A Crowd of Many. Identifying the right open source OS for your embedded system. M2M Embedded Software & Tools

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1 February 2014 M2M Embedded Software & Tools Strategic Insights: M2M Embedded Software & Tools A Crowd of Many Identifying the right open source OS for your embedded system by Dan Mandell, Analyst, with Chris Rommel, Executive Vice President

2 executive brief the view inside the situation The pool is growing with more swimmers vdc s view Fragmentation will worsen Open source, different criteria recommendations Audit in-house expertise Start small Identify hidden costs Explore the open source ecosystem summary The rapid growth of open source operating systems (OSs) over the past five years, both publicly available and commercially supported, has transformed a massive segment of the embedded software market. However, this flood of new OSs has overwhelmed developers with too many choices to know how to pinpoint the best system for their embedded application. speed read Ensuring proper selection of an open source OS is critical to the potential success of an embedded design. Open source OSs will continue to lead the embedded software market through The market for open source OSs will become more fragmented. Evaluation criteria are vastly different for open source OSs as compared to commercially licensed systems and other types. VDC Research, 2014 executive brief 1

3 the situation The pool is growing with more swimmers Open source OSs have grown to become a comprehensive part of the embedded software market and have grown in the number of different distributions available to developers. In fact, VDC expects these will continue to grow as the majority unit share of the embedded OS market through Open source OSs can enable substantial benefits and savings to end users when selected correctly for target applications. While many are flexible and can be used for different purposes, each has its strengths and drawbacks for different applications. Some feature bundles of pre-configured applications, tools, and other development resources. Compared to commercially licensed OSs, open source systems typically: Cost less (most are actually free) Are supported by entire communities that work together to continually improve their product as opposed to reliance on a single vendor Offer more flexibility in terms of integration (plug-ins) and middleware Open source software is prevalent today in several different industries ranging from simple consumer electronics and industrial machines to sophisticated high-availability systems such as communications infrastructures and medical devices. The growth of open source software is attributable to advances in both embedded hardware and software technologies. System-on-chips are now fast enough and have enough memory to run fatter OSs, featuring rich middleware stacks that are increasingly enabling next-gen connectivity for the IoT. Growing competitive pressures for OEMs to differentiate layers of their software stack have also driven the adoption of open source software. Embedded engineers have hundreds of different choices available to them, but selecting the right open source OS hinges on a multitude of factors many of which can have huge ramifications to the potential success of a product. Fragmentation will worsen vdc s view Not only do embedded developers have to worry about which OS to use, but they must also take into account differences between versions of a single OS. The greatest example of this problem is the most popular smartphone OS in the world. Android currently has active users in more than six different platform iterations of the popular mobile OS, all of which support vastly different hardware/middleware requirements. Linux in particular, off which Android s kernel is based, is the basis of dozens, if not hundreds, of different commercial distributions (Mentor Embedded Linux, MontaVista Linux Carrier VDC Research, 2014 the situation 2

4 Grade Edition 7, Wind River Linux) and free distributions (Debian Linux, µclinux). Compound the number of distributions with iterative development by a variety of supporters and you have an increasingly populated (and growing) open source OS market. Open source, different criteria The evaluation of embedded open source OSs differs greatly from those that are commercially licensed and other types. Results from VDC s 2013 Embedded Software Engineer survey indicate that open source users value certain criteria much more than their commercially driven counterparts, with the biggest differences stemming from the availability of source code, the availability of development tools, and having a familiar programming interface, respectively. Since most open source OSs (outside of various Linux distributions) are not commercially supported, we believe the prioritization of these particular criteria will increase over time with the growth of open source software. Exhibit 1: Most important characteristics when selecting the primary embedded OS VDC Research, 2014 vdc s view 3

5 Audit in-house expertise recommendations Technical support will always be a considerable cost, whether sourced from an OS supplier, commercial third party, or in-house engineering resources. If long-term support from a commercial ISV isn t feasible/justified by the project budget or roadmap, engineering teams can dramatically narrow their search for an open source OS based on the development teams experience with different programming languages, OS platforms, and development tools/ides. Training developers in new platforms/tools is typically very expensive and time-consuming, and it can potentially lead to deficiencies during software development, delaying project schedules and increasing time-to-market. Start small When using a new open source OS for an embedded project, it s best to start small and allow for unfamiliar software development teams to learn, test, and gain experience. Jumping into a large-scale project without knowing what potential issues or hardware/software incompatibilities may arise can be extremely risky, particularly for systems that will need to be supported and updated throughout an extended product lifecycle. Identify hidden costs While many open source OSs are free to download and use, they can bear major costs elsewhere in a variety of forms beyond the previously mentioned technical support. For instance, by forgoing a commercial license, the open source OS user is subject to risks of copyright and trademark protection. Embedded developers will also need to account for time, hardware costs, and (if necessary) management and updating of end devices. Explore the open source ecosystem The open source community is filled with various forums, groups, and projects that can enable substantial business benefits with regard to corporate brand and support. Some examples of these resourceful groups include the Open Handset Alliance, OpenStack, and the Yocto Project. Through contributing or supporting one or some of these various communities, engineering organizations can gain greater access to application/technical support (documentation and experienced personnel) directly relevant to their business. Participation will also enable the organization s brand to resonate throughout the greater open source community, where valuable partnerships and relationships can be established. VDC Research, 2014 recommendations 4

6 about this report Written for all levels and functional areas, including marketing, product management, sales, business development, and strategy teams, VDC Views provide ongoing analyst insight and commentary on the most significant issues, forces, and trends shaping the embedded software market with topics drawn from our most recent coverage and significant industry events. All clients of this service automatically receive VDC Views each month. For more information about VDC Views, this program, and other VDC products and services, please visit our website at or contact us at VDC Research, 2014 about this report 5