Dell, Red Hat add services to Linux deal
The companies say Red Hat will offer Dell customers a combination of free and discounted services and Dell will preinstall Red Hat Linux on its PowerEdge Servers.
Under terms of the deal, Red Hat will offer Dell customers a combination of free and discounted services and Dell will preinstall Red Hat Linux on PowerEdge Servers.
Linux, a freely available variant of Unix, has been gaining popularity with PC makers. Dell in March started offering Red Hat Linux on its PC workstations.
Dell had been relying on LinuxCare for service and support. It is still uncertain how today's deal with Red Hat will affect that agreement, if at all.
Red Hat will offer Dell customers 90 days of Web and telephone support, 180 days of subscription services, and discounted professional services, including installation. Red Hat's team of specialists numbers 350.
"Over the last year, we've seen increasing demand for Red Hat Linux, particularly from Internet service providers, government agencies, universities and businesses of all sizes," Jack Steeg, vice president of alliances for Dell's enterprise systems group, said in a prepared statement.
"Our shipments of Red Hat Linux have more than doubled over the past quarter and we expect this trend to continue and even accelerate as the adoption and acceptance of Linux as a mainstream operating system increases significantly," Steeg said.