iXsystems: FreeNAS and TrueNAS Open Source Storage Software Solutions Unifying

iXsystems, Inc. announced that FreeNAS and TrueNAS solutions are unifying.

FreeNAS and TrueNAS have been separate-but-related members of Open Source storage software family since 2012. FreeNAS is the free Open Source version with a community and has led the pursuit of innovations like plug-ins and VMs. TrueNAS is the enterprise version for organizations of all sizes that need additional uptime and performance, as well as the enterprise-grade support necessary for critical data and applications.

From the beginning, the company developed, tested, documented, and released both as separate products, even though the majority of code is shared. This was a deliberate technical decision in the beginning but over time became less of a necessity and more of ‘just how we’ve always done it’. Furthermore, to change it was going to require a serious overhaul to how we build and package both products, among other things, so the firm continued to kick the can down the road. As it made systematic improvements to development and QA efficiency over the past few years, the redundant release process became almost impossible to ignore as its next major efficiency roadblock to overcome. So, it finally rolled up our sleeves.

With the recent 11.3 release, TrueNAS gained parity with FreeNAS on features like VMs and plug-ins, further homogenizing the code. Today, we announce the next phase of evolution for FreeNAS and TrueNAS.

With the 12.0 release coming in the latter half of the year, the firm will bring more features than any release that has come before it, he firm will also unify both products into a single software image and name. This shift will have benefits for users, but before it go into further detail, the company had like to first reassure that there are no plans to stop releasing a free version, close the source or limit features.

Benefits
This isn’t just a union of convenience, there are major technical benefits for all users and contributors:

Rapid development: Unified images accelerate software development and releases (for example, 12.0 is a major release that would normally have taken 9-12 months to release, and with these efficiencies, the firm is bringing that closer to 6 months
Improved quality: Reduced development redundancy and unified QA increases software quality and allows us to streamline testing
Earlier hardware enablement: Staying in-sync with upstream OS versions will be easier, allowing earlier access to newer hardware drivers. For instance, 12.0 brings improved support for AMD EPYC / Ryzen platforms and enhanced NUMA support for more efficient CPU core handling.
Simplified documentation: Unified documentation eliminates redundancy such as separate user guides
Deduplication of effort: Unified web content and videos refer to one software family without the need for duplication
Flexibility: Unified images enable simpler transitions or upgrades between editions
Resource efficiency: frees up developers to work on features and related products
Open ZFS 2.0: The planning for the ‘unified’ 12.0 release began over a year ago and included the investment in the development and integration of what will soon be released as ‘OpenZFS 2.0’. This effort is fast-forwarding delivery of advances like datas et encryption, major performance improvements, and compatibility with Linux ZFS pools.

Overall, this union provides a foundation for a more feature-rich future.

What to expect
In the 11.3 release, FreeNAS and TrueNAS share over 95% of the same source code but are built into separate images, each with their own name. The version 12.0 release will change this process by moving to one unified image with two different editions: a free, Open Source edition (this will never change!) and an enterprise edition.

Both editions will have common Open Source code, unified documentation, and a shared product name. The web interface and REST APIs will be relatively unchanged from version 11.3 with only additions for new features.

Kris Moore, VP, engineering, describes the change in process in this video blog.

Two names become one
For years the company talked about unifying the images, documentation, and web content due to all of the gains and benefits to be had. The one thing that always held it back was the question of what to do with the name: after all, unification of the software meant that 2 product names were no longer workable, and it has grown as attached to both names as have its Community and customers (and perhaps even more).

On the one hand, iXsystems have the FreeNAS brand that everyone has come to know; it lets users know the product doesn’t cost anything to use and also hints at the fact that it’s Open Source. On the other hand, TrueNAS is a better name for an enterprise product.

Some may remember that TrueNAS was originally released as ‘FreeNAS Pro’, but the feedback received was that many companies didn’t take it seriously. They felt a product with ‘Free’ in the name didn’t inspire the necessary confidence for critical infrastructure and data. Hence, the name TrueNAS was born to overcome that stigma, and the enterprise side of company’s business has grown reliably since then.

So, after many months of analysis, weighing pros and cons, and spirited debate, iXsystems decided that the technical benefits and efficiencies from unifying the products are too significant to ignore and now overwhelmingly outweigh our attachment to names. Therefore, it decided to merge the names to share the stronger enterprise brand, TrueNAS. By doing so, it continues to give all users the confidence to use the product in important and mission-critical applications, while still paying homage to FreeNAS through the use of a shark-themed icon in the logo. The company also continues to emphasize the benefits of Open Source through the sub-moniker ‘Open Storage’.

The firm presents:

There will be 2 different editions: TrueNAS CORE and TrueNAS Enterprise. Without any license keys, TrueNAS CORE provides all the same, unrestricted FreeNAS functionality you know and love, while the source code will still be Open Source and forever free to use. TrueNAS Enterprise will enable an extended feature set using a license key on supported platforms. This move elevates FreeNAS to the enterprise-grade quality levels of TrueNAS to further cement its position as the world Open Storage OS.

TrueNAS CORE: always open and Free NAS

The only thing changing is the name. FreeNAS will take on the name of ‘TrueNAS CORE’. More than just a ‘Free-NAS’, TrueNAS CORE is enterprise-quality SDS that can be used without restrictions or cost. It is also the core of the full-fledged enterprise edition, TrueNAS Enterprise, which provides the additional fault-tolerance, performance, and support that businesses and critical applications require.

CORE is a commitment that all the core functionality that FreeNAS users love will be included in the best free NAS software. CORE also defines itself with the acronym:

The change in name does not change the underlying FreeBSD OS, the FreeBSD-based license, or firm’s commitment to free and Open Source software. Long-time FreeNAS diehards will have the option to use the existing FreeNAS name and logo in the banner of the web interface by selecting a FreeNAS theme from the dropdown in the upper right-hand action bar, if they so choose.

Web visitors will eventually be forwarded to the TrueNAS web pages, but that’s still a little while away. The freenas.org domain will remain in place, but over time, iXsystems will use a TrueNAS domain to provide a common source of information. There will be no changes to community logins or newsletters.

TrueNAS CORE 12.0 will have some advances over FreeNAS 11.3. These include support for Fusion Pools (mixing SSD and HDD vdevs) and encrypted datasets. A more complete list of the hundreds of improvements will be made with the 12.0 BETA release announcement.

TrueNAS Enterprise: Value in enterprise storage
TrueNAS customers will see a smaller name change with the move to version 12.0 but will see a change to the new shark fin icon. The FreeNAS shark icon is known, but this modernized icon represents the stealthy but mighty storage competitor that TrueNAS has become.

The new name is ‘TrueNAS Enterprise’ and it inherits all the same enclosure management, HA, and support that TrueNAS 11.3 benefits from. TrueNAS Enterprise systems will automatically inherit the TrueNAS CORE features and a pre-installed key unlocks enterprise features.

TrueNAS 12.0 preview
Everyone is invited to experience an early preview of TrueNAS 12.0. Nightly images will be available March 11 for anyone that has a spare system to test and develop with. Be sure to check out Fusion Pools and dataset encryption.

Click to enlarge

The firm started a TrueNAS 12.0 sub-forum on the community forums for this blog and community feedback. In general, it’s always looking for opinions and ideas on how the ccompany can improve TrueNAS products.

Next steps
TrueNAS CORE 12.0 will go through the same Alpha, Beta, RC1, Release states that FreeNAS has gone through. There will be no changes to the software update process or the information available. The process will be more efficient within the company that expects to deliver users more with the same resources having today. TrueNAS CORE 12.0 is planned for release in 3Q20, which will be a much shorter development cycle for a release of this magnitude, thanks to this change.

Some users have asked the company whether there will be a paid option to upgrade a system running TrueNAS CORE to Enterprise? The change in the release process makes that upgrade more possible, and the vendor will be investigating options to enable this. There will also be opportunities to develop more radical improvements to TrueNAS functionality.

Thanks goes out to firm’s community and customers for their support in helping us democratize enterprise storage. It’s excited to work side by side with users on this next phase of the FreeNAS and TrueNAS journey.

Resource:
Video: FreeNAS and TrueNAS are Unifying

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