Red Hat Software will bring out a version of its server software for the Hammer processor family from Advanced Micro Devices, as momentum for the chip builds.
Raleigh, N.C.-based Red Hat, the dominant seller of the Linux operating system, said that it would bring out a copy of Red Hat Linux Advanced Server for Hammer, the code name for a family of desktops and server processors that will begin to hit the shelves in the first quarter next year.
Red Hat will come out with a 64-bit version of its software for Hammer and ensure that its 32-bit version will work on the chip as well. The company will demonstrate a 32-bit version of its software running on a Hammer server at LinuxWorld on Tuesday.
Software makers and others have lined up behind Hammer since the beginning of the year. In April, Microsoft said it would tune Windows to run on Hammer, while German Linux distributor SuSE said in March that it would come out with software.
More recently, IBM said it would release a version of DB2 version 8 database for Hammer and Linux. Hardware manufacturers are evaluating whether and how to include the chip in products, according to AMD executives and other sources.
"Red Hat is the biggest name in Linux software, so it is a big deal for AMD," said Kevin Krewell, an analyst with The Microprocessor Report, an industry newsletter. "They are starting to pick up the right support."