Submitted by The Nexenta team has released alpha 4. This is a bug fix release. Nexenta OS alpha 4 is based on Open Solaris build 36, utilizes Debian’s apt-get package system, and has GNOME 2.12 as its default desktop. Both a live CD as well as an install CD are available. Visit the getting started page, check out the changelog, and download.
This is awesome. I tested out the last release a bit and was very impressed. They are taking the solaris kernel and doing something sun should have done with it a while ago.
I agree they are doingsomething good. I am very excited about it. But whether Sun should have created a different userland, is a contentious question, one that you can easily argue both sides. I believe that, for the tasks of a Solaris admin, the Solaris OE is very well suited. The GUI is now Gnome by default and Sun is contributing to it a lot, since a couple of years. So, the GUI is usable and in line with the times.
They are taking the Solaris kernel and putting a (more or less) Debian/Ubuntu interface over it. The Nexenta OS developers have even been kind enough to submit many of their bugfixes improvements back to Ubuntu which then find their way back into Debian.
http://webaugur.com/dave/blogger/2005/11/opensolaris-ubuntu-nexenta…
https://lists.ubuntu.com/archives/ubuntu-devel/2005-November/012745….
Great work
First Ubuntu, now this new OS has a “brown” theme by default in the GUI. Is this a new trend? I know, this is probably one of the least important parts of an OS, and I know it can be easily changed to whatever suits the user. I am just curious…I want to know why new OS projects are choosing such a color. Perhaps to be different from everyone else’s blues or greys?
As for the distro itself, it looks very promising, and I may just give it a spin soon. Ubuntu is my main *nix desktop and probably will be for a long time, but that is only because I haven’t found anything better yet.
Isn’t Nexenta aiming for Solaris with the GNU userland ultimately? I wish there was a project developing Solaris with the BSD userland (using pkgsrc as the package management tool). That’d have been the unix I am looking for.
Edited 2006-03-30 18:46
Back when SchilliX first came out, I tried to make a useable desktop on it with pkgsrc. I ended up using a lot of hacks and workarounds just to get Xorg, fluxbox, dillo (no Firefox), and a few other packages working. Unfortunately I lacked the pkgsrc experience to submit proper fixes, and in many cases those “fixes” wouldn’t have been appropriate for a framework that still has to work on Sun Solaris.
I recently installed Ubuntu but I find the BSD base far more easier to relate to (personal taste I guess). Are there any FBSD users who have used Nexenta? How do you compare the base kernel? I guess the numbers of apps. is small but given the dpkg system, should be easy to build packages.
I have been a FreeBSD user for some time now – more than 5 years. I am looking to move to another system for my Desktop usage. I am fedup with FBSD on the desktop – mostly with applications and binary software updates. I no longer have time to compile source code. Don’t get me started on portupdate and binary only option. I have reinstalled my system far too many times because broken ports and hence broken system. If only they would port debian apt system to FBSD. I continue to use FBSD on my servers though.
Might want to check out Belenix also. Seems to be coming along nicely.
I have…I was very impressed. I like FreeBSD a whole lot, it’s stable and the ports collection is unbeatable. Implemented the Solaris Kernel into a freebsd like system would be really nice.
I wonder if Sunray Server Software works on this release?
i installed alpha 3 in vmware workstation 5.5 last week to mess around with it and it seems pretty decent so far.
im just not sure why a desktop user like me would choose this over debian or ubuntu.
I’m posting right now from Nexenta alpha 4, and I have to say, the first thing that stands out is the gorgeous “solar” theme. Kudos to the Nexenta dudes. Well done.
The entire distribution is clean and smooth looking, and it’s really cool to have a simple, useable OpenSOlaris desktop.
WHO KNEW?!