Re: Who uses FreeBSD in preference to Linux and why?
License
The licensing terms are very different, and this has made FreeBSD attractive to the likes of Sony and (more distantly) Apple. Basically the license lets you use FreeBSD, change it in any way you like, and distribute a product with no obligation to also distribute the source code.
ZFS
The license has also made it easy to incorporate technologies from other areas, especially ZFS. If you're storing a lot of data, ZFS is a fine way to do it. It takes account of all the problems (i.e.the bit error rate of a drive can no longer be ignored) that crop up when you start having large numbers of multi-terabyte disks collected together. Linux doesn't really have anything to compare to it, which is why companies like Ubuntu are exploring the true limits of GPL in contemplating distributing a ZFS kernel module with Linux. ZFS is a fine gift to the world from Sun, yet the Linux community finds itself turning its nose up at this gift for the sake of upholding their reputation for licensing-related moralistic rectitude. The FreeBSD community had not such qualms.
Network
It's also said (I have no first hand evidence one way or the other) that FreeBSD network stack is faster. It also has a reputation for being very secure. If you're running an enormous data centre with a lot of network traffic, stack efficiency can translate into commercially significant energy savings. For companies like Google, energy is their number 1 cost; saving 5% is important.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
