Virtual appliance maker rPath teams up with Novell

A startup called rPath, which makes virtual appliances, has partnered with Novell that allows appliances built in rPath’s platform to be based in the popular SUSE Linux operating system.

Virtual appliances, which “wrap” an application in a tiny piece of an operating system, are useful because they allow apps to run in most computer environments with minimal installation and configuration. Raleigh, N.C.-based rPath brings a strong pedigree to this market, with a staff that includes six of the first 20 employees at Red Hat.

Until now, however, rPath’s virtual appliances have been released on the company’s homegrown version of Linux. With the new partnership, developers that have built applications in SUSE Linux can just transfer them over to rPath without any trouble. It also partly moves the startup out of the shadow of the Linux’s legal concerns — a big part of the Linux community is worried because Microsoft is alleging that Linux violates more than 200 Microsoft patents, but won’t say what those patents are. Novell, however, has struck a deal with Microsoft, meaning that virtual appliances using SUSE Linux should be free from legal worry.