Ahmed Sherif
Research expert covering IT services and gaming hardware
Linux - statistics & facts
Linux operating systems have established a formidable presence in the global tech landscape. Renowned for being an open source system, Linux offers unfettered customization, robust security, and superior performance. Popular distributions of Linux like Ubuntu, Fedora, and CentOS cater to diverse user needs, from personal computing to enterprise-level operations. Unlike proprietary operating systems, Linux's free availability has driven its widespread adoption across servers, embedded systems, and even mobile devices with Android being a prominent example. Major tech giants such as IBM, Google, and Red Hat actively contribute to Linux development, ensuring it continues to evolve and meet the industry's changing demands.
As cloud computing and AI continue to evolve, Linux's role in both development and large-scale computing is expected to grow further. The world's largest producer of GPUs today for AI, Nvidia, is placing its trust in Linux-based software architecture, while discontinuing support for proprietary systems for the future cutting-edge GPU platforms is signaling a paradigm shift towards open systems. Its adaptability and strong community support position it as a cornerstone for future technological advancements, ensuring its continued relevance and expansion in the tech industry.
Linux remains popular
While Windows and macOS dominate the operating system landscape, Linux-based systems have carved out a significant niche, particularly among developers. In 2024, nearly one in four developers worldwide used Ubuntu for both personal and professional purposes, making it the most popular Linux distribution. Other Linux-based systems, including Debian and the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), are also widely adopted. Moreover, Linux powered nearly half of the world's most powerful supercomputers as of 2023, highlighting its robustness, reliability, and scalability.Community-driven development fortifies Linux security
The open-source nature of Linux allows for constant scrutiny and long-term support by a global community of developers. Additionally, Linux's stringent user privilege model, which significantly limits root access (the highest level of system permissions), offers a built-in defense against system-wide compromises. This security architecture contrasts with proprietary systems, where a single failure point can have widespread consequences. For instance, the July 2024 CrowdStrike Falcon update that crashed 8.5 million Windows devices highlights the risks associated with centralized, closed-source security solutions. While Linux is not immune to security issues and has previously been subject to its own CrowdStrike-linked outage in May 2024 for certain Linux distributions, its decentralized and open-source nature and diverse ecosystem make it less susceptible to such large-scale, homogeneous failures.As cloud computing and AI continue to evolve, Linux's role in both development and large-scale computing is expected to grow further. The world's largest producer of GPUs today for AI, Nvidia, is placing its trust in Linux-based software architecture, while discontinuing support for proprietary systems for the future cutting-edge GPU platforms is signaling a paradigm shift towards open systems. Its adaptability and strong community support position it as a cornerstone for future technological advancements, ensuring its continued relevance and expansion in the tech industry.
