Tales from the Dark Side of the Moon
What it takes to successfully deploy and maintain open source software
This presentation was first given at Linux Bangalore/2004, India's premier Open Source conference, 3 Dec 04. You can view the slides here, or download them in PDF form.
Abstract
No one tells you about this part. Deciding to use Linux and other Open Source software is easy. Actually deploying, maintaining, sustaining, and above all using open source software to meet your business's needs — now that's hard.
How to accomplish these things is a mystery for most organizations. There is the issue of skills — what sort of people are you going to need maintain your systems and grow them to meet future needs? And the systems themselves? What architecture ties them together? You need to design your infrastructure and processes so that you can sustain them cost effectively.
The darkest secret of all is that it's really about the software at all — instead, you need to build a culture of operations professionalism in your company or organization. By concentrating on what is important instead of what is urgent, you can stop fighting fires and start making a difference.
Using Open Source software is the cornerstone of making this possible, but to succeed takes more than good intentions. We'll discuss what you need to put in place to leverage the strengths FOSS without getting bogged down by the ever-present pitfalls of technology.