In addition to the cloud, Canonical is building the future of Linux in the Internet of Things, with the new Ubuntu Core release.
Canonical's Ubuntu is best known for its Linux desktop, but the company makes its money primarily from the cloud and the Internet of Things (IoT), as its founder Mark Shuttleworth has said. So it's no surprise that Ubuntu Core is bringing Ubuntu 18.04 Long Term Support (LTS) to IoT devices.
Ubuntu Core, with an image size of 260MB, is the smallest version of Ubuntu Linux to date. This makes it ideal for both IoT devices and cloud containers.
Of course, size alone isn't enough to make an operating system good for IoT. But it doesn't hurt. In addition to being able to run on devices with minimal system resources, the tiny size makes it less vulnerable to attacks from hackers.
Additionally, to install programs on Core, the operating system uses verified, authentic snaps. The entire Core platform is built from strictly restricted snaps.
Snaps are Ubuntu software packages that are resistant to tampering. Even if a snap is compromised, Ubuntu Core snaps are confined to a sandbox. This in turn limits potential damage. Ubuntu Core snaps are also regularly checked for vulnerabilities.
Another advantage for developers is that the same Core snaps run on Ubuntu server, desktop, and cloud.
What if something goes wrong? That's not something you should worry about. With snaps, each update preserves both the previous files and the app's data. This means you can instantly restore the state of the app and your device if something goes wrong while updating the snap.
“Canonical’s Ubuntu Core puts the right code on a device with clean update and management semantics,” said Ian Hughes, IoT analyst at 451 Research.
Once released, each Ubuntu Core will have access to its own app store. Vendors can open this store to give their customers access to all standard apps or just their own programs.
Another advantage of Ubuntu Core is that it comes with 10 years of low-cost security support. Even better, both the OEM and the company developing the devices can control the security updates. This gives IoT developers and customers the long-term security coverage that most IoT operating systems lack. IoT devices already have a bad reputation for lacking long-term security support. Ubuntu Core gives IoT the kind of security we all want.
Ubuntu Core is ready to run on a wide range of devices from manufacturers including Dell, Rigado, Intel, Qualcomm, Samsung, and NXP. It also supports 32-bit and 64-bit applications on ARM and Intel chips.
Prior to this release, the Eclipse Foundation had found that Ubuntu, along with Raspbian, the Raspberry Pi-specific Linux distribution, and Debian, are the most popular IoT operating systems. A total of 72% of IoT developers use Linux. With this new release, Ubuntu Core is expected to be even more popular with IoT developers, vendors, and customers.
