HP today announced that it has increased Linux distribution support options for customers and expanded its portfolio to include support for Debian Linux.

The company also introduced integrated open source middleware offerings for its channel partners.

HP began working with Debian in 1995 and now enables Debian Linux across HP ProLiant and HP BladeSystem servers. The move complements HP’s support for Red Hat, Novell SUSE and the Asianux foundation of Miracle, Red Flag and Haansoft. Other HP offerings announced at LinuxWorld include:

· Industry’s first Debian Linux, customizable thin client from a tier-one vendor. The new HP t5725 Thin Client can be easily customized with thousands of Debian applications to meet the requirements of both mainstream users and specialized industries, such as retail and healthcare. The t5725 also is an ideal solution for kiosk environments;

· Improved serviceability for Linux customers, including remote monitoring and diagnosis tools shipped with each HP server running Linux. The tools are backed by HP service and support, which successfully manages more than 99 percent of all Linux support calls internally without escalation to independent software vendors(1);

· Industry-leading Linux on blade solutions offered through the HP BladeSystem Solution Builder Program now include a tested solution stack for Oracle® Database 10g with Real Application Clusters and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 for the HP ProLiant BL25p and BL45p server blades.

"HP is continually working to provide customers with the confidence they need to incorporate and integrate Linux and open source into their enterprise," said Christine Martino, vice president, Open Source and Linux, HP. "Today’s announcement demonstrates HP’s customer successes and opens the door for even more customers to take advantage of open source."

"At FedEx, we depend on technology to remain agile and competitive, and using Linuxbased integrated open source solutions has offered us greater choice and more overall value in meeting that objective," said Larry R. Tieman, senior vice president, IT Business Solutions, FedEx. "We’re excited about HP’s focus on tested, integrated stacks, allowing us to bring more open source technology into our environment without sacrificing the enterprise support and integration we’ve come to enjoy."

Driving open source adoption through integration

HP continues to build the complete package of integrated open source and Linux technology and services – including HP Open Source Middleware Stack (OSMS) solutions, flexible components, technical support and consulting service combinations – plus new ways for customers to integrate open source within their data centers. Since announcing HP OSMS in April, customers have utilized HP Open Source Building Blocks software components and HP Open Source Blueprints – do-it-yourself, complimentary guides to facilitate integration and deployment of open source solutions. New HP OSMS offerings include:

· Tested and documented HP Blueprints, including new Blueprints for open source Directory Services expected to be available in the fall and Database Server Blueprints expected to be available later this month;

· Channel-enabled HP OSMS solutions are now a part of HP’s Linux Elite Program, and other HP channel programs with full training from HP are also available. HP OSMS solutions can now be resold by HP channel partners, who also can offer service addons to broaden open source adoption.

"As an HP Linux Elite Partner, Agilysys has long enjoyed collaborating with HP to jointly deliver more robust open source solutions to customers," said Robert Baily, executive vice president, Agilysys. "The ability to now bring HP OSMS to the channel and offer customers a tested, integrated stack with complete infrastructure and support enables Agilysys to do what it does best – deploy open source into customer environments, integrate it with existing technology and tailor the final solutions for their needs." All of the components in the HP OSMS are designed to offer customers a broad choice in open source and commercial solutions, multiple technology integration options, and the confidence to deploy these capabilities throughout the enterprise. HP also offers tested and supported enabling solutions that leverage the company’s 6,500 open source and Linux service professionals worldwide.

More information on HP’s open source and Linux offerings is available in an online press kit at www.hp.com/go/linuxworld2006

LinuxWorld: HP is expected to unveil expanded support for Linux - adding Debian to its portfolio - and Advanced Micro Devices plans to show off its next-generation Opteron processor, which improves performance and on-chip virtualization technology, as LinuxWorld Conference & Expo kicks off this week in San Francisco.

While AMD won't be announcing Opteron Rev F at the show, the company is expected to unveil it Tuesday, in conjunction with the opening day of the conference. Analysts say improved performance and reliability of the x86 platform will be key for accelerating the adoption of open source software for enterprise deployments.

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