Linux

Hi All,

Is there a commercially available version of Linux which will run on a DEC/Digital/HP Alpha platform. Specifically a AlphaStation 200 4/166. I am currently running VMS 8.3 on the machine but the HP license conditions are encouraging me to change the OS.

Thanks and Regards,
Ron...

not sure but i would check the main distributions. It might be a good time to get on the x86 64-bit band wagon as your hardware support is expiring in 15 months.

There doesnt seem to be a commercially supported product, but there are distros for alpha:
The AlphaLinux Homepage
Installing CentOS Linux on an Alpha

There are no longer any commercially available versions of Linux for the Alpha platform.

With that said, having run SUSE on an old Alpha box... it is considerably faster than your old Sparcstation 5 you have lying around. Performance wise, it's roughly on par with my old Celeron 300A (remember those?). The only reason I bring this up is that it's pretty darn slow by today's standards. I'm certainly not an advocate for landfill... just pointing out that the PC sitting in your neighbor's dumpster is likely 2-5x faster than that old Alpha.... though it was certainly something spectacular in its day.

With that said, all is not lost... and what is "commercial support" anyhow? Especially with respect to Linux. It might not get you what you want anyway. So... here's a link to something REAL...:

Index of /debian-cd/5.0.6/alpha/iso-cd