this post was submitted on 15 May 2025
49 points (98.0% liked)
Linux
55143 readers
513 users here now
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
Rules
- Posts must be relevant to operating systems running the Linux kernel. GNU/Linux or otherwise.
- No misinformation
- No NSFW content
- No hate speech, bigotry, etc
Related Communities
Community icon by Alpár-Etele Méder, licensed under CC BY 3.0
founded 6 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
This is misleading. While Red Hat contributes significantly to Linux and some open source projects, they did not create the Linux kernel, GCC, or glibc - those are GNU or community projects. You can absolutely use Linux without Red Hat software, especially with distros like Alpine, Gentoo, or Guix. Red Hat is influential, but not essential.
You can absolutely use Linux without any GNU software. I use Chimera Linux for example (no Glibc, no GCC, no GNU utils). I even get away from some software that Red Hat created according to your definition like SystemD. However, even still, I know that Red Hat is responsible for much of the software I run since I use software like X, Wayland, Mesa, Podman, KVM, PulseAudio, and PipeWire.
It is VERY hard to run a Linux system without using code contributed by Red Hat.
No, Red Hat did not “create” glibc, GCC, or GNOME. They just contributed tens of thousands of lines of code to them. Perhaps more than anybody else over the last 20 years. Ever heard of Ulrich Drepper?
Actually, it is impossible to use Linux without using code contributed by Red Hat as they have been one of the biggest contributors to the Linux kernel itself for multiple decades now.
And to clarify, the Linux kernel is absolutely NOT a GNU project. Very few packages in a typical Linux distro are actually. The full list of GNU packages is here:
https://www.gnu.org/software/software.en.html#allgnupkgs
Compare it with this list:
https://www.redhat.com/en/about/open-source-program-office/contributions
GNU has been influential but is not essential as you can create a complete Linux distribution without any of it (again see Chimera Linux). Code contributed by Red Hat however is totally unavoidable and completely essential. It is not possible to run a Linux system without it. All the distributions you listed heavily rely on code contributed by Red Hat.
To say otherwise is not just misleading. It is wrong.
I do not use any Red Hat distributions. I do benefit from their contributions and am thankful for them.