Unix will reign over Windows for years

Daily Newsletters

Sign up to ZDNet UK's daily newsletter.

NEWS
In these difficult times, Unix will reign in Asia-Pacific as the platform IT managers choose for mission-critical tasks, said IT analysis firm IDC. "Unix is not dead. It will remain vibrant in Asia-Pacific as the dominant platform," said Rajnish Arora, senior manager of enterprise server research with IDC Asia/Pacific. Speaking at IDC's Directions 2003 seminar held in Singapore on Thursday, Arora said that the bulk of Asia-Pacific server spending will go to Unix systems, seen as the only platform of choice for mission-critical server computers. Its chief rival, Windows, has been touted as a Unix-killer in the enterprise. The latest incarnation, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, has been specially designed to run on computing-intensive, high-availability tasks, an area which been a traditional Unix stronghold. While over half of all servers in Asia today -- low to high end -- run some flavour of Windows, expensive Unix-based computers for large businesses remain the biggest cash cow for vendors. Arora's projections show that Asia-Pacific spending on Windows servers will only draw even with Unix roughly in late 2006, when around $3bn (£1.88bn) will be spent on each type of server. During this period of turmoil, with the fallout of the Iraq war, a soft economy and the Sars virus hanging over Asia, pessimism and conservatism will prevail, he said. "Customers will retain their platform investments longer than you think," he said, referring to reports which indicate rising interest in server technologies such as Windows, the open-source Linux operating system, and blade servers, which are entire computers fitted onto a slot-in card. In Asia, Sun remained market leader in Unix boxes shipped in 2002 with over 50 percent share, easily beating rivals HP and IBM, which each had around 20 percent share. However, Arora pointed out that when measured by revenue, all three are equal, with around 30 percent share each. "They are in a dead heat," he said. Despite the dominance of Unix, Windows will make inroads, especially when backed by the IA64 computing platform, he said. Windows will grab a growing slice of every IT dollar spent in Asia, and eventually overtake Unix spending beyond 2006. Linux, despite the hype, will still remain a fringe operating system used at the edge of the data centre, said Arora, while IBM's OS/390 and OS/400 operating system, while shrinking in overall market share, will continue to be an earner for Big Blue for years to come. Blade servers, which now form only a tiny number of servers sold, will take only 18 percent of shipments by 2007. Traditional towers and rack-mounted servers will still dominate, at 38 and 44 percent respectively, in 2007. Trying to squeeze as much computing power into as small a floor space as possible is not as much a driving concern of IT managers as had been predicted, he said.
Is Linux really a viable alternative to Windows on the desktop? Read the latest headlines at ZDNet UK's Operating Systems News Section. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

  • Login

Will not be displayed with your comment

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

Get ZDNet UK's daily newsletter

Enter your email address to sign up

ZDNet UK Live

BrownieBoy

@Jack, > Works really well for thieves.... Nice attempt to deflect the argument by tossing in a point that's totally irrelevant, even it were...

50 minutes ago by BrownieBoy on AMD Ultrathins to challenge Intel Ultrabooks
bootlegger

Make that 13 people now - I got refused today at Manchester airport. I thought I was up to date on this legislation - I knew of the EU ruling from...

4 hours ago by bootlegger on UK airport body scans will not be opt out
tinycg

Don't forget to check out apps like GoodReader or SlideShark either, they're indispensible for people on the go in presentation situations. Best...

6 hours ago by tinycg on Four top iPad apps for people on the move
TerryRK

Well it seems there is something a number of us agree on. Why is the Ubuntu Unity launcher so ugly? I thought perhaps it was something to do with...

11 hours ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Freebies202

Duplicate comments are not made intentionally. Its very good to know that now you are keeping check on this problem because sometimes a commenter...

21 hours ago by Freebies202 on Microsoft fixes blog comments, speeds up blogs with open source
kevinmchapman

"the very significant number of users" and "many (most) of us" - you have no evidence for these statements. It is a fact that most users are saying...

1 day ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

Another grammar faux pas is the improper use of "you". When sitting down down in a restaurant, for example, I get cringe when the waitress...

1 day ago by via Facebook on 10 flagrant grammar mistakes that make you look stupid
zdnetukuser

And NOW, folks, for Canonical's next trick... Kubuntu is late. Here's a pencil. Draw your own conclusions. cf.:...

1 day ago by zdnetukuser on Linux Minterface
Moley

@kevinmchapman. The discussion here reflects the very significant number of users who really do like the traditional menu system and who wish to...

1 day ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
kevinmchapman

Er, no... It is an efficient means of finding the application/file/setting you need in one place. The icons are a simply a fallback for when you...

1 day ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
TerryRK

Isn't the provision of a text based search an admission by the developers that the mass of icons approach does not work? I don't need to use a...

1 day ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
kevinmchapman

"Unity and GNOME 3 both abandon the old text-based cascading menus in favour of a graphical icon-driven system." Point truly missed. Both use a...

1 day ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
TerryRK

whs001 - Thank you, I'm glad you liked the article. I absolutely agree with you on your first point. I should perhaps have made it clearer that...

2 days ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Dennis Nilsson

If we allow corporate interest to dictate the way our government circumvents due process against foreign entities then we should accept the same...

2 days ago by Dennis Nilsson via Facebook on ACTA stumbles in Germany
GHar123

I totally dislike pirating of works, I fear that artists will be deterred from creating works if they think that they are going to get ripped off....

2 days ago by GHar123 on ACTA stumbles in Germany
JCB33

How dare film makers, artists or anybody that invests in creativity stop us pirating their works for free. I want to be able to walk into my local...

2 days ago by JCB33 on ACTA stumbles in Germany
Moley

@GrueMaster. I prefer horses for courses rather than one size fits all. I, and I suspect most other computer users, do not really wish to have...

2 days ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
greycynic

The product that scares me every time I have to use it is the Office 2007 version of Excel. The first bug that I found was applying the median...

2 days ago by greycynic on Ten flawed products that derail productivity
GrueMaster

Nice review and very informative. One thing I'd like to add (in reply to whs001's 1st question), the main reason to have the same interface from...

2 days ago by GrueMaster on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Frederick Wrigley

I'be been using Mint 12 since the RC came out, and I am far more happy with the Cinnamon, the Mate, and, yes (with extensions), theGnome 3...

2 days ago by Frederick Wrigley via Facebook on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint