The confirmation of our commitment to providing professional support for Open Source solutions in business is our partnership with leading companies:

We provide commercial support for Open Source systems (Debian, Ubuntu, Red Hat, SuSE) and applications. Monthly cost of maintenance for an application server is 300 PLN (or 80 EUR or 100 USD). Any additional tasks are charged by 90 PLN per hour (or 20 EUR or 25 USD).

It is our pleasure to announce that our company has become a partner of Red Hat Inc.

It is our pleasure to announce that our company has become the first and so far the only partner of Canonical Ltd – the creators of the Ubuntu Linux distribution – in the most prestiguous category of Solution Provider Partner.

It is our pleasure to announce that our company has become a partner of Novell Inc.

What is Open Source?

Open Source is a type of free software – a methodology (maybe even ideology) of computer programmers and IT specialists engaged in efforts to provide free access to software to all people. This movement suggests the name of open source software as an alternative to free software.

Where did the Free Software and Open Source ideas come from?

The Free software comes from the 80s, when the Unix OS, previously available as an open source code, was commercialised by AT&T, which resulted in cutting off access to the code and its free development.

Richard M. Stallman at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) opposed and started the movement for the creation of free software called GNU (GNU’s Not Unix). He is also the founder of the Free Software Foundation (FSF). The essential characteristic of free software is the possibility of its further distribution and modification, and full availability of its source code.

The name of open source was created in 1998 with the distribution of the source code of Netscape Navigator by Netscape Communications Corporation, with the license that ensures everyone the right to use, modify and redistribute the code. One of the aims was to attract large companies and corporations to the free software movement. Open source software movement places more emphasis on technical and organisational issues related to freedom of the code, pushing a bit aside the ideology. Its founders and advocates are Eric S. Raymond and Bruce Perens.

Sources: pl.wikipedia.org, www.gnu.org

Precisely because of the nature of Open Source our company is its strong supporter. Open source software provides a high level of security, stability and opportunity to easily adapt available solutions to customer needs, avoiding large costs of commercial software and licenses.

The use of open source solutions in Cirrus

We use Debian GNU/Linux distribution (stable branch) as a standard OS.

Based on this system we run and manage applications suiting the needs of our clients, including:

  • mail servers – Postfix + anti-virus and anti-spam solutions
  • Web servers – Apache
  • Nameservers – Bind
  • Proxy services – Squid
  • Directory services – LDAP
  • Advanced security mechanisms – IPTables, intrusion detection systems

We have also successfully implemented larger open source solutions, for example:

  • Network fax – we have successfully implemented and administered systems enabling the use of a shared central local area network fax which converts incoming faxes to the PDF format. This system can completely eliminate traditional fax machines, cutting costs, improving archiving and saving environment.

 

  • HelpDesk – Request Tracker, an excellent system to improve the work of support departments. It keeps a register of all notifications and allows to prioritise them, assign the tickets to a specific person responsible for their maintenance or to track the ticket history. It fits perfectly the needs of support departments within large organisations.

 

  • Groupwork system – eGroupWare, system for effective management of teamwork. Due to the modular construction it allows for flexible adjustment of built-in functionality to the needs of an organisation. Most frequently used modules are a calendar, contact management, CRM, e-mail client, management of resources (conference rooms, cars, etc.).

 

  • Groupwork system – Zimbra Collaboration Suite, is a powerful groupware system based on Ajax technology with advanced web interface. It includes email client, address book, shared calendar, instant messaging, text messaging, notepad, tasks, briefcase and the ability to create and share documents online in a functional editor. The package offers an open Zimlet technology, which facilitates the usage of custom plugins. The system also includes the Zimbra Desktop application – an offline mail client, enabling to view e-mail with no access to the mail server.

 

  • Virtualisation – open source virtualisation solutions, like Xen, OpenVZ or KVM, offer full use of the hardware combined with greater security and ease of management. They are also more efficient comared to their commercial rivals.

 

  • CRM – Sugar CRM, Vtiger are examples of open source CRM systems with a Polish interface and suitable for use in managing contacts with clients.

 

  • VoIP – Asterisk, robust software that enables voice transmission over computer networks. With a dedicated PCI card it is also possible to connect it to a standard telecommunications network. Advanced functionality makes Asterisk not only to offer the VoIP service but also to effectively replace the traditional telephone exchange and to coordinate all voice communication within company. The software allows, inter alia, to create your own DISA and IVR systems, as well as individual voice mailboxes.

On request, we are ready to find and offer for testing any open source solution that could help you improve your business.