Enterprise open source Toolkit

Intel bets on open source future

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Open Source

Matthew Broersma ZDNet.co.uk

Published: 08 Aug 2005 16:45 BST

Xen is already supported in some form in SuSE Linux Professional 9.3, Debian and NetBSD, and Red Hat's Fedora Core 4 is to ship with Xen included. Xen version 3, which began testing in June, will add multiprocessor support.

Hardware security
The flip side of platformisation is that some of Intel's planned systems put an emphasis on hardware-supported security systems that would be difficult or impossible for open-source software to support. For several years open source developers have been keeping an uneasy eye on Intel's LaGrande hardware security system, the counterpart to Microsoft's widely criticised Palladium plan (now known as Next Generation Secure Computing Base).

Now aspects of LaGrande, such as the use of Trusted Platform Modules to enforce copy restriction, or digital rights management (DRM), are to be integrated into an upcoming consumer-oriented desktop platform known as East Fork.

Such developments have been met with dismay by the open source community. "We're wary of oncoming developments like 'East Fork', which we consider bad for consumers and dangerous for independent developers," says Eric Raymond, a noted open-source developer. "Universal DRM would be a disaster for consumers; they would no longer control their own machines, and the competitive pressure that Linux puts on Microsoft and the big media companies would end." However, Raymond notes that so far Intel has put such technology on the market without trying to force people to use it, and may continue down the same path.

Until now, Intel's main contribution to the open source world has been to commoditise 32-bit hardware, which gave the open source community an inexpensive, open standards platform to build on, Raymond says. He thinks the company's recent, more active approach should be welcomed, though with a few reservations. "I think we'd be quite happy with Intel as a neutral, simply supplying chips and open specifications," he says.

"Mostly what we want from them is that hardware prices keep dropping, and that they not collude with bad actors like Microsoft or the MPAA, RIAA and DVDCCA, who want to make open source impossible."

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Its the applications and device drivers that run on windows that cement its dominance. How many people would fork out hundreds of pounds for Vista if Linux ran all the software and kit they wanted to use.