Operating system
Comparison
For
Medium business
ISYM 540
Current Topics in Information System Management
By Anas Hardan, 2009
Introduction
Today, computers are an integral part of all businesses. Businesses recognize computers as a necessary tool to make the business work. Unfortunately, businesses are not in a position to make as informed a decision on computers as on other needed tools. This is because computer systems are more complicated than other business choices. When we are talking about operating system for medium business; we should looking for security and performance and recognizing inputs, easy to use.
At this document I will explain about what is the operating system and what are the major tasks? , what is the popular operating system? And what is the best solution fro medium business? Why?
Operating system is The most important application that runs on computers. Every general-purpose computer must have an operating system to run other programs. Operating systems perform basic tasks, such as recognizing input from the keyboard, sending output to the display screen, keeping track of files and directories on the disk, and controlling peripheral devices such as disk drives and printers. The operating system has even greater responsibilities and powers. It is like a traffic cop -- it makes sure that different program and users running at the same time do not interfere with each other. The operating system is also responsible for security, ensuring that unauthorized users do not access the system.
Selecting the Right Operating System
If you are in management of a business you may have never heard of an operating system and you are unlikely to want to select one. Unfortunately, the potential dangers of a wrong selection go well beyond the decision-making capabilities of an external sales person or a technical person. This information is designed to help the manager guide a technical person in their search for a selection that is in the best interest of the company -- both in solving problems today and working well in the future.
· Administration- what tools enable you to do that and if they are easy to use
· Security - most important , hard to judge. For security FAQ you can visit W3 List.
· Stability - what's the uptime percent
· Features- you should look if it has the specific features you need
· Performance - See if the OS can run on your current hardware
· Scalability -how much can you extend it when your business grows
· TCO- The total cost
· Third-party applications - what other applications you can install if they are not already provided by the Server Operating System
Microsoft Windows
Windows 7 is the latest stable Windows operating system. Microsoft Windows is a family of proprietary operating systems that originated as an add-on to the older MS-DOS operating system for the IBM PC. Modern versions are based on the newer Windows NT kernel that was originally intended for OS/2. Windows runs on x86, x86-64 and Itanium processors. Earlier versions also ran on the DEC Alpha, MIPS, Fairchild (later Intergraph) Clipper and PowerPC architectures (some work was done to port it to the SPARC architecture).
As of June 2008, Microsoft Windows holds a large amount of the worldwide desktop market share. Windows is also used on servers, supporting applications such as web servers and database servers. In recent years, Microsoft has spent significant marketing and research & development money to demonstrate that Windows is capable of running any enterprise application, which has resulted in consistent price/performance records (see the TPC) and significant acceptance in the enterprise market.
Windows 7 is currently under development; Microsoft has stated that it intends to scope its development to a three-year timeline; it is to be released on October 22, 2009.
While much of the focus of 7 new capabilities has been on the new user interface, security technologies, and improvements to the core operating system, Microsoft is also adding new deployment and maintenance features.
· The Windows Imaging Format (WIM) is the cornerstone of Microsoft's new deployment and packaging system. WIM files, which contain a HAL-independent image of Windows Vista, can be maintained and patched without having to rebuild new images. Windows Images can be delivered via Systems Management Server or Business Desktop Deployment technologies. Images can be customized and configured with applications then deployed to corporate client personal computers using little to no touch by a system administrator. ImageX is the Microsoft tool used to create and customize images.
· Windows Deployment Services replaces Remote Installation Services for deploying Vista and prior versions of Windows.
· Approximately 700 new Group Policy settings have been added, covering most aspects of the new features in the operating system, as well as significantly expanding the configurability of wireless networks, removable storage devices, and user desktop experience. Vista also introduced an XML based format (ADMX) to display registry-based policy settings, making it easier to manage networks that span geographic locations and different languages.[37]
· Services for UNIX has been renamed "Subsystem for UNIX-based Applications," and is included with the Enterprise and Ultimate editions of Vista. Network File System (NFS) client support is also included.
· Multilingual User Interface–Unlike previous version of Windows which required language packs to be loaded to provide local language support, Windows Vista Ultimate and Enterprise editions support the ability to dynamically change languages based on the logged on user's preference.
· Wireless Projector support.
Microsoft server
· Designed for advanced Microsoft applications (FrontPage, Access and MS SQL)
· It offers specific programming environments such as Active Server Pages (ASP), Visual Basic Scripts, and Cold Fusion
· Windows servers are available through a GUI-based remote administration packages such as PC Anywhere or through a customized control panel. These tools allow you to log into the server's desktop as chief administrator as long as you have full control over your server
· It can be more easily multiplexed and managed due to .NET technology
· It's the best choice if you want your own dedicated server
· Can be readily used as small business servers. The strength of Windows lies in the familiarity of the interface; wide support – there is a mass of third party development for the platform
· Windows hosting is complex and labor-intensive and should only be selected if a webmaster has extensive experience in maintaining Windows systems remotely and requires product/Web integration
· Significant maintenance for security resources is required (there is a history of viruses infecting IIS in particular.
Microsoft Windows
Pros:
· The largest library of programs and applications.
· Some commercial games work only with Windows and DirectX.
· Almost all hardware has drivers which are compatible with Windows.
· Most widely used.
Cons:
· Prone to viruses, spyware, and adware if proper steps not taken such as installation of internet security software, which reduces performance speed.
· Requires regular maintenance to avoid system errors and reduced performance.
· Even with maintenance, issues can slowly accumulate requiring a re-installation of Windows to restore performance and fix software issues.
· Purchasing a Windows license/install disk can be relatively expensive
· Windows Vista, the most recent version of Windows, has high system requirements.
Notes:
· Windows Vista, the most recent consumer version of Windows, has relatively high system requirements compared to its Windows XP and other operating systems. There are also other issues, such as some software and hardware incompatibilities or frequent security confirmations, which are causing many individuals and businesses to continue using the older Windows XP.
· The two most common versions of Windows are Windows XP and Windows Vista. Vista, although it has some issues, does have some new features such as search-as-you-type search and a 3D-accelerated desktop, features up until now only found in Mac OS X and some versions of Linux.
· With the introduction of Virtual-machine software, Windows has become a popular add-on for Mac and Linux in order allow those computers to support Windows-only software or hardware when needed.
Novell operating systems
Novell, Inc. has made news over the years for its business struggles. Novell enjoyed success as a popular vendor of network software -- principally the NetWare® operating system. Today the company is working to build an Internet networking business, but they face strong competition.
Open Enterprise Server services
Just about all of Novell's services now run under both Linux and NetWare and, in some cases, Windows. As one would expect, Novell's services run under both the NetWare and SuSE Linux OES cores, with few exceptions.
The full Novell Open Enterprise Server SP2 includes a number of open source and proprietary components, including:
§ Novell eDirectory - eDirectory is one of the foundations of a Novell network and provides enterprise-grade, LDAP-compliant directory services. eDirectory offers web-based administration, scales to more than one billion entries, and, through various means, is completely interoperable with other directories, such as Active Directory.
§ Novell iFolder 3.1 - iFolder 3.1 is available only with Open Enterprise Server, although older versions of iFolder continue to be available as standalone products. iFolder is a file sharing and synchronization service that keeps files on multiple clients current and protects against client failures by storing copies of all synchronized files on an iFolder server.
§ Novell iManager 2.5 - iManager is a web-based network administration tool that allows you to manage a number of Novell's disparate components, including eDirectory, Identity Manager, Cluster Services, Health Monitoring Services, DNS/DHCP, Virtual Office, Open Enterprise Server itself and a whole lot more.
§ Novell iPrint - Based on NDPS (Novell Distributed Print Services), iPrint is an enterprise-wide printing solution based on TCP/IP providing secure printing from Windows, Linux, and Macintosh clients to any printer on your corporate network--local or remote.
§ Novell Modular Authentication Service - NMAS is an eDirectory component that allows you to easily support multiple authentication methods (such as smart cards, biometrics, Kerberos, proximity cards, and digital certificates) on your network.
§ Novell Cluster Services - Cluster Services assists administrators with managing Fibre Channel- or iSCSI-based SANs as well as providing a platform on which to build highly available server clusters. helps administrators provide consistent access to resources across the enterprise by assisting with the account provision process.
§ Novell Server Consolidation Migration Utility - Provides a direct migration path to Open Enterprise Server from Windows 2000/2003 maintaining both directory hierarchy and system files and folders.
§ Novell Storage Services (NSS) - NSS has been around for a long time and provides NetWare (and now Linux), with an outstanding journaling file system that supports up to 8 trillion files per server and files of up to 8TB in size.
§ Virtual Office - Virtual Office provides solutions for today's mobile workforce, including access to files, collaborative tools, web-based email access, access to enterprise applications.
Novell Platform
· A lot of hosting solutions are provided on the UNIX platform
· Specifically designed to accommodate heavy Web traffic and server loads
· Servers running on Unix are specifically designed to accommodate heavy Web traffic and server loads
· The interaction and customization is done real time from anywhere through a shell environment with a text based system
· A Unix server can be accessed from any computer with internet access, no need for expensive software
· Most UNIX systems with heavy traffic can provide 99 per cent uptime
Novell
Pros:
· Low number of viruses and other malware, similar to Mac OS X
· Usually free
· Large selection of Linux distributions to choose from.
· Has a large amount of free and open source software equivalents to commercial Windows and Mac software
· More easily customizable
· Can run many Windows programs with the use of a compatibility layer such as Wine. (Programs such as Cedega can be used to run many Windows games)
· Reliable with good performance and low requirements.
Cons:
· Advanced use and installation of some software may require more advanced knowledge than is required for use of Windows and Mac.
· Many commercial programs do not support Linux
· Small commercial game library
Mac OS X
The latest Mac OS X releaseMac OS X is a line of proprietary, graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc., the latest of which is pre-loaded on all currently shipping Macintosh computers. Mac OS X is the successor to the original Mac OS, which had been Apple's primary operating system since 1984. Unlike its predecessor, Mac OS X is a UNIX operating system built on technology that had been developed at NeXT through the second half of the 1980s and up until Apple purchased the company in early 1997.
The operating system was first released in 1999 as Mac OS X Server 1.0, with a desktop-oriented version (Mac OS X v10.0) following in March 2001. Since then, five more distinct "end-user" and "server" editions of Mac OS X have been released, the most recent being Mac OS X v10.5, which was first made available in October 2007. Releases of Mac OS X are named after big cats; Mac OS X v10.5 is also called "Leopard". The next version of OS X, named "Snow Leopard" will be released in September 2009.
The server edition, Mac OS X Server, is architecturally identical to its desktop counterpart but usually runs on Apple's line of Macintosh server hardware. Mac OS X Server includes work group management and administration software tools that provide simplified access to key network services, including a mail transfer agent, a Samba server, an LDAP server, a domain name server, and others.
Mac OS X Server
· Same interface as the Desktop Mac.
· It's stable and it has a lot of features.
· You must buy Apple hardware to use it.
· There aren't many third party apps for it yet.
Mac OS X
Pros:
· Relatively simple and intuitive interface with many advanced features.
· Not virus or malware prone, generally: there are no Mac OS X viruses in the wild, and with its UNIX base, it is fairly resilient. There are a small number of trojans (malicious software) which have been known to take effect through applications running in Mac OS X, though they are almost always found on illegal-content-based websites and are not of significant concern.