SuSE

History

The company

The S.u.S.E company was founded on September 2nd, 1992 with Nuremberg in Germany, by four people: Roland Dyroff, Thomas Fehr, Burchard Steinbild and Hubert Mantel, all in their twentieth year. Three of the founders were always at the university, studying mathematics; Thomas Fehr had already received a diploma and worked as a software engineer.

The original idea was that the company makes the development of software and functions like a group of consultation UNIX. According to what one of the founders says, Hubert Mantel, this idea did not concretize himself in an appreciable way, work in this branch of industry being difficult to obtain, and after a certain time the group had the idea to distribute Linux, making in parallel of the support and the sale of software.

The name " S.u.S.E" was originally a German acronym for " Software und System-Entwicklung" , meaning " Development of software and systèmes" , a name not so original for a company of software. However, the complete name employed forever and the company since were always known as being " S.u.S.E." , short cut later in " SuSE" in October 1998.

There is also a semi-official rumor which says that the name is a homage to the German data processing specialist Konrad Zuse, one of the fathers of the data processing which developed the first electronic data-processing machine in 1938, " SuSE" and " Zuse" deciding in a similar German way, except for the initial consonant.

The official logo of the distribution is a fore-mentioned chameleon green officially " Geeko" (contraction of " Gecko " and " Geek ") following a contest launched by SUSE. Its design passably evolved/moved with the wire of time.

Origins

The company thus began its activities like company of service, providing printed UNIX/Linux handbooks, selling software, among which the distributions SLS and Slackware were, and proposing support. SLS (Softlanding Linux System), rested by Peter McDonald and disappeared today, was the first true distribution to integrate elements pillars like X and TCP/IP. The Slackware distribution, maintained still at the present time by Patrick Volkerding, a former disappointed contributor of SLS, was largely based on the latter.

Thus, the company sent a set of 40 Slackware diskettes to the people who wished to obtain Linux. Thereafter, scripts of Patrick Volkerding were translated, making original distribution S.U.S.E. Linux 1.0 a German version of Slackware, developed in close cooperation with its developer. The set of diskettes was transformed into CD, following the vulgarizing of this support. According to the memories of Bodo Bauer, one of the first employees of the company, the leaders of S.u.S.E decided that it was to better develop their own distribution always to correct same the bugs of Slackware, Patrick Volkerding not taking into account the work of the company and not including it in its new versions. Also, they became aware that they needed, between thousand other things, of a better tool of installation and configuration. S.u.S.E taken for starting point the distribution Jurix (which does not exist today any more) of Florian LaRoche, this one joining the S.u.S.E team, and started to develop YaST, the tool of installation and configuration which was going to become the central point of the distribution. To note that Jurix is not a derivative of Slackware, since this distribution is older than the latter.

In 1996 the first true distribution of the company was published under the denomination S.u.S.E Linux 4.2. The number of version which was to be selected caused long discussions: that could have been simply version 1.1, but it was before all the departure of a new distribution. Since version 1.1 was finally rejected, one then rather considered number 42, an intentional reference to the answer of the " Great Question about the Life, the Universe and Reste" series of science-fiction novels H2G2 of the English Douglas Adams: The Hitchhiker' S Guides to the Galaxy. The number of the first version of YaST, 0.42, is also inspired by the same sources.

The expansion

While S.u.S.E. Linux incorporated several aspects of Red Hat Linux, like its manager of packages RPM and its structure of configuration /etc/sysconfig, the number of support CD of the distribution started to increase, passing from 1 to 2, then 3,4,…

S.u.S.E. was the distributer number one in Germany and recognized as a privileged partner for all that touches Linux, when in 1997, S.u.S.E., LLC was created in Oakland, CA to cut through a path on American the Linux market. While Red Hat was omnipresent in the United States, the popularity of the distribution Linux de SuSE continued to grow in Europe. SuSE was particularly popular in Germany its country of origin, but also in the Scandinavian countries such as the Finland and the Sweden, Linus Torvalds, (creator of the Noyau Linux), it having passably used itself. However, the success of this distribution in the French-speaking world remained mitigated, the concurrent distribution, Mandrake, of French origin, knowing its hours of glory in France then. That did not prevent SuSE from soon becoming a world company with the establishment of offices in the United States (1997) and the United Kingdom (1999). In 2001 SuSE the repurchase of the company of Strasbourg finalized Arkane Media (one of the first companies Frenchwoman entirely dedicated to Linux and the world of the free software), which ensured until there the French-speaking support, to make its French subsidiary company of it.

The repurchase by Novell

November 4th, 2003, Novell announced that it wished to acquire SuSE for 210 million dollars. Acquisition was finalized in January 2004 and the name of the company was changed into SUSE Linux after the repurchase by Novell. " SUSE" does not have consequently any more official significance. According to J. Philips, technological strategist at Novell for the area Pacific Asia, Novell would not deteriorate " in the medium term " the way according to which SUSE continues to be developed. To the annual gathering BrainShare de Novell in 2004, all the computers turned under SUSE Linux for the first time. At the time of this gathering, it was also announced that the program of administration owner of SUSE, YaST2, would leave publicly under license LPG, thus making the distribution entirely free with the eyes of the Free Software Foundation.

The Community project openSUSE

August 4th, 2005, the spokesperson and director of the public relations of Novell, Bruce Lowry, announced that the development of SUSE Linux would become more open and, that with the launching of the Community project openSUSE, similar to the project Fedora of his direct competitor Red Hat, they would try to reach a greater proportion of users and developers.

The acknowledged goal of the openSUSE project is to get a making environment of distribution the SUSE easiest of access and the most adapted for the average user or the tested developer, in order to become the distribution and the platform of open development the most used source.

The operating system, already had, by definition, a code " Open source ". But consequently, in fact the development process would be more " ouvert" that before, allowing the developers like with the users testing the product and helping to develop it. Previously, all the work of development was made in-situ by SUSE, and the version 10.0 was the first version to propose beta public test. Also and for the first time, the offices GNOME and KDE are put on an equal footing, the distribution being historically directed towards the office KDE.

This change in philosophy led, according to the traces of the majority of the open distributions source, to the exit of the distribution in direct free downloading and the access to the waiter of update on line, whereas a 2 months deadline of waiting was necessary before for which had not bought the box. There is, at the same time, a downloadable version free, in version entirely open source or not (OSI: Open Source Software), and an edition out of box available.

In a few months, distribution SUSE passed from a statute very " fermé" with a statute the most opened of, making quickly climb its popularity and its success which was not made wait. Within sight of confusion that there was between the denominations openSUSE, community, and SUSE Linux, the distribution, it was decided, as of first alpha of the version 10.2, to re-elect the distribution in " openSUSE" and to keep the " term; SUSE Linux" for the products of the sector undertaken of Novell

A new dimension

November 3rd, 2006, the head office Novell signed a historical agreement with the company Microsoft bearing on three shutters: improvement of the interworking of SuSE with Microsoft Windows, a reciprocal license on the use of the Patent S and an agreement on the marketing and the promotion of the two solutions.

Since the repurchase by Novell in 2003, SuSE Linux passed from a statute of distribution including of the owner, with differed publications, restrictive and equipped with a development closed with a free distribution (release of YaST, the central tool of the distribution) with a Community model, immediate free availability and for all (instead of the 2 months of waitings for which had not bought the box, without ISOs available but possible installation via ftp) and of an open and transparent development (bêtas public as of the version 10.0 and alpha as of the 10.1, placed at the disposal of a " buildserver").

Its popularity does not cease growing, by its opening and the infrastructures placed at the disposal, but is in opposition with the reception of the advertisement of the collaboration of Novell with Microsoft by a good part of the Linux community.

Products of family SUSE

There exist 2 branches of distribution SUSE Linux:

openSUSE
SUSE Linux Enterprise

openSUSE

openSUSE , in the past SUSE Linux, is the equivalent of the history " SUSE Linux Professionnal". It has 6 months a theoretical development cycle, one lifespan (lasted of the critical updates) 2 years starting from the coming out date. It is available free in remote loading and without delay in full version, with the choice to obtain or not the software owners. It is also sold out of box near the general public.

Thus, if there exists only one distribution openSUSE, it is declined in several " Edition" (state for the version 10.2):

openSUSE Download Edition : It is the freely downloadable ISO version. It is available in version 5 CD containing additional the open-source applications + 1 CD containing the software owners, or 1 simple DVD-5 sleeps (5 + 1 = 6 CD). It includes/understands neither support, nor printed handbooks. One 7th CD (not included on the DVD) available contains files of internationalization for the less current languages.
openSUSE Retail Edition : It is the commercial release of SUSE sold out of box. It contains 6CD, 1 DVD of sources and 1 DVD-9 (double-layer) including/understanding version 32 and 64 bits, as well as a very important documentation on paper medium (1500+ pages), a support user 60 day old and a sticker. It includes/understands the packages owners. The Retail version contains more packages than the Download version, but all the software present in the box is included on FTPs and freely accessible.
openSUSE Live Edition : It is a DVD Live, not installable on the hard drive. It is useful to check if the material is well recognized before installing SUSE Linux or to have an idea of the distribution.
openSUSE ftp : There exists also a small ISO making it possible to directly install openSUSE since FTPs (network install). There are on the mirrors two different FTPs trees: a tree ftp for the packages opensource (oss), a tree ftp for the packages non-opensource or whose license is restrictive (not-OSI). FTPs can be used to supplement versions CD/DVD.
openSUSE Factory : It is the version of permanent development, from which one leaves the snapshots regularly (alpha, beta then RC - Release Candidate) to lead to the stable version openSUSE.

You will find the bonds of remote loading on the gate openSUSE.

SUSE Linux Enterprise

Novell designs versions of the distribution for its branch of industry undertaken and built starting from openSUSE.

They are different by the fact that they are targeted much, have a higher life expectancy (5 years, extensible to 7), a longer development cycle (18 to 24 months - pledge of stability, with the detriment of the innovations) and are available only to the sale (updated paying), the license including a longer support.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server - a directed version waiter of company.
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop - a directed version desktop of company.
SUSE Linux Enterprise Real Time - a version specialized in the support " low latency" for operations where the factor time is critical.

Classification

The operation of the classification of the versions of openSUSE is fixed on the cycle of publication of the version undertaken of Novell (SUSE Enterprise Server), since openSUSE is the base of the version undertaken. Thus, during the 18 to 24 months of market of SUSE Enterprise Server 10, the versions public of openSUSE will be the version 10.0,10.1,10.2 and 10.3, then 11.0 as of June 2008.

Characteristics

Tools of configuration

It is known for its tool of configuration YaST (Yet Another Setup Tool).

System of packages

The SuSE distribution uses the format of packages RPM (RPM Package Manager) invented by Red Hat. For administer these packages, the principal tool available is YaST, which gathers all that relates to the administration of the system, and thus here the management of the packages. However, other tools are usable, such as smart (Smart Package Manager). These tools are usable as well in text mode as in graphic mode.

Certification LSB

The distribution is certified by the standard LSB.

Buildserver

Buildserver, gradually set up since the creation of the openSUSE project, is always in phase alpha but is nevertheless operational. This service supplements the distribution by its infrastructure.

The openSUSE Build Service is the open and complete platform of development which provides the infrastructure for a development of future distributions based on openSUSE. It provides to developers of software a tool to compile, place at the disposal and to publish their software for a broad audience of users, including the creation of their own distribution based on openSUSE, for various architectures material. The openSUSE Build Service makes the creation of package easier. It provides waiters and the infrastructure of creation of packages for openSUSE but also for other distributions. Build Service can easily be reached via a Web interface, or via a line of customer order. API usable via specific software customers is also available.

Other versions

One also observes the appearance of a multitude of Community sub-projects, of which here are some:

MicroSUSE , a toolkit of development for embarked systems aiming at creating a Linux version embarked personalized without too much effort.
MiniSUSE , aiming at being a distribution based on SUSE with restricted a report use, ideal for the machines which are not any more topicality.
SUPER , SUSE Performance Enhanced Release, an experimental branch directed by the community, including optimizations in term of speed on the desks, the additional packages and the functionalities which one does not find in the more stable branch of openSUSE. A project of boot in 5 seconds (!) is for example in hand.
Jacklab , a version intended for the musicians and producers multi-media, including a complete environment of musical production.

Forces and weaknesses

Strong points

very complete distribution
easy installation and rapid
excels support of the material
tools of simple and powerful configuration
famous stability
excellent completion and innovative design
documentation very provided
adapted as well to the private individual as to the professional
usable out of waiter or desktop
free
immediate availability and supplements
immediate availability of the updates and software major (KDE, GNOME)
growing community
development using the community
possibility of support
not of publicity
possibility of installing easily the software owners

Weaknesses

certain heaviness
selection of the components by defect misfit for a advanced user

References

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