It’s funny isn’t it? By default, any Linux distribution comes with business server functionality like an e-mail, file, and print serving, but Microsoft still gets the lion’s share of the small business server world. What’s going on here?
I just installed Ubuntu 9.10. Just like every other full-featured Linux distribution it includes a Web server, Apache 2.2.12; an e-mail server, Sendmail 8.14.3; and a Windows-compatible file server, Samba 3.4.0. In short, Ubuntu 9.10, besides being a great desktop, makes a great server. So why the heck aren’t more small businesses using it that way?
Linux has long been a major server player in medium and large businesses. According to IDC, even in an awful server market, “Linux servers now represent 13.8% of all server revenue.” That’s a misleading number though. Many businesses run either their own take on Linux or a community Linux distribution like Debian, Fedora, openSUSE, or CentOS and don’t pay a dime to any server vendor…
