Unix Versus Windows

UNIX versus Windows

Compare and Contrast Analysis of Solaris 10 and Windows 2003

Team "A"

University of Phoenix Online

POS 420 Introduction to UNIX

Carlie VanWilligen

February 20, 2007

Compare and contrast of operating systems

There are many operating systems in use today. There are basically three types of operating systems Windows, Macintosh, and UNIX/Linux. In this paper we are going to compare and contrast Solaris and Windows Server 2003. Solaris is part of the UNIX family and has been around since January 31, 1992, while Windows 2003 has been around since March 28, 2003. Despite the eleven year difference in technology, Solaris can still give Windows a run for its money.

There are many comparisons between Solaris and Windows 2003. The first comparison between the Solaris and Windows 2003 is the compatibility with multiple manufacturers. They can both be put on many platforms and provide the basic ease of use that many businesses need to operate. The second comparison is the emphasis on security that both enjoy. Since they are both intended for business, they have innate security built right in to the operating system. The third comparison is the ability to update and transform itself to meet the needs of its users. Solaris was initially designed in 1992 and Windows was designed in 1985. They both continuously provide automatic updates to their users and come up with updated versions every few years. Solaris is on version 10 and Windows is on its 12th version, but with multiple editions for each new version. These versions build upon the one before it and improve the overall look and feel each time. Comparisons between the overall business structure of both Solaris and Windows 2003 are so simple because of what users need, but the true strength of these operating systems are their differences.

Solaris and Windows 2003 are filled with differences. The main difference between the two operating systems is the way the security is built in. They have built in basic auditing and reporting, and new file integrity that can even lock down a system to only signed executables. Besides the security issues, there are many other ways the two operating systems are different. The cost between Solaris and Windows Server 2003 are vastly different. Solaris is basically free. Its only cost is for the expanded software kit. Windows 2003's standard edition is $999. Also Solaris is newer than Windows Server 2003. Solaris' version 10 was built in 2005. The third difference is the quality of online support. Solaris has its own online community that supports this operating system. The core kernel of Solaris has been made open-source and named OpenSolaris. This allows people to make changes to this very powerful kernel to meet their own needs. Microsoft would never do anything like that because their software is proprietary and they operate for money. The differences between the two are clear, but many companies still have problems differentiating between the two.

Market share comparison between Windows 2003 and Solaris 10

Due to its popularity and proven support, the Windows platform has significantly gained and secured a large foothold in today's office operating system environment. This alone is quite significant, especially since all of the combined competitors only make up roughly 2% of the market share. In fact, Apple Macintosh makes 1.43 percent and Linux make up for .26 percent of the market share.

In addition to Windows owning 97% of the overall workstation operating systems market, it has also dominated by providing the OS of choice for the global market servers. Future predictions estimate that Windows Server will end up with 60% of the market by 2008. Again, Windows has saturated its presence on workstations and servers throughout the market. In comparison to Windows Server 2003, which is the latest OS for servers, Linux on the other hand will only be able to secure roughly 29% of the market share. This is relevant since Sun Microsystems, the developer of Solaris 10, has built its market shares around Linux based operating systems. As pointed out by an online market share article, " IDC also predicts that Windows Server will generate $22.7 billion in sales by 2008, compared to $9.7 billion for Linux." There are however signs that the new UNIX based Solaris 10 OS has gained some attention due to recent revenue gains.

Solaris 10 is a UNIX based Server OS which has recently been released by Sun Microsystems. The main benefit of the improved OS is that it will be able to be placed on hardware that has long been dominated by Windows. Sun Microsystems knew that in order for this particular UNIX based OS to be competitive on a global scale, that it would have to provide an OS that could be placed on x86 and AMD64 platforms. Even though Sun Microsystems has made an improvement to its UNIX Solaris with the new Solaris 10, the UNIX based OS has not been its wonder child for the company. Sun has been relying on the Linux platform to keep a hold on its share of the market. Sun has shipped roughly 79% of its servers with Linux, not Solaris operating systems. Even though Solaris will be a cost alternative to any potential users, the fact still remains that Sun's Solaris on x86 platforms has only been able to grasp .25% of the x86 market. The actual market share results for the UNIX Solaris 10 remains to be seen, but the newly improved platform does have some significant strength that could change the playing field a little.

The following strengths could quite possibly allow Solaris to gain a much stronger foot hold on today's operating system market: it can now be immersed with x86 and SMD64 platforms, it has a greater number of open-source and Sun-built applications, a commercial version of Solaris 10 can be downloaded freely from Sun's Web site, service plans can be obtained through Sun for approximately $400 per year which includes 24/7 technical support, and open source version availability. With these factors for the new Solaris OS platform, the new UNIX based system can gain some needed market share numbers. On an interesting note, Sun has made an effort in allowing the Solaris platform to run on a Linux application environment. This is just another sign that Sun realizes that it must also accommodate the Linux (platform) market. Known as the