Ubuntu 7.10 arrives, open for business

Canonical’s Ubuntu 7.10 hit the web today with substantial desktop and server improvements making it more suitable for businesses.

The UK Linux distributor is most known for its groovy consumer desktop and the latest rev, with 3-D effects, enhanced user interface and multi-monitor support, is no disappointment.

But the update also incorporates features of interest to business users including desktop search, improved plug and play for printers, automatic install of Broadcom cards and better Windows compatibility in the form of the ability to read and write to files on a separate Windows partition, including NTFS files.

The server, also released Thursday, addresses three big areas challenging even the more established OS vendors: security, virtualization and power.

The server, for example, offers enhanced security through AppArmor, a virtualized kernel optimized for para-virtualization (including support for VMI) and a tickless kernel to reduce power consumption.

Ubuntu 7.10 Server Edition also offers improved messaging and printing support, quick start profiles, and features that improve its compatibility with Windows, such as including LDAP client authentication and enhanced Samba compatibility for clients including Vista. The server is optimized for x86, AMD 64, EM64T and Sparc architectures.

Mindful of business cycles, Canonical notes that Ubuntu 7.10 will be maintained for 18 months on both the desktop and on the server. The Debian-based distribution was first released three years ago.