FastMail uses 'nearly 100 per cent' FOSS software, says founder Jeremy Howard. "I say 'nearly' since IBM only provides binary versions of their RAID configuration and
monitoring tool... but I think that's the only piece of closed source software we use," he adds. FastMail uses a Debianbased distribution aronnd a custom-patched Linux kernel, a kernel-level firewall, an Apache Web server, Cyrus !MAP/ POP server, Postfix 'secure mailer' and a Perl-based main application, besides SpamAssassin and ClamAV When asked, Howard does not go into the figures of the business, but shares that use of FOSS has saved the service" ... hundreds of thousands of dollars". However, "That's not the main reason we use it," he says. "We use open source software because it is far better for our needs than the alternatives ... We often use cutting-edge hardware to get the best possible performance out of our infrastructure.

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We've worked closely with Linux kernel developers to ensure that it is tuned correctly for this hardware. We'd never be able to do that with Windows!"
Another benefit of FOSS is that the FastMail team can patch its software itself, instead of begging for the same service from a vendor. It has contributed several patches to the Cyrus IMAP server, for instance. That makes its software more reliable, Howard says. "In summary: if we used closed source software, our expenses would be higher, and our uptime would be lower ... " It is, he concludes, good for business. FastMail seems to have-excuse the cliche, but-a philosophy of openness. They've mentioned, in a part of their profuse online documentation, all the details of their hardware, right down to their cabinet map. It's published online at FastMail uses IBM x345/x346 and x3550, and Snn's x4500 servers; they have even uploaded photos of their cabinets online at Simple gestures like these make FastMail feel more like a FOSS community project than a stuffy e-mail service provider. Should I mention the lively wild community gathered around it, which uses that space to post queries and suggest improvements directly to the FastMail staff?