Great news from the Likewise development pipeline in conjunction with one of our great partners: Likewise Open 5.4 bits are in the newest Ubuntu 10.4 Alpha release. Likewise Open has been included in Ubuntu since the Hardy Heron (8.04 LTS) release in April of ‘08.
This marks the first time that Likewise 5.4 bits will be included with the Ubuntu release. The 5.4 build is currently not considered a stable release, and so is not recommended for production use at this point. For the latest stable Likewise Open bits, please go here.
Here’s what the Ubuntu community page has to say:
Major new version of likewise-open
The likewise-open package, which provides Active Directory authentication and server support for Linux, has been updated to version 5.4. The package supports upgrades from both the officially supported versions 4.0 (Ubuntu 8.04 LTS) and 4.1 (Ubuntu 9.10), as well as the likewise-open5 packages from universe. Since this upgrade involves a lot of configuration file changes and in-place database upgrades, testing and feedback is appreciated.
Some thoughts from Likewise senior developer Jerry Carter:
“We are all very excited about the inclusion of the Likewise Open 5.4 features in the Ubuntu 10.04 release. The success of Likewise Open 4.x and 5.0 in past Ubuntu releases has been very encouraging. With 5.4 we are including a new service manager interface for managing the set of likewise daemons, a new centralized configuration store which helps make future upgrades much simpler, and a rewritten client and server network I/O stack. And as always, the Ubuntu server and desktop teams have been very helpful when navigating the packaging specific issues that cropped up.”
Finally, here are some thoughts from Gerry Carr, head of Platform Marketing at Canonical:
“Likewise Open allows organizations to manage mixed environments of Windows, Apple and Ubuntu users – enabling increased adoption of Ubuntu into the enterprise. Previous versions have proven to be very popular with the Ubuntu Server user base and we are delighted to be able to bring 5.4 to current 10.04 Alpha.”
You can get the latest Ubuntu Alpha 2 release bits here: http://www.ubuntu.com/testing/lucid/alpha2
Here’s some more color on our work with integrators. While we work with IBM Global Services, Accenture, and Avanade on many of our largest projects involving Likewise Enterprise, we also have seen robust growth in our work with regional integrators, many of whom have deep expertise in open source as part of their practices.
Here’s a great Likewise write up from TooMuchGreen, a Leeds, UK based integrator focusing on Linux, Lamp, and open source solutions: http://toomuchgreen.eu/2010/01/wise-up-with-likewise/
“Likewise [Open] is a superb, quick and easy utility for both Linux and Mac which allows authentication (single sign on) to a Microsoft Active Directory network…”
One of our other integrators once wrote me an e-mail with the following equation:
Linux + LAMP + Likewise = goodness.
Amen. The reason for this “goodness” is that we have offerings for system integrators that span from projects large and small. Likewise Open is the best way to authenticate Linux, Unix, and Mac systems into Active Directory for any size of project. And it is free of licensing costs. For complex projects that require group policy, audit, reporting, and event management we have a simple upgrade to Likewise Enterprise.
A recent ComputerWorld review of three different Linux desktop distributions – Fedora 12, openSUSE 11.2, and Ubuntu 9.10 – is an interesting read in terms of how far the main Linux distributions have come in terms of usability, maturity and acceptance in the mainstream. The author, Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols, wrote that each Linux distribution is geared at a different audience. Ubuntu appears to be ideal for the new Linux user, openSUSE for general purpose desktop for the home or work, and finally, Fedora for the Linux expert. I know of colleagues and friends who are using some of the different flavors of Linux for work or for fun.
In addition to the Linux operating system, there were mentions of applications such as office productivity, email, and web tools that users will need or come across in their daily computing needs. Essentially, the review concludes that there is a different Linux distribution for satisfying the daily computing needs of users of any skill level.
As an operating system, Linux has matured tremendously with all the innovations that companies like Canonical, Novell, Red Hat and the larger Linux community have put into it. The competition has responded with better products as evidenced by recent releases of Windows 7 and Mac OS X Snow Leopard. In the end, the users are the winners. Isn’t competition great!
Bottom line: Whatever a computer’s operating system is, whether it is Linux, Unix or Mac, it should not prevent the user from getting anything done — especially in the workplace. Period. That means that when you need to get access to the network printer, a share on the network, or even an enterprise application, the type of OS should not be the limiting factor that prevents access to corporate resources. Rather, an organization’s enforced IT policies should dictate the access rights to corporate resources based on the user’s role and job function.
2 work days in 2010. 2 blog postings. I’m all about PR in 2010.
Good Likewise article by the VAR Guy:
http://www.thevarguy.com/2010/01/05/likewise-software-ceo-predicts-100-growth-in-2010/
As the VAR Guy points out, I didn’t talk about channel in my “New Years” blog post so I thought I’d touch on it. The channel has been a good part of our success over the years and you will see continued focus on this in 2010. In fact, we’ve had particular success with Systems Integrators that have a natural affinity for Likewise projects. We’ve found that SIs like open source projects such as Likewise Open. It allows them to provide, without licensing fees, a world-class solution for their customers that require Active Directory authentication for Linux, Unix, and Mac systems (or non-Windows applications). These projects frequently involve a healthy dose of services beyond the deployment of Likewise. A typical project, depending on the legacy environment, may involve account remediation and/or migration services. And although it isn’t required by us, customers frequently time a variety of Active Directory “clean-up” projects when integrating non-Windows systems. Furthermore, we have a smooth and clean up-sell and value proposition when the customer’s requirements demand Likewise Enterprise (Group Policy, Audit, Reporting, and Events).
Last year we experienced strong growth of our OEM/Technology Partner channel. From our relationships with companies such as EMC/Data Domain, Red Hat, Novell, Citrix, and Blue Coat we gained a platform to dramatically expand our channel interest as their channel partners gained familiarity with Likewise and their customer demand for solutions addressing mixed-platform environments.
Several of our large VARs have told me that Sun’s pain has been their pain over the past few years. While many have enthusiastically shifted to Linux, they still miss the heyday of selling expensive Sun hardware. Likewise is a very natural extension for VARs that sell Red Hat or SUSE server licenses; we have a simple would-you-like-fries-with-your-burger value proposition anytime they sell Linux in an mixed-platform organization.
Standby for more from us this year in the virtualization and storage markets. Likewise-CIFS is off to a strong start… more on this later.
Tracy Lothringer, our own “VAR Guy” (actually Director of Channel and Partnerships) asked me to plug “partners@likewise.com” for channel partners that would like more information on working with Likewise.
#1. Blog more. I met one of our early customers for lunch right before the holidays. His comments matched what I’ve heard from others… you’d like to hear more from me. I confess blogging doesn’t come easily for me; I was raised with a “do it don’t talk about it” ethos. This is an area of personal growth and you’ll be hearing much more from me this year.
#2. Double again. Here’s some quick company history: Likewise was founded in October of 2004. I joined from Mercury (now HP) in January of 2005. We shipped our Likewise 1.0 product in January 2006 after about 16 months of development and also found our first customers that January. 2006, 2007, 2008, and now 2009 have all been high growth years for the company. We just capped off a great 2009 with over 100% sales growth for our fourth consecutive year. I’m forecasting at least 100% growth for Likewise in 2010 and expect that it will probably be higher based on our current velocity. Adoption of Likewise Open and Likewise Enterprise is accelerating in large organizations and we’ve expanded our strong base of technology partnerships with companies such as VMware, Red Hat, EMC, Citrix, Novell, and Ubuntu. We’re hitting on all cylinders and the IT spending environment is clearly relaxing.
#3. Keep the balance sheet strong. Our second quarter last year was important; since then sales have exceeded expenses. This is a major milestone for growing companies. A big part of that is the efficiency of our open source model and the significance Likewise Open plays in attracting large, paying enterprise customers. It also allows us to invest, as a percentage of sales, more heavily in technical resources than our competitors. We’ve had significant payoff with this approach from our customers and partners and I believe this is a big part of our high competitive win ratio.
#4. Hiring, hiring, hiring. We’re aggressively hiring as we continue to grow. We have lots of open headcount in most areas of the company. We’re especially looking for top technical development talent with deep knowledge of Windows and Unix architecture, directories, DCE-RPC, Active Directory, Kerberos, file systems, and other related technologies.
#5. Likewise Open will continue to be a big part of the puzzle. This isn’t so much of a resolution as a commitment to continue to develop and nurture Likewise Open. I hear frequently from the Likewise Open community about the future and direction of Likewise Open. Likewise Open is the foundation of our technology portfolio and as such we will continue to invest heavily in Likewise Open. Our current monetization model is working very effectively and we will continue this approach in 2010 and beyond.
As always, I encourage and appreciate your thoughts and comments.
Happy New Year!
Barry
The Likewise offices will be closed from December 24th through January 3rd for the holiday break.
We would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our customers, partners, users and friends a very happy holiday season. Thanks to every one of you for making 2009 an excellent year for Likewise. We’re excited to share with you our newest technology advancements and product features in 2010. Until then, enjoy the holidays and we’ll see you in the New Year!
It’s that time of the year again! Kids and adults alike are dressed up as ghouls, monsters, Wall Street bankers, and whatever costumes we think are fun and scary for Halloween. The Likewise team is no different in that respect – there were lots of candy, food, drinks, and laughter at our recent Halloween party. We would like to celebrate this day with all of our customers, partners, friends and family by wishing you all a safe and happy Halloween!
From your Likewise Team
Hot on the heels of the recent Windows 7 launch on Oct. 22, the latest version of the wildly popular Ubuntu distribution of Linux has finally arrived exactly a week later. Ubuntu 9.10, also known by its nickname Karmic Koala, builds on the successes of previous versions of Ubuntu that are easy-to-use and freely available. Both Windows 7 and Ubuntu 9.10 are highlighting a few similar areas of improvement, namely the startup time for the OS, quicker access to data and files, and improved ease-of-use overall. Separately, Windows 7 and the recent Mac OS X Snow Leopard were made to be leaner than their bloated predecessors. This has never been an issue for Ubuntu.
It will be interesting to see the various comparisons that will be done for these OSs in the tech publications over the coming months. One thing for certain is that users will benefit from all these new OS-related innovations in 2009 alone. Isn’t competition great for the marketplace?
However, as Barry mentioned in his previous post, the game isn’t as much about the OS anymore, but has shifted more toward virtualized environments in the enterprise. Ubuntu Server edition happens to be a major player in these environments.
As users and businesses consider the deployment and use of Karmic Koala for evaluation purposes or on production systems, it becomes crucial that desktops, servers and virtual systems are properly authenticated, governed by group policies, centrally managed, and covered by event logs and reporting. Likewise makes it a simple process for IT administrators to join Karmic Koala systems to a corporate network managed by Microsoft Active Directory.
Ubuntu 9.10 is supported by Likewise today. You can find Likewise Open in the Karmic Koala repositories, or on our website.
Just last week Ken Hess of Serverwatch and Jason Perlow of ZDNet extended an invitation to Likewise to chat on their Frugal Tech podcast. Barry joined the show (about the 35:30 mark) discussing Likewise with two of the top enterprise IT bloggers. Barry Crist, our CEO, gave an excellent overview of the company, and really touched on some of the things that make Likewise different, such as:
- Open source business model
- Likewise Open a standalone, valuable product for the enterprise that is completely free—not a gimmick to get people to go with the for pay Likewise Enterprise
- Strong company investment in technology and development
- Leader in authentication for virtualization
I suggest you check out the podcast http://www.blogtalkradio.com/frugaltechshow/2009/10/09/Frugal-Tech-Show-with-LikeWise-Softwares-CEO-Barry. Also, thanks to Ken and Jason for having us on the show. You can subscribe to their excellent podcast either by RSS or in iTunes.
I’ve had an interesting front seat to the PC operating systems industry over the last 20 years. I started my tech career at Apple in 1985 and worked there nine years. My wife twice worked at Microsoft having departed for her second time earlier this year. Having lived in both the Bay Area and Seattle, I have had friends and neighbors that have worked for just about every significant PC hardware or software company in the industry. At Likewise, I’ve gotten to know former, inner-circle Microsoft executives through our lead investor, Ignition Partners. And I’ve personally been involved with Red Hat, Novell, and Ubuntu — we have partner and/or licensing agreements with each.
So what do I think of Windows 7?
Our experience at Likewise with pre-release candidates of Windows 7 has been very positive. Unequivocally, this is the best Windows operating system ever. That Windows 7 bests Vista is no surprise but Windows 7 also clearly eclipses XP enterprise customers. Those on our development team that have tested Windows 7 are almost effusive and this is not a group that dispenses idle praise to Microsoft. The bottom line is that Windows 7 is a great OS for the enterprise in terms of user experience, performance, and stability.
So Windows 7 is the upgrade from XP that we’ve all been waiting for. Except that you can’t upgrade from XP without doing a clean install. This may hold back happy XP users that are unwilling to deal with hassles of a clean install if they have a nicely-functioning XP box. Despite the upgrade issue, I’m confident that Windows 7 will be a huge commercial success for Microsoft and the PC vendors.
But Windows 7 may be bad for Microsoft in the long term.
I believe that Windows 7 will drive revenue and probably lift the stock… maybe Microsoft can even flirt with historic highs again in the next year or so. So what is wrong with up-and-to-the-right revenue and stock price?
The enterprise action isn’t the OS. Yes, Microsoft needs to defend this turf against Linux and the Mac and Chrome OS. However, the enterprise game is no longer about the OS, it probably hasn’t been for some time. Virtualization has become the new platform and this game is dominated by VMware. This is marginalizing the OS in the enterprise. Success of Windows 7 may be like comfort food to Microsoft. The OS is Microsoft’s “woobie” and a Windows 7 home run may only muddle the metamorphosis that Microsoft must make to be the dominate enterprise platform for the next ten years.
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