Yellow Dog Linux
Yellow Dog Linux ( YDL short form ) is a Linux distribution for computers with a PowerPC or power processor. These include desktop and laptop computers in the Apple Macintosh line ( with a PowerPC processor; 1994-2006 ) and the original PlayStation 3 (with Cell processor ) as well as high-performance computers such as IBM's System p ( with POWER5 processors).
History
Yellow Dog Linux was first released by the resident in Colorado, USA Company Terra Soft Solutions 1999. Through a licensing agreement with Apple Terra Soft Solutions Macs allowed to sell pre-installed Linux. Yellow Dog Linux has been optimized from the start on the PowerPC architecture, and until the end of the PowerPC-based Macs in 2006 the most widely used Linux distribution on this computer architecture.
In November 2008, Terra Soft Solutions of the Japan-based company Fixstars Corporation was acquired.
Yellow Dog Linux ( YDL ) was originally based on Red Hat Linux and uses for package management from the Yellowdog Updater, Modified ( YUM). Later versions of YDL based on fedora Hat 2003 Red Hat Linux emerged free Linux distribution from Red Hat. Version 7, the current version, based on CentOS. YUM itself therefore runs on all compatible Linux distributions, Fedora and CentOS so next on RHEL.
YDL uses the package management system RPM Package Manager and includes well-known programs such as Glibc, GCC, Xorg, KDE, GNOME, and a recent version of the Linux kernel.
Hardware Support
Yellow Dog Linux generally has a good hardware support and was even on old computers as pretty fast. Some hardware components that were installed in PowerPC-based Apple computers, but can not or are only used rudimentary under Linux because the hardware manufacturer to an offer their own device drivers for the platform Linux / PPC ( eg, there are the proprietary Linux driver from NVIDIA ATI/AMD- and release ) and often no specifications of the hardware only for the IA32 architecture, such that a developing drivers from the open source community is very difficult (eg, Broadcom Wi-Fi chips, which served as the basis for Airport Extreme ). Through the development model of Linux but also benefits the PowerPC architecture drivers that were originally designed for IA32: almost all the PCI, PCIe and USB components, there is Linux support for ( open source ), also works on PowerPC machines.
At the beginning, the focus of the development was placed on computers that were available on the market. Thus, almost all Apple Macintosh computers that are PowerPC -based, supported by Yellow Dog Linux. But 2006, all Apple computers were switched to Intel processors. PowerPC machines were suddenly scarce. The focus of development was thus increasingly shifted to server, used mostly coming power processors. Also, Cell processors, which are a derivative of the PowerPC architecture were supported by Yellow Dog Linux is the first distribution - in 2007 planned the United States Air Force in a research center on 2,000 PlayStation 3 as a cluster into a supercomputer to close together. Since 2010, the cluster with the name " Condor " is in operation and consists of 1,760 consoles using Yellow Dog Linux. It processes 500 teraflops / s and in 2010 was ranked 12th on the list of the top 500 supercomputers in the world.
The current version is since December 2012 YDL 7, the only combined with IBM Power Linux 7R2 is available ( with Power7 processors ) and the Eiger EC -2S Embedded Board Cell, however.
From the also still available for other system YDL 6, the following systems are officially supported:
- Apple iBook G4, iMac G4, PowerBook G4, and Power Mac G4 and G5
- Apple Xserve G4 and G5
- CSPI
- Curtiss Wright
- Fixstars ' GigaAccel 180
- IBM JS2x
- IBM QSX
- IBM POWER
- Mercury Cell
- YDL Powerstation
Older computers are no longer officially supported, but work with a few limitations. These are, for example, G3 Macs that were YDL 5.x yet officially supported:
- Power Mac G3 " Blue & White", iMac G3, iBook G3
Since YDL version 4, a DVD drive to install yaboot provided and is required to start up the operating system, which requires newer Macs with PowerPC G3 processor (→ " New World").
Until YDL 3.x older Macs ( " Old World") were supported, as was used BootX for OS boot. Also various Mac clones were characterized bootable with YDL. The precondition for this was at least a PowerPC processors 2nd generation (PowerPC 603).
PlayStation 3
In October 2006 it was announced by Sony that Yellow Dog Linux with the new version 5, the mid-November 2006 released PlayStation 3 (Short form: PS3) will assist. Then it was announced that for around U.S. $ 50 in an off-line version without support, is U.S. $ 100 with a stand in support and two weeks after the launch as a free online version is available. Next should be incorporated by the Barcelona Supercomputer Center in the distribution and code. The distribution can be installed on the integrated in the PlayStation 3 hard drive and use it as a full-fledged operating system. Included is also a lot of programs such as Firefox, Thunderbird or OpenOffice.org. It is the Enlightenment desktop environment used 17. By an agreement of Terra Soft Solutions with Sony Computer Entertainment Yellow Dog Linux is officially supported on the PS3 and can be installed without any hurdles.
Removal of support for other operating systems
The new PlayStation 3 Slim, which went on sale in September 2009, the " Other OS " function mentioned no longer supported, so no more Linux can be installed.
Also on the original PlayStation 3, this function was removed with the firmware update 3:21 from 1 April 2010, which even led to worldwide criticism and in the United States to a court case against Sony. The latest official firmware that Linux than other operating system (english " Other OS " ) allows for the PlayStation 3, is Version 3.15 dated 10 December 2009.
→ removal of support for other operating systems in the article PlayStation 3
Current Development
Since August 2012 There are Yellow Dog Linux 7, but only in conjunction with IBM Power Linux 7R2 server rack. The Fixstars Corporation advertises for, among others, with the experience of the Cluster Project with the United States Air Force. A major new feature the automatic use of vectorization ( AltiVec ) by GCC 4.7 and the optional Parallelisierungslösung is headed "M ³ Platform". YDL 7 uses Linux kernel 2.6.32, GCC 4.4.6 and glibc 4.7.0 and 2:12.
In November 2007, version 6.0 of Yellow Dog Linux, yet, published by Terra Soft Solutions. This version has been specifically adapted to the high performance computing IBM BladeCenter QS21, which are operated with Cell processors, and was available for purchase until March 3, 2008, only a so-called board support package. Based on CentOS 5 YDL 6.0 brings Linux kernel 2.6.22, glibc 2.5, GCC 4.1.1, the graphical interface Enlightenment 17, OFED 1.2.5 for Infiniband support and components from IBM Software Development Kit for Multicore Acceleration in version 3.0 with. In the current version 6.2 in June 2009, has already been released by the Fixstars Corporation, are - according to own data - includes the following improvements:
- Ps3vram should be faster by 50% and is automatically mounted as SWAP
- Libfreevec optimized for G4/G4 PowerPC processors and should thus have become 25% faster
- Xfce is now the fourth desktop next to E17 (default), KDE and GNOME to choose from
- Wicd for Apple PowerBooks and the PlayStation 3 should work more reliably
In general, all existing features have been improved.
PowerPC G3 processors were up to version 5 officially supported. PowerPC 603 processors (2nd generation) were supported to YDL 3.