Monday, February 27, 2017

Top 10 reasons why we should use Linux

Linux is different from other operating systems in many important ways. It has become one of the most adopted systems by many users in and around the world. Whether you want to use it for business or any other home operations, Linux offers the most reliable system to adopt.  Most of the world’s largest data centers across the globe use Linux. There are various reasons that answer why should we use Linux, out of which lets see the top ten reasons.

1. Linux is free of charge
Main reason behind Linux power and popularity is its open source nature. The code used to create Linux is free and available to the public to view, edit and for users with the appropriate skills- to contribute to.

2. Linux is more secure
Virus and malware are alien to Linux world. Linux community offers the security fixes for any technical or security threat that encounters. Moreover, Linux users also offer regular kernel updates and regular security patches. In this regard, it is not mandatory for you to have an anti-virus program for your system. Switching to Linux will save you some more as you won’t have to buy an antivirus.

3. Easy to Operate
Ideally, there is no need for intensive training to know how to use the Linux operating system. Besides, it has all the functionality that you look for in Windows. If you are looking for a system that is reliable and can be used by anyone in your business, then this could be the best system to adopt.

4. Compatible with lower end hardware
Most of the other servers do constraint you with a lot of features. Windows 7, 8 and 10 require at least 1GB of RAM. Running Windows 7/8/10 on the minimum configuration will be a real painful experience as it will be extremely slow and almost unusable.
However, Linux is such a lightweight operating system and hence does not constrain you in terms of a memory capacity of your system. It can thus be used by any of your systems.

5. It comes inclusive of drivers
A Windows user must have struggled with drivers. Finding the correct driver for your system is a difficult task. But with Linux, most of these drivers are supported directly by the Linux kernel. This means it is more like plug and play for Linux. And it saves you money as well.

6. Easy Updating Process
Updating windows can be very challenging and stressful. But in Linux you will be regularly notified that updates are available. And these updates include not just system and security updates but available updates for different applications installed. Unlike Windows, you won’t have to wait at shutdown or start time. Updating in desktop Linux is a matter of one click.

7. Software repository
Most of the desktop Linux OS have their own ‘app store’ or ‘software repository’. You can look for any kind of application, libraries at one single place without the need of Googling all over the internet for it. Moreover, the software thus installed will be safe, compatible with your OS and will be getting automatic updates.

8. Linux is speedy
Since Linux is lightweight, it is therefore far much speedy compared to any other operating system. In any business operation or gaming experience, time is the most crucial factor. Linux is the best system to adopt as windows get slower days after days.

9. Linux has a community support
Probably the best thing about Linux is the Linux community. You have a platform where you can share everything with fellow users. If you drop any question you have, you will definitely get its answer from someone. Such is the support of Linux community.

10. Linux features a powerful word processing program

The word processing program in Linux is Libre Office. You can use it for free in editing, opening and send Microsoft documents. You, therefore, save more and more money you could spend buying such a program.

ABOUT AUTHOR:

Naveena K.S. is B.Tech Graduate in Electronics and Communication. She has done her professional studies from College of Engineering Cherthala. Though her specialization is in Electronics and Communication she has a strong liking towards IT. She is very active in technical forums and Medias learning and sharing her views with community. Currently she is doing RHCE programme from IPSR.

Saturday, February 25, 2017

Hybrid Cloud a solution for new digital business

Hybrid cloud deals with mixture of private computing and public computing environment. By allowing workloads to move between private and public clouds as computing needs and costs change, hybrid cloud gives businesses greater flexibility and more data deployment options. Hybrid cloud is attractive because it enables cloud service customers to address their business needs by leveraging the wide ranging capabilities of public cloud service providers – in particular, the low cost and leading-edge functionality available – and at the same time using private cloud deployment for more sensitive applications and data. Interlinking cloud-deployed applications and data with traditional non-cloud enterprise applications and data is also an important part of hybrid cloud deployments.

For designers and developers some of the critical success factors related to hybrid cloud include:

Flexibility: Repartition/deploy elements of a solution based on changing technology services or improved capabilities.

Speed: Quickly leverage new capabilities in their solutions no matter where they are available in the hybrid cloud.

Capacity: Quickly leverage the capacity of off-premises clouds to provide peak support for on-premises systems.

Consistency: Support continuous delivery of applications across the hybrid cloud leveraging common tools and processes.

Agility: Design and develop solutions in such a manner that where they are deployed across a hybrid cloud can be adjusted in a seamless manner.


In terms of IT, businesses today operate at multiple speeds. To meet the challenges of competition and the rapidly evolving market place, businesses need to be agile and innovative, particularly for mobile and web applications used by customers. At the same time, the stable processes and systems that keep the business running cannot be replaced easily and instead evolve at a slower pace. This is two speed IT. One part, the steady speed, delivers enterprise-strength IT services, and the other part, fast speed, enables exploitation of new digital business opportunities. However, success comes through optimizing support for both types of IT. Hybrid cloud can help provide a solution to this need.

About Author:

Prajitha P is a M.Tech student doing her Post Graduate in Signal Processing from Govt. College of Engineering Cherthela. She has a keen interest in mastering latest technologies and is is very active in technical forum and blog writing. Currently she is also doing RHCE along with her Post Graduation.

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

100% pass for CL210 certification examination



Congratulations for a 100% pass rate for CL210 Red Hat Open Stack Administration certification exam held at IPSR Cochin International Center on 14th Feb 2017.
A special appreciation to the training faculty members for their efforts in making this possible.


CL210 course teaches system administrators how to implement a cloud-computing environment using Red Hat® OpenStack® Platform, including installation, configuration, and maintenance.

Sunday, February 5, 2017

100% pass for CL210 certification examination

Congratulations for a 100% pass for CL210 held at IPSR Thiruvanathapuram on 23rd Jan 2017. 

Applause to Chandu Rajan who is a System Engineer at Al Falak System Consulting and Solutions in the UAE and Vipin Kumar who is a System Administrator for IPSR Solutions for getting full marks in the exam.  A commendable performance by all participants for scoring above 94% in the exam and a special appreciation to the training faculty members for their efforts in making this possible.

CL210 course teaches system administrators how to implement a cloud-computing environment using Red Hat® OpenStack® Platform, including installation, configuration, and maintenance.

Monday, January 30, 2017

DevOps: the movement revolutionizing the Software Industry

In the current market scenario, DevOps, a term which can be described as a mix of Development and Operations, isn’t exactly unheard of  in the world of Software Development (It’s been around for 7 years).  It can be described as an approach  that lays stress on collaboration between the development and operations wings of an organization,  adopted to optimize the delivery of software and also improving the production cycle rate.

As a term it was coined by Patrick Deboise, a system administrator, during the “DevOpsDays” events organized by him in Belgium in 2009. In the same year, John Allspaw’s made a presentation on “10+ Deploys per Day: Dev and Ops Cooperation”       at the Velocity 2009 conference.        Eric Ries’ work “The Lean Startup”, the 451 Group’s report “The Rise of DevOps” in 2010 and various other mentions eventually made this methodology popular. This approach emphasizes closer cooperation between the Development and Operations departments. Though it bears some semblance  to the Agile Software Development model, they are not the same. The usage of DevOps will help an organization to produce higher quality software faster. Automation plays a major role in DevOps, and this, aids in the target of faster delivery of the product, as well as ensuring its quality.

Through this method of cooperation, an organization gains continous, faster delivery of products or services. DevOps can also be considered not just as an approach but also a movement which can have various attributes such as a culture, an emphasis on automation, which is a necessary pre-requisite to obtain an immediate response and ways to share new, innovative thinking and strategies.  It can be seen as an improvement to the existing agile methodology of software development. One result was that the operations unit of a technological organization functioned as a seperate unit while the programming,testing along with the business units were brought in line. In DevOps, with its increased focus on operations, Agile methods are to be applied on this unit.

DevOps has grown popular as a result of the software industry’s frustration with the existing software delivery process which are becoming expensive with errors being part of the process. This unproductivity has led to its adoption. Apart from its collaborative aspect, DevOps also depends on continuous feedback for better quality of products at every stage of software development. Automation in product builds and testing are more emphasized than ever. Technologies such as cloud and development on the mobile platform are also well-known for adopting this approach.

RedHat in its whitepaper “Accelerate Your Business with DevOps” by Gordon Haff has made a thrust for the adoption of DevOps, ‘citing the speed and flexibility with which new features are delivered’.  The whitepaper talks of DevOps as instilling a “culture of collaboration”, automation for accelerating application delivery and the building of a dynamic software platform. The whitepaper also stresses on the aspect of automation as well .

Red Hat also, as part of its focus on DevOps, offers a RHCA certification based on it namely Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA): DevOps, with Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) or Red Hat Certified Developer as necessary prerequisites. Red Hat’s website defines it as someone “who has attained Red Hat’s highest level of certification, proving their skills and knowledge in technologies and practices that can accelerate the process of moving applications and updates from development through the build and test processes and on to production”.  

About Author:

Mr. Thomas Mathew is an IT professional with MSc IT from Amritha School of Arts & Science Cochin. He has a deep passion in system administration. Mr. Thomas is very active in technical forums and blog and love sharing information and views in the media. At present he is doing RHCE (Fast Track) from IPSR.