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Follow UsRussian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin has paved the way for organizations all over the world by initiating a cost cut. Putin has ordered his federal decision makers to phase out proprietary software-Windows-and adopt free solutions-Linux-by 2015.
A 25-point document (http://tinyurl.com/23gpvmk ) was released that sketches a way Windows can be stopped as the only primary operating system.
Though Windows isn't mentioned by name, a few news reports had reported a drop in Microsoft sales in Russia over the last two years. The period of shift begins from the second quarter of 2012 and extends to the last quarter of 2015 where all Government funded or Government operated machines will run on Linux. The document has a blow-by-blow of how each institution can move to Linux. The document also encourages developers within the government to work on the Linux systems to make them more department-centric. This will not only encourage employment but also cut costs by keeping the development and maintenance internalised. Internal development has been a New Year resolution for several companies that are planning on cutting costs.
The orders ask “creating and maintaining a single repository of free software used in the federal bodies of executive power.” There are others that ask the design be shaped to suit languages and implementation bodies. The final order on the list to be implemented in 2015: preparation of the draft orders of the Government of the Russian Federation on the adoption of a phased introduction of free software for the next planning period.
The Linux migration also signals intent to have a stronger Trojan-proof operating system to prevent a situation that Symantec recently reported where a Trojan was trolling the webspace looking for a particular nuclear reactor that was manufactured in Iran. The Linux OS also brings with it the ability to modify basic security loopholes that otherwise plague Windows.
Russia's leaning to open source is not new, in 2008, the government, after a few pilot projects, had instructed the schools to switch to Linux. The Russian government had calculated that by switching to open source they would save enough to increase the count of computers in schools to one million by 2011. The government had also instructed schools that all of those who continue using expensive software would have to pay through their own pockets and would not receive any government funding. After the successful first phase the Russian government is now on the brink of the second. Though there is no announcement of the third wave of changes, it is expected that the government will soon encourage its voting population to shift to Linux as well.
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