RED HAT NAMES PAUL CORMIER EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT OF ENGINEERING

Red Hat Inc., (NASDAQ:RHAT), the leader in developing, deploying and managing open source solutions, announced today the appointment of Paul Cormier to the position of
executive vice president of engineering. Cormier brings to Red Hat vast experience delivering technology to enterprise organizations, including extensive knowledge relating to the development of scalable, mission-critical security solutions that enhance business performance by helping to ensure the integrity of the IT infrastructure.

Cormier joins Red Hat from his post as senior vice president of research and development at BindView. At BindView Cormier was responsible for the technical strategy of the company, as well as all research and development efforts worldwide that helped the company seize market leadership in 2000. He joined Bindview in February of 1999, when the company acquired his previous employer, Netect. At Netect, Cormier served as chief technology officer and vice president of R&D, where his responsibilities included technical strategy planning and worldwide research and development.

"Paul has experience leading global software development efforts to deliver solutions for Internet computing architectures," said Matthew Szulik, president and CEO of Red Hat. "He will be a strong asset to Red Hat, our customers and the open source community."

Cormier was one of the original founders of the AltaVista group, where he was responsible for software product development. Prior to AltaVista, Paul spent several years with Digital Equipment Corporation, where he served as a director of engineering for the Internet Business Group,
developing software products such as search products, VPNs and firewalls. Educated in Massachusetts, Cormier received his Bachelor of Science degree from Fitchburg State College, majoring in Business Management and Computer Science. He also holds a Master of Science in
Software Development and Management from Rochester Institute of Technology.

"Enterprise organizations are implementing open source solutions as a highly-reliable and flexible solution," said Cormier. " I'm thrilled to join a company that is leading the technology industry into 21st Century Computing."

Red Hat, Inc.

Red Hat is the leader in developing, deploying and managing solutions built on the benefits of an open source platform. These solutions include an open source product platform for devices to mainframes, a complete end-to-end set of Professional Services, and the Red Hat Network as the Internet-based backbone for deployment and management of the products and services. Red Hat's open source platform includes the award-winning Red Hat Linux operating system platform, the Interchange e-Commerce platform, Stronghold Secure Web Server, Credit Card Verification software, High Availability Server, GNU-based developer toolkit for embedded development and embedded run-time Linux, eCOS and RedBoot solutions.

Red Hat backs up their open source offerings with end-to-end services that include: Red Hat Professional Consulting focused on multiplatform infrastructure and engineering services; Red Hat Engineering services for software development and porting of the operating system and for embedded platforms and devices; Red Hat Enterprise support services for installation services and Web and telephone support and Red Hat Learning services for Linux certification (RHCE) and courses for Apache, Embedded systems, Advanced Developer and e-Commerce. Red Hat Network provides Red Hat's unique managed services capability to deploy and manage open source products, services, support and management information on-line in real-time to more cost effectively and reliably maintain open source-based solutions.

Red Hat is headquartered in Research Triangle Park, N.C. and has offices worldwide. For investor inquiries, contact Gabriel Szulik at Red Hat, +1-919-547-0012.

Red Hat Europe was established in July 1999 with its European headquarters based in Surrey, United Kingdom and offices throughout Europe. Red Hat Linux is sold and supported through a number of major distribution and industry partners throughout Europe and from http://www.europe.redhat.com/shop

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Forward-looking statements in this press release are made pursuant to the safe harbour provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Investors are cautioned that statements in this press release that are not strictly historical statements, including, without limitation, management's plans and objectives for future operations, and management's assessment of market factors, constitute forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, Red Hat's dependence on the continued development of the Linux kernel, and the contribution of key individuals within the Linux community who are not associated with Red Hat, reliance upon strategic relationships, management of growth, the possibility of undetected software errors, the risks of economic downturns generally, and in Red Hat's industry specifically, the risks associated with competition and competitive pricing pressures, the viability of the Internet, and other risks detailed in Red Hat's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, copies of which may be accessed through the SEC's Web site at http://www.sec.gov