Oracle Offers Up Cluster File System For Linux

Oracle beta version Linux cluster file

This middleware sits atop the operating system to facilitate management of Oracle9i clusters. Oracle will make the code available under the General Public License, and it will be downloadable immediately from the Oracle Technology Network.

The final version is expected to be available within 60 days, said Bob Shimp, vice president of database marketing for Oracle. The source code will be furnished under the General Public License so it can be adapted and tweaked by the Linux faithful.

Without this software, running and tuning the database is a lot more labor- and resource-intensive, Shimp said. "The file system makes the database much easier to manage. Right now you're using raw disk and tuning it all by hand and managing it all by hand," he noted.

Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison will talk about the Linux file cluster software at his Linuxworld keynote Wednesday. The company has been beating the Linux drum for some time. Ellison has positioned the combination of Oracle9i for Linux running on a bevy of standard PCs as capable of running enterprise-class applications.

The company is also prepping its Collaboration Suite for shipment at the end of the month to take on Microsoft Exchange Server. That suite, too, will be available on Linux, Shimp said.