Red Hat and Cisco Deliver Enterprise Linux and Virtualization for New Unified Computing Solution

Technology leaders combine the Cisco Unified Computing System, Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization with joint services and support

RALEIGH, N.C. -

Red Hat (NYSE: RHT), the world's leading provider of open source solutions, and Cisco today announced that they will work together to deliver Red Hat Enterprise Linux software with the Cisco Unified Computing System, a ground-breaking solution that helps customers deploy mission-critical applications in a virtualized, high-performance data center environment. In addition, Red Hat and Cisco will collaborate to deliver joint global sales and services as well as customer engagement, and to develop deployment and enablement tools for customers.

Facts/highlights

  • Utilizing collaborative engineering and testing, the companies will combine the new Cisco Unified Computing System with Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
  • Cisco will act as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for Red Hat's Enterprise Linux platform to allow customers to purchase a complete solution from Cisco along with services and support.
  • The Cisco Unified Computing System unites computational, network, and virtualization resources into a seamless system, simplifying its setup, helping customers to improve business metrics, and enabling timely resource provisioning.
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 is the trusted platform for running mission-critical application workloads, offering customers an easy-to-adopt, open alternative for enterprise computing. It offers a base operating platform, leading security and high-availability capabilities, and comprehensive networking capabilities.
  • Red Hat's independent software vendor (ISV) ecosystem, including more than 3,000 certified applications, will enable customers to run thousands of Red Hat-certified applications on the Cisco Unified Computing System upon availability. In addition, with Red Hat's certify-once, deploy-anywhere certification program, its ecosystem of applications are enabled to run in both virtualized and non-virtualized environments.
  • Red Hat and Cisco are also planning to certify the Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization suite of technologies following its general availability. The Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization portfolio will offer advanced hypervisor technologies built from Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) and a new suite of management tools.

Red Hat software running on Cisco Unified Computing

  • The combination of the Cisco Unified Computing System and Red Hat software solutions offers customers a platform for deploying computing infrastructures that takes advantage of both companies' strengths, including Cisco's unique integrated device management, unified fabric and expanded memory technology available with the Cisco Unified Computing System and Red Hat's proven software technology.
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.3 is certified to run on the Cisco Unified Computing System as a stand-alone operating system or as a guest operating system on VMware virtualization.

Supporting quotes

"Red Hat and Cisco have long collaborated in the open source community and today bring joint innovation to customers through the combination of our next-generation enterprise solutions," said Brian Stevens, CTO and vice president, Engineering at Red Hat. "Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization technologies power a wide range of the world's mission-critical, Internet and high-performance computing workloads, as well as the majority of the early cloud environments. Cisco's Unified Computing vision offers customers a long-term platform for deploying powerful computing infrastructures."

"Red Hat solutions run many of the world's most demanding computing environments and can take advantage of the high density of Cisco Unified Computing System," said Soni Jiandani, vice president of the marketing, server access and virtualization business unit for Cisco. "Cisco's scalable architecture enables more enterprise-class applications to run on a lower-cost system with half the physical infrastructure required, enabling our customers to grow their virtualized environments, improve business agility, and provide coherent security and network policies for both virtualized and non-virtualized environments."

Additional Resources:

About Red Hat, Inc.

Red Hat, the world's leading open source solutions provider, is headquartered in Raleigh, NC with over 65 offices spanning the globe. CIOs ranked Red Hat as one of the top vendors delivering value in Enterprise Software for five consecutive years in the CIO Insight Magazine Vendor Value survey. Red Hat provides high-quality, affordable technology with its operating system platform, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, together with applications, management and Services Oriented Architecture (SOA) solutions, including JBoss Enterprise Middleware. Red Hat also offers support, training and consulting services to its customers worldwide. Learn more: http://www.redhat.com.

About Cisco

Cisco, (NASDAQ: CSCO), is the worldwide leader in networking that transforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements provide current expectations of future events based on certain assumptions and include any statement that does not directly relate to any historical or current fact. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including: risks related to the integration of acquisitions and the ability to market successfully acquired technologies and products; the ability of the Company to effectively compete; the inability to adequately protect Company intellectual property and the potential for infringement or breach of license claims of or relating to third party intellectual property; risks related to data and information security vulnerabilities; ineffective management of, and control over, the Company's growth and international operations; adverse results in litigation; and changes in and a dependence on key personnel, as well as other factors contained in our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (copies of which may be accessed through the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at http://www.sec.gov), including those found therein under the captions "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations". In addition to these factors, actual future performance, outcomes, and results may differ materially because of more general factors including (without limitation) general industry and market conditions and growth rates, economic conditions, and governmental and public policy changes. The forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company's views as of the date of this press release and these views could change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any date subsequent to the date of the press release.

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  • About Red Hat
  • Red Hat is the world’s leading provider of open source software solutions, using a community-powered approach to reliable and high-performing cloud, Linux, middleware, storage and virtualization technologies. Red Hat also offers award-winning support, training, and consulting services. As the connective hub in a global network of enterprises, partners, and open source communities, Red Hat helps create relevant, innovative technologies that liberate resources for growth and prepare customers for the future of IT. Learn more at http://www.redhat.com.



  • Forward-Looking Statements
  • Certain statements contained in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements provide current expectations of future events based on certain assumptions and include any statement that does not directly relate to any historical or current fact. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including: risks related to delays or reductions in information technology spending; the effects of industry consolidation; the ability of the Company to compete effectively; the integration of acquisitions and the ability to market successfully acquired technologies and products; uncertainty and adverse results in litigation and related settlements; the inability to adequately protect Company intellectual property and the potential for infringement or breach of license claims of or relating to third party intellectual property; the ability to deliver and stimulate demand for new products and technological innovations on a timely basis; risks related to data and information security vulnerabilities; ineffective management of, and control over, the Company’s growth and international operations; fluctuations in exchange rates; and changes in and a dependence on key personnel, as well as other factors contained in our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (copies of which may be accessed through the Securities and Exchange Commission’s website at http://www.sec.gov), including those found therein under the captions "Risk Factors" and "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations". In addition to these factors, actual future performance, outcomes, and results may differ materially because of more general factors including (without limitation) general industry and market conditions and growth rates, economic and political conditions, governmental and public policy changes and the impact of natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods. The forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company’s views as of the date of this press release and these views could change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company’s views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.