| Linux Foundation releases Carrier Grade Linux 4.0 spec |
Feb. 27, 2007
Chances are your telephone calls and Internet connections will be running on Linux sometime soon. The Linux Foundation, the product of a recent merger of the Open Source Development Labs and the Free Standards Group, today announced the release of its new Carrier Grade Linux 4.0 (CGL) specification.
The five-year old CGL Specification consists of over 250 individual requirements that cover seven categories of Performance, Hardware, Standards, Serviceability, Availability, Security, and Clustering. The primary changes incorporated into the new CGL 4.0 spec are alignment with the SCOPE Alliance's Carrier Grade Profile, and tighter requirements around compliance.
The SCOPE Alliance is an industry association made up of TEMs (telecommunications and equipment manufacturers) and NEPs (network equipment providers) that are committed to accelerating the deployment of carrier grade base platforms for service provider applications. SCOPE -- whose mission is to help, enable, and promote the availability of open carrier grade base platforms based on COTS (commercial off the shelf) hardware and open-source software -- has created a profile of the Carrier Grade Specification that specifies priorities for the individual requirements based on their own equipment requirements. A major part of the new CGL 4.0 specification is the alignment of the specification with the SCOPE Alliance profile. This has the benefit of helping to ensure that the CGL Specification is meeting the needs of its primary users, the TEMs.
CGL-based Linux is already getting support from hardware vendors. For example, Intel's new Xeon chips for telecoms and Sun's Opteron-based blade servers for telecoms both support CGL Linuxes.
The new CGL 4.0 specification assigned priorities to the requirements with key input from the SCOPE Alliance profile to ensure that any company registering their Linux software as CGL compliant implemented all of the mandatory requirements. The CGL 4.0 categories of requirements are Mandatory, Desired and Roadmap items.
Previously any Linux distribution that met even a few of the requirements could claim compliance. But the new Specification requires inclusion of all Priority 1, or Mandatory, requirements (there are 135 specific Mandatory requirements) before a distribution can claim its product is CGL compliant.
Leslie Guth, SCOPE Alliance marketing co-chair and board member, stated, "SCOPE and the Linux Foundation are both committed to accelerating the deployment of carrier-grade base platforms based on open industry specifications."
"With the cooperation of the Linux Foundation since, we've worked to align the CGL Specification with our released Carrier Grade profile and we look forward to benefits such as faster time to market that interoperable commercial off-the-shelf building blocks bring," added Gruth.
According to Glenn Seiler, Steering Committee chairperson for the Carrier Grade Workgroup, "This release of the Specification has a significant effect on the viability of the specification and ensures that when an equipment provider specifies Carrier Grade Linux there is a consistent standard for what that means. The inclusion of mandatory requirements is a major step and will have an impact in the growth and continued adoption of the CGL specification."
In addition, the CGL is being incorporated into the LSB (Linux Standard Base). Jim Zemlin, executive director of The Linux Foundation, stated, "With the publication of CGL 4.0, The Linux Foundation has re-chartered the CGL as a Linux Standard Base workgroup. We look forward to working with CGL members as well as the rest of [Linux Foundation] members and the larger Linux community in integrating carrier-grade requirements into the LSB process."
The new CGL workgroup of the LSB will focus on defining the necessary interfaces and modules to enable the testing and certification of carrier grade features in Linux distributions.
Full details of the CGL 4.0 registration process will be released in the near future. Further information is available on the Linux Foundation website.
-- Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols
Do you have comments on this story?
Talkback here
NOTE: Please post your comments regarding our articles using the above link. Be sure to use this article's title as the "Subject" in your posts. Before you create a new thread, please check to see if a discussion thread is already running on the article you plan to comment on. Thanks!
(Click here for further information)
|
|
|
7 Advantages of D2D Backup
For decades, tape has been the backup medium of choice. But, now, disk-to-disk (D2D) backup is gaining in favor. Learn why you should make the move in this whitepaper.
4 Legal Reasons to Control Internet Access
The Internet is obviously a valuable resource for many organizations. However, many are exposed to legal liability concerns because they fail to control Internet access. Learn if you're safe in this white paper.
Rapidly Resolve J2EE Application Problems
Whether you are in the process of building J2EE applications or have J2EE applications already running in production, you must ensure that they deliver the expected ROI. Learn how in this white paper.
Load Testing 2.0 for Web 2.0
There are many unknowns in stress testing Web 2.0 applications. Find out how to test the performance of Web 2.0 in this white paper.
Build Better Games Online
For the game infrastructure providers, life is complex. Making money from games has become more complicated. Why? Find out in this white paper.
Building a Virtual Infrastructure from Servers to Storage
This white paper discusses the virtual storage solutions that reduce cost, increase storage utilization, and address the challenges of backing up and restoring Server environments.
Gaining Faster Wireless Connections with WiMAX
Welcome to what is quickly becoming the hyperconnected world where anything that would benefit from being connected to the network will be connected. Learn more in this white paper.
Is Your Desktop a Security Threat?
The new wave of sophisticated crimeware not only targets specific companies, but also targets desktops and laptops as backdoor entryways into those business’ operations and resources. Learn how to stay safe in this white paper.
Increasing SAN Reliability by 100 Percent
Storage area networks (SAN) are a strong part of storage plans. Learn how to increase your reliability and uptime by 100 percent in this case study.
|
|
|
|
|
news feed