Military & Aerospace Electronics Magazine reports
Officials of the Marine Corps Systems Command at Quantico Marine Base, Va., announced a $10.2 million contract modification Wednesday to the Northrop Grumman Corp. Electronic Systems segment in Linthicum Heights, Md., to convert the Ground/Air Task-Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) operator command and control computer from Windows XP to [...] a Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA)-compliant Linux operating system.
[...]Linux [...] has become popular with the military because of its ease of use, reliability, and affordability.
Capital Gazette notes
Ingrid Vaughan, director of the program, said the change would mean greater [compatibility] for laptop computers used to control the system in the future.
In a statement released [December 5], she said Microsoft Windows XP is no longer supported by the software developer and the shift to a DOD-approved Linux operating system will reduce both the complexity of the operating system and need for future updates.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Jeremiah Cornelius on Sunday December 07 2014, @05:41PM
They should experience similar stability and uptime as the XP solution replaced.
You're betting on the pantomime horse...
(Score: 1) by Kunasou on Sunday December 07 2014, @05:51PM
Maybe DOD-approved means that systemd is not allowed.
(Score: 2) by jackb_guppy on Sunday December 07 2014, @06:09PM
You misread...
doD
systemD
Both are demands!
OH, I see a bad pun... do-d == duty!
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 08 2014, @02:06AM
Q. Why are systemd trolls so consistently moderated up?
A. Because Microsoft is paying sock-puppets to keep the "controversy" visible.
(Score: 2) by Jeremiah Cornelius on Sunday December 07 2014, @06:12PM
In Soviet AmeriKKKa, systemd allows YOU!
You're betting on the pantomime horse...
(Score: 2) by Gravis on Sunday December 07 2014, @06:35PM
In Soviet AmeriKKKa, systemd allows YOU!
vince, is that you? [fairfaxunderground.com]
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 07 2014, @07:15PM
Red Hat Enterprise Linux is the go-to Linux flavor the US DoD (and/or its vendors) uses.
(Score: 4, Informative) by arashi no garou on Monday December 08 2014, @04:22AM
Bzzt, wrong. http://www.spi.dod.mil/lipose.htm [dod.mil]
(Score: 2) by Leebert on Monday December 08 2014, @07:13PM
I'm no DoD'er, but I don't understand why a link to a single project that is used for a single solution (i.e., remote access from untrusted computers (e.g., telecommuting)) disproves the assertion that in general, the use of Red Hat is endemic in the Department of Defense. Especially when the original conversation was talking about an operator's control station for a radar system.
(Score: 2) by arashi no garou on Monday December 08 2014, @08:47PM
Fine. Besides growing their own Linux-based distro for security purposes, they also use a wide range of distros and OSS projects. Again, they don't "just use RHEL". From their Open Source Software FAQ[1], emphasis mine:
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Q: Is there an "approved", "recommended" or "Generally Recognized as Safe/Mature" list of Open Source Software? What programs are already in widespread use?
No, the DoD does not have an official recommendation for any particular OSS product or set of products, nor a "Generally Recognized as Safe/Mature" list. The 2003 MITRE study, "Use of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in the U.S. Department of Defense" did suggest developing a "Generally Recognized As Safe" (GRAS) list, but such a list has not been developed.
Commercial software (including OSS) that has widespread use often has lower risk, since there are often good reasons for its widespread use. The MITRE study did identify some of many OSS programs that the DoD is already using, and may prove helpful. Examples of OSS that are in widespread use include:
Apache - Web server
Mozilla Firefox - Web browser
Mozilla Thunderbird, Evolution - Email client
OpenOffice.org - Office document suite
OpenSSH - Secure Shell
OpenSSL - SSL/cryptographic library implementation
bind - DNS server
Postfix, Sendmail - Mail servers
gcc - Compiler suite
GNAT - Ada compiler suite (technically this is part of gcc)
perl, Python, PHP - Scripting languages
Samba - Windows - Unix/Linux interoperability
Mailman - mailing list manager
MySQL and PostgreSQL - Relational Database System
GIMP - Bitmap graphics editor
MediaWiki - Wiki
There are many "Linux distributions" which provides suites of such software such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Fedora, Novell SuSE, Debian and Ubuntu. Other open source software implementations of Unix interfaces include Solaris, OpenBSD, NetBSD, and FreeBSD.
Again, these are examples, and not official endorsements of any particular product or supplier.
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[1] http://dodcio.defense.gov/OpenSourceSoftwareFAQ.aspx#Q:_Does_the_DoD_already_use_open_source_software.3F [defense.gov]
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 07 2014, @06:33PM
The US Military was never going to take out the whole of Seattle to make sure they got the programmers responsible for svchost. Thanks to the miracle of open source, they know exactly who to target in reprisal for systemd.
(Score: 1) by Zz9zZ on Monday December 08 2014, @04:03AM
I really don't like systemd and think it is a huge possible vector, however posting unsubstantiated quips (while humorous) only solidifies people's opinions that people who don't like systemd don't really have valid points. For my "side" of the debate please stop the troll comments.
~Tilting at windmills~
(Score: -1) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 07 2014, @07:22PM
Now we know about a migration from their XP computers to a Linux one.
If you want to break into this facility, now is a perfect opportunity.
Two attack vectors are better than one.
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Monday December 08 2014, @09:30PM
I'm glad that at least some parts of our government have found the obvious. "[...]Linux [...] has become popular with the military because of its ease of use, reliability, and affordability." The ease of use category is what Linux has struggled with for a long time. It has improved a lot over the years and in some cases may even be easier to use than Windows. The problem that Students are typically learning how to use computers on Windows Machines. Using Linux or OSX for that matter can be daunting to someone who has only ever used Windows.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"