Leading ERP operators are succumbing to the attractions of 'open source' software, but some sceptics are suspicious about their motives
It came as something of shock to the ERP industry when software giant SAP of Germany announced in August that it had begun shipping a version of its popular SAP R/3 product on the Linux 'open source' operating system.
Traditionally, large corporate clients have been the main users of SAP R/3, particularly those involved in the manufacturing and supply chain management sectors. And few of those large corporations are anywhere near making Linux a part of their corporate information technology strategy.
Thus many industry observers wonder whether there can ever really be a serious relationship between SAP and Linux. SAP appears to largely be making the move as an answer to critics who suggest that SAP users are being 'locked in' to a proprietary software solution when they choose SAP R/3.
'Our commitment to platform independence and customer demand for Linux has made the delivery of SAP R/3 on Linux a logical step,' said Karl-Heinz Hess, an SAP executive.
'The successful and on-schedule rollout gives our customers another attractive platform for SAP inter-enterprise business solutions.' According to Phil Ellis of the UK-based PA Consulting Group, the move actually does make some sense and could be the start of a broader move by ERP vendors to support Linux.
'SAP's decision to move onto Linux is a step in the right direction,' said Mr Ellis. 'This decision will move the industry towards the ideal of a competitive mix of software and suppliers working together on low cost, industry standard hardware and operating systems.'
He further suggested that several key issues would face other ERP vendors that want to follow SAP into the Linux arena, including performance, support for multiple processors, disaster recovery and resilience.
'The likelihood is that the resulting implementation will be suitable for large numbers of prospective SAP customers,' predicted Mr Ellis. 'In the short term, SAP/Linux will be similar to SAP on a standard Unix, with perhaps a smaller choice of middleware and databases than some Unix platforms.
'The choice of hardware supporting Linux, however, is widening fast. IBM, Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems all provide help to enable Linux to run on their high-end hardware - but development can still take place on a simple PC.'
Not everyone is convinced, however. Nigel Town, UK country manager at London based Pick Systems, argues that SAP is merely trying to postpone its own irrelevancy by piggybacking on the current industry fascination with Linux.
Mr Town suggests that both SAP and arch-rival Baan have put themselves in a position where they need to go 'down-market' in order to further increase the traditional ERP market. 'They have to try, I guess, to appear relevant to organisations who are used to putting up systems in weeks or months with thousands of pounds,' he said.
'We all know that they need years and years and millions and millions (of dollars), so they can beat the client into submission and force them to reinvent their organisation in their own image.'
Norm Francis, chief executive and president of Canadian-based Pivotal Corporation, agrees. Mr Francis has worked closely with many large corporate clients to integrate Pivotal's customer relationship management software with ERP solutions and says that he senses desperation in the move to support Linux, particularly since he says there is little demand for it.
'I don't know of any situations from our prospect customers where people are asking for our software on Linux,' said Mr Francis, who also observed that ERP companies may be trying to play the Linux card to stave off real change in the way they do business.
'The ERP companies have been used to a way of doing business where you get the customer and control the customer. Customers don't like that customers today want to have open standards. They do not want to be controlled by one vendor - they are not going to buy software from SAP just because it is from SAP.'
PA Consulting's Mr Ellis is much more bullish about the prospects of a happy marriage between ERP and Linux. He says that the SAP R/3 Linux release will just be the start of the story. 'In the longer run, the range of middleware and databases (running on Linux) is likely to expand.'
'In fact, SAP's action will probably encourage other software suppliers to move onto Linux. Once Linux gets a certain head of steam behind it, it is likely that a positive feedback cycle will start to take effect: more software, more services, more platforms, more demand, more revenues and so on.'
Mr Ellis also contends that major vendor support for Linux is increasing. As examples of this trend, he cites IBM's use of Linux and open source software in its NetFinity offering and the spectacular performance of companies such as Red Hat - which supplies versions of Linux - on the stock market.
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