Oracle, the tech giant known for its database and cloud solutions, has launched a new campaign to promote its Linux distribution, Oracle Linux, as a free and open source alternative to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), the market leader in enterprise Linux.
In a press release published on July 10, 2023, Oracle’s Chief Corporate Architect Edward Screven and Head of Oracle Linux Development Wim Coekaerts claimed that Oracle has been a better steward of Linux than IBM, the owner of Red Hat, by contributing to the kernel, file systems, and tools, and by offering a free and compatible distribution that respects the GPLv2 license.
“Our goal has remained the same over all those years: help make Linux the best server operating system for everyone, freely available to all, with high-quality, low-cost support provided to those who need it,” they wrote.
They also criticized IBM’s decision to stop publicly releasing RHEL source code and to restrict the rights of its subscribers to redistribute RHEL or its derivatives. They argued that this move goes against the spirit of open source and creates barriers for innovation and collaboration.
“And now, as of June 21, IBM no longer publicly releases RHEL source code. Why did IBM make this change? Well, if you read IBM’s blog attempting to explain its rationale, it boils down to this: At Red Hat, thousands of people spend their time writing code to enable new features, fixing bugs, integrating different packages and then supporting that work for a long time … We have to pay the people to do that work,” they wrote.
Oracle Linux is based on RHEL and includes two kernels: the Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) and the Red Hat Compatible Kernel (RHCK). The UEK is a modified version of the mainline Linux kernel that provides better performance, security, and scalability for enterprise workloads. One of its main advantages is that security patches can be applied to the kernel with zero downtime, unlike most systems that require a reboot.
“Oracle’s greatly modified this mainline Linux kernel to better integrate with newer enterprise innovations, including their own hardware,” wrote David Delony, a tech journalist at MUO.
The RHCK is identical to the kernel used in RHEL and ensures compatibility with software and hardware certified for RHEL. Oracle Linux also supports other open source projects such as Kubernetes and Kata Containers.
Oracle Linux has been part of the Linux community for 25 years and powers Oracle’s engineered systems and cloud infrastructure. It has received positive reviews from users who appreciate its stability, performance, and support.
“Oracle Linux is better suited for Oracle eccentric environments, while RHEL is better for open source projects,” wrote a verified user on TrustRadius.
Oracle Linux faces competition from other RHEL alternatives that have emerged after IBM killed CentOS, a popular free RHEL compatible distribution. These include AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux, which are also free and compatible with RHEL.
Oracle Linux aims to differentiate itself from these alternatives by offering more features, flexibility, and support. It also claims to be more open and free than RHEL itself. Whether it can challenge IBM’s dominance in the enterprise Linux market remains to be seen.
Relevant articles:
– Keep Linux Open and Free—We Can’t Afford Not To, Oracle, July 10, 2023
– Oracle Linux vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), TrustRadius, July 22, 2023
– Oracle Linux vs Red Hat (RHEL), Linux Tutorials – Learn Linux Configuration, November 25, 2022
– What Is Oracle Linux? The Powerful, Free RHEL Alternative Explained, MUO, July 22, 2023