[PLUG] Maybe OT - "Supported" Unix on Intel CPUs?

["Michael Leone" <turgon@mike-leone.com>]

This is a little bit OT, but I figured someone here would know.

I have this IBM RS/6000 box that we're looking into replacing/upgrading.
This box runs PICK, which is a virtual database environment, kind of the
way Oracle & DB2 are their own environments. Anyway, we happen to have
this server level PC lying around (an Intel P4-based box, lotta RAM and
RAID), and the boss is wondering if we could use it, instead of a new
RS/6000. New RS/6000 hardware is expensive. :-)

Pick will run on many OSes (AIX, HP, Linux, Sun, etc), but the boss
doesn't want to use Linux, because it's "not supported" - meaning no one
company to call for support. Yes, yes, I know RH has a server version, and
paid support. He doesn't want to use Linux, because this is mission
critical, etc. Everything you've ever heard about why Linux hasn't broken
into mission critical buisness apps. But he says he might consider Unix on
that box, providing we can get the same level of support for this new
version of Unix, that we (very expensively) get from IBM with AIX.

Let's not even mention the fact that the new RS/6000 would be one of those
64 bit versions, etc, and the other hardware is basically a clone box.

<SIGH>

That's a bit out of my depth. Are there any "real" Unices that run on
Intel CPUs, that are supported like that? I don't believe so. Most of the
"real" Unix vendors are on proprietary hardware, aren't they? (IBM w/AIX,
Sun /Solaris on their SPARC machines, HP similarly, etc).

I keep thinking phrases like "Penny wise, pound foolish", but what do I
know? :-)

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