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Tru64 UNIX is HP's (formerly Compaq; formerly DEC) 64-bit Unix operating system for the DEC Alpha AXP platform. It was previously known as Digital UNIX, and before that as OSF/1 AXP. DEC's prior UNIX product was known as Ultrix.

It is unusual among common commercial UNIX implementations in being built on the Mach kernel, sharing this characteristic with NeXTSTEP and Mac OS X. It is sometimes criticized for POSIX compatibility holes.

Beginning with OSF/1, this version of UNIX booted from the SRM boot firmware on DEC Alpha-based computer systems.

OSF/1

In 1988, during the so-called "Unix wars", DEC joined with IBM, Hewlett-Packard, and others to form the Open Software Foundation (OSF) to develop a version of Unix to compete with System V Release 4 from AT&T and Sun Microsystems. OSF/1 was one of the first operating systems to use the Mach kernel, developed at Carnegie Mellon University, incorporating components of the BSD kernel to provide Unix compatibility. OSF/1 was to have been the third major branch of the Unix family tree, after System V and BSD.

DEC's original release of OSF/1 was in 1991 for their line of MIPS-based DECstation workstations; it was never really a fully supported product and it was cancelled before the end of 1992. DEC moved OSF/1 to their new line of Alpha AXP workstations (as OSF/1 AXP), and this was the original version (V1.2) of what is most commonly known as OSF/1.

HP also worked on a product based on OSF/1 designed for early versions of their PA-RISC workstations, but this project never really got off the ground due to the complex nature of the hardware. Apple was rumored to be working on an OSF/1 version of A/UX for their PowerPC architecture, but the project never made it out of the rumor stage. IBM used OSF/1 as the basis of the AIX/ESA operating system for System 370 and System 390 mainframes *.

In 1994, after the Unix wars had splintered the Unix market, the Open Software Foundation ceased funding of research and development of OSF/1.

Digital UNIX

After the OSF gave up on OSF/1, DEC renamed OSF/1 AXP to Digital UNIX and made it the main operating system for the company's Alpha processors. It was 64-bit and retained the basis on the Mach kernel but with components from Berkeley Software Distribution, System V, and other sources.

Tru64 UNIX

After Compaq's purchase of DEC in early 1998, Digital UNIX was renamed to Tru64 UNIX to emphasise its 64-bit-clean nature.

Future plans

With HP's purchase of Compaq in 2002, HP announced the intention to migrate many of Tru64 UNIX's more unique features (including its file system) to HP-UX, HP's proprietary Unix. As of December 2004, however, HP appears to have cancelled this project, instead choosing to use the Veritas file system and abandon the rest of the Tru64 advanced features. In the process, many of the remaining Tru64 developers have been laid-off (made redundant).

As of 2005 HP intends to continue selling the product through 2006 (coincident with the final shipping dates of AlphaServer hardware), with continued support up to 2011. Maintenance releases are planned for 2006 (5.1B-4) and 2008 (5.1B-5).

External links

Operating systems | DEC Operating Systems | Unix | Mach

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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Tru64 UNIX".

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