ever had a problem with an HP driver on a production server.
As someone who recently tried to install Debian on a newish ProLiant, and failed miserably because of unsupported hardware, I'm happy to see this announcement. It means that HP will be using hardware for which Linux drivers already exist, and that the Debian installer will be able to load those drivers into the kernel at install-time.
The bigger bonus is that if vanilla Debian can do it, any Linux disto can: Ubuntu, Gentoo, Slackware, whatever.
this is a distro for people who already know/whant to learn GNU/Linux.
Whell, what else whould you whant from them? Whe need to start somewhere to get Linux mainstream.
Anywhay, I don't think Debian is as hard as some whant to think it is. Those having problems are usually working hard at being clueless. It's like whatching someone try to set the time on a VCR: "What? Press 'setup', select 'set time' and enter the time? Why make it soooooo complicated? I don't understand! If I try that it might exploide! They shouldn't put such dangerous buttons on the control!"
Who would win this election: Andrew Weiner vs Andrew Weiner's weiner.
couldn't hunt down a preinstalled Linux box easily
Here's the LIST.
Companies selling preinstalled Linux Desktops and Laptops
http://lxer.com/module/forums/t/23168/
HP's OpenView product mentions support for Debian. Unfortunately, this idea of support means that you have configure your Debian box to work with RPMs and then try and install them.
UNIX/Linux Consulting
Are they kidding. The last version was only supported for one year after the previous version. So I'm going to go tell the PHB we should start using a distribution that should be upgraded every other year. Unless they can offer longer version support I don't see this helping.
Those of us working in the real world don't change versions unless we have to, because it lowers our TCO.
I know a data center that was still using RH8 on some of their servers up until 4 months ago and last year I talked with a guy who said they still had RH6.2 on one of their servers.
Heck, until six months ago I had RH7.3 running on 3 servers and still have RH7.1 running on one.
At a minimum I want 3 years security support and prefer 5. Why would I care if I obviously have servers which aren't using security support. Because I don't want multiple flavors of linux, this keeps my training cost down and support cost down.
He who said 1,000,000 monkeys on 1,000,000 typewriters would eventually type the great novel, never saw an AOL chat room
I'm getting a Woody just thinking about this!
"Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart he dreams himself your master."
I got 15 minutes of uptime on this computer and I am not about to lose them because of you!
I only look human.
My mother is a halfling and my dad is an ogre, so that makes me an Ogreling
As a Debian user for many years... I am not sure if I like this frantic release schedule. I got 3 good years out of Woody... barely got Sarge installed on my test box and a few edge machines, now it almost time to upgrade again.
Sarcasm aside, good job Debian, congrats on earning vendor recognition. News like this does affect hardware purchases. Rather fond of Debian, and a nice blade chasis may be just the ticket.
I only look human.
My mother is a halfling and my dad is an ogre, so that makes me an Ogreling
Does this mean I'll be able to get debian packages of the tools for my DL380 Gen4 without having to do magic with alien and their crap ass RPMs?
--
Phil
IBM & Suse - Cool HP & Debian - Cool Dell & RedHat or Suse - Cool Gateway & Microsoft - Boo Hey 3 out of 4 aint bad
-- I am the NRA, enough said...
August 16th, 1993.
Martin Brooks / Slayer99 #linux / UIN 2178117
Oh is this for servers :D
How long before a system maker like HP (or someone other than Apple) buys / starts their own Linux distro?
Think of all the people who don't know what "Ampersand" means.
tasks(723) drafts(105) languages(484) examples(29106)
Duh, dont you /.'ers know?
its Linux, once its installed and config'd you dont touch it and it just works.
so HP supporting linux will be easy, soon as the client installs other software and it doesnt "work" its not HPs fault because it it not a product they are supporting.
Although L1 support will still prolly not know anything, but thats okay because they have to filter out all the non-OS related issues.
and why do i have the feeling that the callcenter will be in india and run on MS only products (except for maybe the PBX)
This is very good so now the very well know Debian distribution will fight against the big ones whit commercial support like RedHat and SuSe.
:)
I know people that doesn't use because things like "Oracle doesn't support them", but now that HP does another companies like Oracle will do the same.
ghostbar page.
... of course not. what was I thinking
well if you DID, you would notice that the support is for thin client servers. I very much doubt the people calling for support will have these kinds of issues
being vague is almost as cool as doing that other thing...
I just happened onto Debian for my first and only flavor, just to get a feel for the install, config and use (I had used gentoo in college programming lab). I was initially drawn by the package system and I gotta say I liked it. Once you get a feel for the basic commands and control schemes it's pretty easy. I commend the whole (even while poking obligatory fun at HP, which has turned into a heaping pile of mediocre hardware and abysmal software)
the mods may say you posted flamebait, but to me it's a flame that warms my heart. rock on, brother! --chebucto
My HP printer works fine, thanks to hplip (which, incidentally, is also a Debian package).
http://outcampaign.org/
I see where this is going. HP will create their own flavor of Debian - which, because it'll stop being Debian, the Deb community won't support either.
This sig no verb.