Oracle’s quarter-century-long commitment to the Linux community has been consistent and clear. Oracle seeks to make Linux the most effective server operating system, accessible to everyone, supplemented with affordable high-quality support for those in need. They are steadfast in their resolve to provide an open-source system that encourages diversity and fair competition. Jeff Geerling has created a great video to bring you up to speed with everything that is happened.
Oracle’s Linux engineering team has, over these 25 years, made significant contributions to the Linux kernel, file systems, and tools, proving its dedication towards enhancing the Linux ecosystem. All this work is fed back to the mainline, ensuring all Linux distributions can leverage these advancements. Oracle’s contributions have played an instrumental role in Linux’s evolution into a highly competent system that benefits not just Oracle customers, but all Linux users.
Open source
In 2006, Oracle launched what is now known as Oracle Linux, a distribution and support offering that aligns closely with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). The primary intent was to avoid further fragmentation in the Linux community. Their efforts to ensure compatibility with RHEL have been highly successful, resulting in a platform that enables a seamless switch from RHEL to Oracle Linux without necessitating modifications in user applications.
Oracle vs IBM
While both Oracle and IBM maintain Linux distributions that are RHEL compatible, the philosophies they follow as open source stewards differ starkly. Oracle has always provided free access to Oracle Linux binaries and source code. There are no subscription agreements that obstruct a subscriber’s rights to redistribute Oracle Linux.
Contrarily, IBM’s subscription agreements specify that usage of those subscription services to exercise GPLv2 rights would be considered a breach. Furthermore, as of June 21, IBM has ceased the public release of RHEL source code.
IBM’s Stance on Open Source
IBM attributes its decision to stop public release of RHEL source code to the costs associated with paying engineers who write code, fix bugs, and integrate different packages. However, this reasoning appears inconsistent, considering that Red Hat, a successful open source company that IBM acquired in 2019, had publicly released RHEL source and remunerated its engineers for many years.
Another point of contention lies in IBM’s treatment of CentOS. Once a popular free RHEL compatible distribution, CentOS was terminated as a free RHEL alternative by IBM in December 2020. This action appears to be a direct assault on emerging alternatives to RHEL like AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux, which emerged in the wake of CentOS’s demise.
Oracle’s Commitment to Open Linux
Despite IBM’s actions, Oracle remains dedicated to maintaining Linux’s openness and accessibility, and to curbing fragmentation within the community. Oracle will continue to develop and test its software products on Oracle Linux, which will remain RHEL compatible as far as practicable.
While Oracle previously relied on publicly released RHEL source code to maintain this compatibility, changes in IBM’s policies may raise potential compatibility issues post Oracle Linux 9.2. However, Oracle promises to address any such issues that might affect customers or independent software vendors (ISVs).
Oracle stresses its commitment to the freedom and openness of Linux. As long as it continues to distribute Linux, Oracle will provide the source code and binaries for that distribution publicly and without cost. Oracle welcomes community and commercial downstream distributions and offers collaboration to streamline the process and to certify Oracle software products on these distributions.
An Open Invitation to Linux Developers and ISVs
For ISVs, Oracle warns that IBM’s actions may not be in your best interest. By eliminating CentOS and targeting AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux, IBM is eroding one way your customers could save money and increase their expenditure on your product. Oracle encourages ISVs to consider supporting their product on Oracle Linux and is ready to demonstrate the simplicity of this transition.
Oracle’s advocacy for open and free Linux continues, illustrating its commitment to preserving the integrity of open-source computing while directly calling out industry giants like IBM for questionable practices. If you’re a Linux developer who champions the same principles of Linux freedom as Oracle, it’s worth noting that they are actively hiring.
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