Linux-shy public sector gets open source test lab

A new laboratory has opened in Manchester that will allow government departments and local authorities to trial open source software in confidence in an independent test environment.

Cheshire County Council is the first public sector organisation to use the facility at the National Computing Centre's (NCC) headquarters to conduct a trial for a joint open source and proprietary desktop platform.

The laboratory is part of the national Open Source Academy project funded by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, which aims to accelerate the use of open source software within the public sector.

Access to the laboratory service is free for public sector bodies, who can configure the suite of test machines to their own specifications for open source evaluation trials. The NCC facility is also available by remote access.

Cheshire County Council is using the lab to trial a way of converting outdated Windows 98 PCs into a Linux and Citrix thin client device that can be reused. Bev Roberts, head of IT strategy and policy at Cheshire County Council, told silicon.com it is about sweating the existing IT assets.

"If we can keep some kit a bit longer then we are more cost-effective," she said.

The lab trial is expected to last a few weeks before a larger pilot at the council, planned for later this year but Roberts admitted that there will be a culture issue in getting people to use the technology.

The NCC is part of the Open Source Academy consortium, which also includes Birmingham City Council, Bristol City Council, Cheshire County Council, Shepway District Council, Socitm and the University of Kent.

Ed Downs, project manager for the open source laboratory, said the facility allows users who are wary of open source to test configurations and evaluate benefits without the risk of undertaking the work in their own organisation.