Which bsd version

The BSD kernel, which handles process scheduling, memory management, symmetric multi-processing SMP , device drivers, etc. Org project. This may surprise you. The first widely distributed implementation was part of 4. In the course of the s, a number of new workstation companies sprang up. Collectively, these enhancements were known as the Berkeley Extensions. Jolitz, wrote the remaining code and released it in early as BSD. The two projects originally diverged due to differences in patience waiting for improvements to BSD: the NetBSD people started early in the year, and the first version of FreeBSD was not ready until the end of the year.

In the meantime, the code base had diverged sufficiently to make it difficult to merge. In addition, the projects had different aims, as we will see below.

Until recently, the open source BSDs had no such proponents. The case was settled out of court in , but the spectre of the litigation continues to haunt people. In March an article published on the web claimed that the court case had been "recently settled". Thus you will see references in book titles to "the 4. Both are developed by non-commercial projects this does not apply to many other Linux distributions, of course.

In the following section, we will look at BSD and compare it to Linux. No one person or corporation owns BSD. It is created and distributed by a community of highly technical and committed contributors all over the world. Some of the components of BSD are Open Source projects in their own right and managed by different project maintainers. Each project maintains a publicly accessible source tree which contains all source files for the project, including documentation and other incidental files.

Users can obtain a complete copy of any version. A large number of developers worldwide contribute to improvements to BSD. They are divided into three kinds:. Contributors write code or documentation. They are not permitted to commit add code directly to the source tree. In order for their code to be included in the system, it must be reviewed and checked in by a registered developer, known as a committer.

Committers are developers with write access to the source tree. In order to become a committer, an individual must show ability in the area in which they are active. In general, an experienced committer may make changes which are obviously correct without obtaining consensus. For example, a documentation project committer may correct typographical or grammatical errors without review. On the other hand, developers making far-reaching or complicated changes are expected to submit their changes for review before committing them In extreme cases, a core team member with a function such as Principal Architect may order that changes be removed from the tree, a process known as backing out.

All committers receive mail describing each individual commit, so it is not possible to commit secretly. The Core team. The core teams developed in the course of the projects, and their role is not always well-defined. It is not necessary to be a developer in order to be a core team member, though it is normal. The rules for the core team vary from one project to the other, but in general they have more say in the direction of the project than non-core team members have.

No one person controls the content of the system. In practice, this difference is overrated, since the Principal Architect can require that code be backed out, and even in the Linux project several people are permitted to make changes.

On the other hand, there is a central repository, a single place where you can find the entire operating system sources, including all older versions. BSD projects maintain the entire "Operating System", not only the kernel. This distinction is only marginally useful: neither BSD nor Linux is useful without applications.

The applications used under BSD are frequently the same as the applications used under Linux. As a result of the formalized maintenance of a single SVN source tree, BSD development is clear, and it is possible to access any version of the system by release number or by date.

SVN also allows incremental updates to the system: for example, the FreeBSD repository is updated about times a day. Most of these changes are small. As with Linux, releases are assigned a number such as 1.

In addition, the version number has a suffix indicating its purpose:. NetBSD uses a slightly different naming scheme and appends a single-letter suffix which indicates changes in the internal interfaces, for example NetBSD 1. All new development on the system goes into this branch. By contrast, Linux maintains two separate code trees: the stable version and the development version.

Stable versions have an even minor version number, such as 2. Development versions have an odd minor version number, such as 2. That makes OpenBSD one of the most popular platforms for individuals and even companies to use it for different needs including server use and even on desktops. If you are in search of an operating system that is very secure, then OpenBSD is perfect for you.

In fact, it is so secure that you may even get annoyed when working on it a little bit. Just remember in the end it is all about keeping your machine, and in turn your data, safe. NetBSD will run on over 50 different hardware configurations making even more robust than many versions of Linux.

The operating system is very portable and lightweight too, making it great for older machines. It is a fork of FreeBSD 4. The entire system can be built with just a few commands much like FreeBSD.

Designed with former FreeBSD users in mind, it runs in a much more similar fashion to past versions of FreeBSD before they moved into new territory with version 5 and above. As good as FreeBSD is, it does not target desktop users. Its focus is on simplicity. On top of that, much of the desktop software the average user will need will be installed when you setup the operating system, making this version of BSD much more user friendly compared to all the others on this list.

Now that you know what some of the most popular versions are, the time has come for you to make a decision on which one you will use. However, if you are looking to setup your own server, then you may want to consider OpenBSD if you want to really tighten security or you can always go with FreeBSD for all of the above if you want to make sure you have easy access to help when you need it.

A lot of it depends on how you will be using BSD, the level of expertise you have, and how easy you want it to be to find the help you need when you need it. This can be a tough one I know.

Why bother switching when you already have a working system running the major operating systems? Like Linux, there is a definite niche when it comes to servers and those just wanting to stay away from the major players such as Apple and Microsoft. At the same time, BSD provides many tools that make it perfect for servers or even desktop use in a more secure environment. Heck, you may just want to give it a try as a little hobby.

In the end, you have to look at what you want to do before you make the switch, as there may be other alternatives out there that are easier. I will tell you that your Nix knowledge will grow if you do decide to give it a try, and there is nothing wrong with learning something new. While using these operating systems sometimes takes a little more knowledge compared to others, they are some of the most stable and secure operating systems today.

There are other options out there. Have you ever tried BSD? If so, let me know what you think about it in the comments below. Love it or hate it, I want to hear from you. Matt is an IT professional with over fifteen years experience supporting network infrastructure and computers. An avid gamer, Matt enjoys his time playing and writing about his experiences both in the IT world and in the gaming communities.

You can find more of his writing on our sister ShopNinja sites where he enjoys talking about anything and everything tech. I am a totally blind computer user. I have used windows, Mac, and some linux, ubuntu with the mate desktop. For a screen-reader, one uses orca with linux. Is there a bsd which would be accessible for a blind computer user?