The following sections outline the major features of each Red Hat Enterprise
Linux family member.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS
Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS (.advanced server.) is the top-of-the-line enterprise
Linux solution, designed for large departmental and datacenter server
deployments. Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS is the only family member that
supports IBM iSeries, pSeries and zSeries/S-390 systems. Enterprise Linux AS
is available with Standard Edition support; also, it is the only family member that
is available with Premium Edition support, which offers 24x7 coverage with a 1
hour response guarantee. When used with Intel x86-compatible systems, Red
Hat Enterprise Linux AS is best suited for systems with more than 2CPUs and
more than 8GB of main memory.
Typical Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS deployments would be used to support:
.
Medium to large-scale databases and database applications
.
Web and application servers
Overview of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 family
.
Corporate applications such as CRM, ERP and SCM
(Note that the High Availability Clustering feature included in version 2.1 of Red
Hat Enterprise Linux AS is not included in version 3. High Availability Clustering
is now available as a separate product. Refer to the Red Hat Application section
of this paper for additional information.)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES
Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES (.entry/mid server.) provides an entry-level and
mid-range server operating system for the Intel X86 market. It supports 1-2 CPU
systems with less than 8GB of memory and is suitable for a wide range of
applications . ranging from the edge-of-network to medium scale departmental
deployments. It includes the same capabilities as Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS
and is differentiated by its support for smaller systems and lower price cost.
Enterprise Linux ES is available with Basic Edition and Standard Edition support.
Typical Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES deployments are used to support:
.
Corporate Web infrastructures
.
Edge-of-network applications (DHCP, DNS, firewalls, etc.)
.
Mail and File/Print serving
.
Small-medium database and departmental applications
Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS
Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS (.workstation.) is the desktop/client partner for
Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS and Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES. Red Hat
Enterprise Linux WS supports 1-2 CPU Intel and AMD systems, and is ideal for
all desktop environments. This includes desktop productivity applications
(document creation, email, instant messaging, browsing, etc), client-server
deployments, software development environments, and targeted ISV client
applications (such as Electronic Design Automation, Oil/Gas, and
visualization/rendering applications). While Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS is
based on the same software core as the server products, it does not include a
number of network server applications (such as DNS and DHCP). Therefore it is
suitable only for use in client environments. Enterprise Linux WS is available
with Basic Edition and Standard Edition support.
Red Hat Professional Workstation
Red Hat Professional Workstation is a variant of Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS
that is sold through retail channels such as Best Buy or CompUSA. The two
products include the same software but Professional Workstation is sold at a
lower price point with reduced support/maintenance. It is only available for x86
systems.
Overview of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 family
HPC with Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS
Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS is usually the most cost effective Enterprise Linux
product for use in High Performance Computing (HPC) environments. In these
environments it is deployed in a headless workstation mode, without a monitor,
keyboard or mouse. A few common HPC-related packages are included in the
Enterprise Linux family, such as PVM and LAM