We all live in a virtual machine, a virtual machine, a virtual machine VMware has tweaked its software licensing so submarines can keep their computers running when they’re beneath the waves. The new type of licenses became necessary once VMware moved to subscriptions, which come with a requirement for customers to operate in either “connected mode” that sees their systems generate a licensing …
ERROR (Fatal) - [Missile launch system unavailable: licence expired] Contact your authorised VMWare reseller to renew.
The way things are going the strategic nuclear arsenal will be corporatised and subscription only licensing on a per warhead basis (priced per megaton) so your MIRV will require a handful and a separate multi-warhead licence.
> The way things are going the strategic nuclear arsenal will be corporatised and subscription only licensing on a per warhead basis (priced per megaton) so your MIRV will require a handful and a separate multi-warhead licence.
You missed out the "licence both ways option": a charge for the warhead and a separate charge to be allowed to hit your target.
“HMS Artful, the UK’s most advanced nuclear submarine, which is due to begin sea trials in August 2016, has been kitted out with a mini VMware virtualised data centre to control its ‘Common Combat System’, for missile launch.”
Have they any idea just how unstable this configuration is - at the best of times. Remeber what happened to the USS Yorktown.
Hmmm...maybe there's some necessary application that is no longer supported which needs to be run in a VM rather than whatever native OS is being used? I would not wish to be the person responsible for maintaining that sort of operation...years to get authorisation to buy something which by that time is no longer available, while the expected life of the hardware is tens of years, at the minimum.
I've had enough questions from our machine shop folks about whether the x86 systems that control their decades old (but still fully functional) CNC mills can be propped up to avaoid having to spend $00k for new kit.
Anon for obvious reasons ...
These systems are ... complex, very complex. A modern submarine is a floating data centre these days, with all that entails - except the wide aisles, and easy access to equipment !
There are many reasons for running virtualised environments - mostly the same as people use them for on dry land. The main one being that it makes upgrades and recovery a lot easier - instead of rebuilding a bare metal server, you just nuke the VM image and copy a new image from the maintainer's kit.
One of our biggest headaches now is managing licences - even some fo the kit (such as switches) now require licences for some functions, and these can be perpetual (good), or need renewing every so often. And as for the timescales involved, I direct you to reports of a 204 day patrol. It could be "interesting" when the browser vendors implement their "won't accept certificates longer than 30 days" policy.
This comment isn't really related to the article, but I hate the current licensing model of basically every piece of proprietary software. When setting up my own infrastructure for non-critical applications, I want to be able to set it and forget it, not have to remember to upload new licensing info twice a year. I miss when you could buy a piece of software and it was yours.
I have difficulty with the idea that software which may reduce or disable functionality dependent on outside data comms should ever be allowed to be used in this kind of a military context.
It is complete and utter madness to allow this kind of dependency to creep in to critical operations roles of any sort.
Icon for clarity.
I recall a time when military used to develop their own solutions, highly redundant and as safe as possible for human designed stuff... many of those solutions found their use in business and public use.
FOSS was, and it still is, a huge reservoir of innovation and ingenuity that can be easily taped and used, with contributions eventualy finding their way out of military purpose.
Subscription licensing should be allowed only for business or private use, where the landscape is more dynamic than in military and where there are less time based constraints.
I'll take my lead padded coat, helmet and respirator.
