Re: [BLUG] Are source based distributions better for servers?

On Sun, Sep 16, 2007 at 12:20:22AM -0400, Joe Auty wrote:
> Which sort of distribution do you prefer for servers, and why? What are
> your general recommendations these days?

Personally, I think source-based distributions are a step backward. I
administer an old Solaris 8 box which at this point is mostly source-based.
I build the source. I install the source. I worry about upgrades to the
source. I use GNU Stow for package management.

I do wonder how the source-based distributions manage security upgrades.
When they're focused on end-users and desktop machines they don't need to
worry as much about security upgrades. Let the end-users muck it out. Let
them subscribe to all the important lists, and install the patches by hand.
This doesn't work so well in a production environment, though.

The big benefit of binary distros for servers is that package maintenance
gets a lot easier. Who cares about base system install time? It is
meaningless as it happens once. The problem comes when you need to
perform security upgrades, and when your users want you to add software,
and they want it fast. Worse still, when there's been a single major
security hole fixed that will require relinking almost all your system
with an updated library.

How easy would it be if you need to patch zlib or worse yet, libc? I know
how easy it is to upgrade core libraries on Debian-based systems. I know
how much impact it has on my users and how much down-time to expect. More
than that, as it is an automated process there's little to no chance that
I'll muck it up.

The ease of upgrading is the big reason I have favored Debian-derived
systems. I'm currently administering Debian 3.1 systems. However at the
next major system upgrade those will be moving to Ubuntu LTS.

The reason we're migrating to Ubuntu LTS is that there's a clear established
release schedule. We'll be able to plan software upgrades much the same way
that we are able to plan hardware upgrades. As we'll be able to plan them
in-sync, we should have better matched configuration. As we have a clear
schedule, we should be able to plan our internal development to work around
it.

Cheers,
Steven Black

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