12.14.07
Do-No-Evil Saturday – Part II: Novell Wins and Deals
To Novell’s credit, it does manage to get some contracts signed. Here are a couple of Linux examples.
GNU/Linux Success Stories
There was a big win in Office Depot.
Novell today announced that Office Depot , a leading global provider of office products and services, has chosen SUSE(R) Linux Enterprise Server as a core operating platform for the company’s global servers. The goal of the standardization is to reduce complexity and control costs while maintaining superior stability and performance for Office Depot’s end-user applications.
It doesn’t mention coupons, Microsoft, or “IP”. It is also worth adding that Xandros started selling its Linux products in Office Depot last year. This happened before the deal with Microsoft.
The story from ELCOT returns and it consistently mentions Linux as a product, which is attributed to Novell.
Tamil Nadu’s schools were running Microsoft Windows on a horde of aging machines—1,880 servers and around 30,000 desktops. The OS was in need for a refresh; however, moving to Windows Vista looked like an expensive option largely on account of the increased hardware requirement. ELCOT decided to move its own systems from Windows to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop.
Identity Management
Novell’s identity management product is only briefly mentioned in this article from Network World.
Pricing starts at $10,000, and goes up depending on the number of users or processors, according to IBM. An InfoWorld test two years ago found the product cost $120,000 for 2,700 users, making it more expensive than similar products from Microsoft and Novell, but less expensive than products from Sun and Thor Technologies (now owned by Oracle).
It is also mentioned here.
Two weeks ago I was in L.A., jumping from meeting after meeting, and at the end of every meeting, I asked everyone what they saw in the Identity and Access Management road ahead. I got some great answers, which you can peruse right here, and just this morning, I got these additional answers from Baber Amin of Novell, and definitely thought they were worth adding to the discussion. And hey, it is the holidays, so I can certainly forgive a little lateness.
Here is the last and most important examples of a comprehensive solution.
Novell-based Operations
Alvarado’s network operation is Novell-based, and it has been that way since Berger joined the district four years ago. One of his first initiatives was to “stabilize the foundation” by deploying ZENworks to tighten up computer systems management. Now, along with the NetWare 6.5 operating system and ZENworks , the district currently runs Patch Management for security compliance, iPrint for network-enabling printers, GroupWise 7 for e-mail, eDirectory for network directory services, and File System Factory (now known as Storage Manager) for storage management.So going with a Novell solution for identity management was a no-brainer, he said.
Ron Hovsepian insists that Linux will continue to play just a partial role in bringing revenue to Novell. Identity management is important to Novell’s survival. █
