Open (Source) For Reseller Business

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The hardware and software reseller industry is perhaps the most competitive piece of the IT pie. It is becoming more-so by the week. Margins are being reduced; vendors are changing strategy and allegiances with distributors and resellers on a disconcertingly regular basis; and large vendors are now beginning to move products off reseller shelves and making them primarily available as subscription web-services. It's tough being in the channel. However, I believe that a new and lucrative opportunity has presented itself to our slice of the industry, and is becoming not only viable, but compelling as a source of revenue. This opportunity is the plethora of Open Source technologies, spearheaded by Linux.

By now, you all probably know about Linux and Open Source. Linux and its stable mates, Apache (the World's most popular web server), FreeBSD (network workhorse server extraordinaire,) StarOffice (free MS Office clone), Perl/PHP/Python/Zope (the Kings of web-based scripting technologies) and the by-now, tens of thousands of other tools, databases, languages and technologies that seem to pop-up on a daily basis, are making serious inroads into the server, corporate, post-PC, embedded and appliance markets. All swell I hear you say. But, is it possible to use freely redistributable, Open Source software to offer quality solutions to your clients while increasing your revenues as well as your margins? The answer is a resounding yes! I feel that as our industry matures, opportunities will increasingly arise for the channel in adding value to technology through services and support and less in traditional areas, like box-moving. From my reseller and services experience, Open Source is a natural mode for this progression. Since there are no licenses and quite often no boxes to on-sell, resellers must focus strongly on services, support and training.

So what solutions should you consider selling Open Source technologies for? Here's a few:

· File Server for Windows, Windows NT and MacOS based networks. With SAMBA installed on Linux or FreeBSD, you can provide a robust, quality file server for corporate departments, workgroups or SMEs, which will work 'out-of the-box' with Windows 3.x, Windows 9x and Windows NT/2000.

· Internet Gateway: This is one of the things that Linux was born to do. By installing Linux you will instantly get: a web server (Apache); all the powerful web-scripting languages; several SQL databases (for e-commerce solutions); the Internet standard email server (Sendmail); an Internet standard discussion group server (NNTP); an Internet standard File Transfer server (FTP, SCP); Multi-link PPP ISDN or ADSL connectivity; IP Masquerading (which allows you to use a single IP address from your ISP for many workstations); various application Proxy Servers; Web and NNTP Caches; IP packet filtering and firewall software (for network security) and much more.

· Modem Servers: Linux, in combination with a multi-port serial board from any number of vendors (most support Linux), makes a great low-cost terminal server for your customers who need a remote-access modem pool for their employees or branch offices.

· Fax Gateway: If you install Linux and the free Hylafax software on a low-end PC with a modem, you can create a cheap fax server solution for your customers who need network enabled faxing. The users can simply 'Print' to the fax server from any Windows application.

· Thin Client systems: Thin clients are an excellent idea for many corporate situations. Linux makes for an excellent thin-client OS. It's rock-solid, runs on miminal hardware, can be locked down to stop-end user 'futzing' and can run the Citrix ICA client, the Tarantella client as well as all X-Windows and Telnet-based applications. All with no per-seat licence fees, which makes financial sense when your customer is rolling out hundreds of thin-client workstations. Those NT or CE licences add up quickly.

Ok, but how does a reseller increase margins and revenues? Here's the simple equation; the more your customers spend on licence fees for a software solution, the less their IT budget they will have available for your value-add services. Ask yourself these questions: What margins do you make on software sales? What margins do you make on your consulting and training time? Easy answers, right? Now, how about increasing revenues? Well, consider the Windows market as fairly saturated. Now consider the fresh Linux market as the Wild West. Untamed, but waiting for those seeking their fortune. I bet you can hear the call of 'Gold up in them hills'.

As the momentum behind Open Source solutions grows (as it will with companies like IBM putting billions into Linux) this 'mainstreaming' will mean that fewer and fewer of your customers will blink when you suggest an Open Source solution. And because Open Source solutions have zero-licence fees, this will mean that if you aren't offering your customers Open Source solutions, your competitors who are, may indeed undercut your business. And before the various proprietary vendors pipe up with the notion that a product's overall cost is more than just the licence fee, that support costs need to be taken into consideration too, I am in full agreement. However, I would say in return that due to the legendery reliability of Open Source technologies like Linux, FreeBSD and Apache, the initial cost and the TCO are far less than any proprietary vendors' products. I have found that in the areas of network security and infrastructure, web-development and e-commerce deployment and many server-side technologies, Open Source solutions are of superior quality. Please note that all of these are also the kinds of systems that your customers will need in place, even if the vendors of this World move to a fully subscription-based, Web-delivered distribution method. We in the channel will still have a role. Lets use Open Source to our advantage.

Con Zymaris is the CEO of Cybersource Pty. Ltd. a long-standing IT & Internet Professional Services company.