Canonical, Nuxeo Partner on Document Management Solution

Canonical continues to not only expand its vendor partnerships, but also integrate its product solutions with the addition of Nuxeo DMS to the Ubuntu Partner Repository. Here are the details, and what they say about Canonical’s long-term strategy.

As of July 11, 2011, Nuxeo’s open source Document Management System is available as a package in the Ubuntu Partner Repository, joining Skype, Fluendo and other popular applications. Designed for businesses seeking better ways of sharing, organizing and maintaining their documents and content, Nuxeo’s DMS emphasizes scalability and is promoted by its developers as “architected for the cloud era.”

Nuxeo supported Ubuntu previously, but the DMS’s inclusion in the Partner Repository means easier deployment for Ubuntu users interested in running the software on either traditional or cloud-based server environments built on Ubuntu.

Canonical’s Integrative Strategy

This news is an indication of the continuing interest in Canonical’s Ubuntu operating system among partners in the open source channel. Nuxeo pointed in its discussion of the agreement to Ubuntu’s emergence as “the preferred Linux distribution” and Ubuntu’s growing popularity among Nuxeo customers as the reasons for the new partnership.

At the same time, however, the move highlights a strategy of integration on Canonical’s part which will be important to watch. The company continues to exhibit interest in not only offering an open source server platform but also engaging partners to construct a complete ecosystem of open source applications running on top of Ubuntu. In other words, Canonical wants Ubuntu (in this case, Ubuntu Server in particular) to serve as a complete, one-stop solution for a variety of use cases. It aims to make Ubuntu the focal point of the open source channel.

Canonical has plenty of competition, of course, particularly when it comes to server products. Red Hat (which already offers extended support for Nuxeo DMS) is a powerful open source contender, and a variety of proprietary vendors present challenges outside the open source channel.

Nonetheless, the ambitious agenda Canonical has set for itself will be an interesting one to watch going forward. The company has expanded at a remarkably steady pace over the last several years, adding employees and partners regularly. Its deal with Nuxeo brings it one step closer to delivering a completely comprehensive computing solution that will satisfy all parties.

Architected for the Cloud Era