A new SIG now helps server manufacturers certify that their hardware works as it should on AlmaLinux, and will soon do the same for software vendors.
AlmaLinux, the Red Hat Enterprise Linux clone that started life as a replacement for CentOS after Red Hat announced it was pulling the plug on the distribution and replacing it with the altogether different CentOS Stream, announced on Tuesday that not only do they have a newly formed Certification Special Interest Group, but that the new SIG has already put together a hardware certification program to certify that AlmaLinux works as it should on specific hardware.
The latter is something of a feather in AlmaLiux’s cap as it makes the distro the first RHEL clone to offer hardware certification, which has long been available for RHEL. This will be a big deal for server-makers, since certification is important to potential enterprise customers that often run the same operating system across a large number of servers.
In an article published Monday on AlmaLinux’s website, Jonathan Wright, the distro’s infrastructure lead and the new SIG’s first chairperson, said that the SIG was created as a way to assure that the distro works out-of-the-box in all of the different environments that are being deployed by it’s users.
“The members already helping are from all over the world, and have gotten engagement from some of the most respected hardware providers in the world,” he added. “Our most active engagement has been with Supermicro, and we are so grateful to them for helping us improve and expand the hardware certification program.”
Indeed, Supermicro has already certified its 2U rack mounted servers through the new program.
“Our customers are looking for a trusted Enterprise Linux ecosystem, and AlmaLinux has positioned itself as one of the most secure of the no-cost options out there,” Srini Bala, general manager of solution engineering at Super Micro Computer said in a statement. “Supermicro’s 2U server was recently certified with the hardware certification program, giving our customers more open-source Linux options for compute intensive applications.”
The hardware certification process takes advantage of an open source certification toolkit developed by the AlmaLinux OS Foundation, which borrows from various open-source hardware and software testing projects and tools. The SIG is also interested in finding folks interested in working with it: if that’s you — just join the SIG at any of its meetings or in the chat room.
Wright said that in a couple of months, which likely means after any bugs are worked out of the hardware program, the SIG will turn its attention to developing a software certification program.
“Hardware and software certification hold different values for users and vendors,” he said. “For users of AlmaLinux, the value of the having a path for certification allows AlmaLinux users to feel confident in their hardware and software choices. For IHVs and ISVs, it shows their commitment to open source, and helps make them the right choice for the massive community of AlmaLinux users.”
Christine Hall has been a journalist since 1971. In 2001, she began writing a weekly consumer computer column and started covering Linux and FOSS in 2002 after making the switch to GNU/Linux. Follow her on Twitter: @BrideOfLinux
