Beyond the Code
or, how to win friends, influence people and make a living by writing open source software. It's not just about the code.
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Tuesday 31 March 2009, 12:49 PM
New GNOME version brings Linux desktops two steps closer to business
While "release early, release often" can make reporting on new versions of open source software an exercise in trivia, this time the changes introduced could increase the level of adoption in companies that haven't previously had many Linux desktops. Before this latest release, Evolution could only talk to Exchange servers using a SOAP interface, which wasn't supported on all versions of Exchange, and didn't provide the same level of functionality as MAPI, Microsoft's native messaging protocol. Now Evolution should be able to connect to any version of Exchange Server.
Exchange is used in many large companies for email and calendaring, and being able to continue using it after migrating to a Linux desktop removes another big barrier for some organisations. Native MAPI support will help, but don't underestimate how useful the PST support will be: The standard edition of Exchange has a database size limit which varies with version, which applies to the total size of all mailboxes on that server. I assume this is there to make you pay more for the Enterprise version of Exchange, but its real effect in some of the companies I've seen Exchange used in is to have very small per-user mailbox limits, and have mail archived in PST files, either on the users' machines or a network drive.
If rip-and-replace was a realistic strategy, changing from proprietary to open source software would be easy. It's not — so much of a company's information is tied up in proprietary formats, and is still needed — so a smooth migration path is the only answer to open source adoption.
PreviousComments on this post
This is indeed excellent news. I have been rebuffed many times when I tried to get business users to try switching from Windows to Linux, because they had to be able to use an Exchange mail server. One less obstacle in the road, always good.
"If rip-and-replace was a realistic strategy, changing from proprietary to open source software would be easy. It's not..."
Thanks for the info, and spot on with the analysis. I commented on jw's piece, and to my mind the take-up of Free Software really does come down to intertia -- it's not that people don't want to but that it's actually quite difficult without a compelling reason. Price actually isn't that much of a reason if you have a system already in place.
To me, this is a HUGE deal! If MS doesn't change the protocol again (wouldn't put it past them), this is quite a big deal for desktop Linux in the Enterprise. As mentioned by Jake, many enterprise installs aren't going to rip out Exchange due to inertia, but having the ability to communicate natively with Exchange will throw doors open like crazy. I would love to see some tests on how stable this is, though, since it is a new feature. If it's really good to go, this ought to be shouted from the rooftops! :)
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