The explosion of data is driving a necessary increase in processing at the edge for reasons including latency, bandwidth savings, security, privacy and autonomy. However, deploying compute at the distributed edge – both on-prem and in the field – for use cases spanning IoT, AI, 5G, network virtualization, and security is especially challenging because the landscape is inherently heterogeneous, comprised of a diverse mix of technologies, legacy investments and skill sets. In order to scale edge computing, we need to tame this complexity by supporting a variety of deployment models in a more standardized and open way, in addition to enabling continued use of legacy investments.
Project EVE is building EVE-OS, a universal, open Linux-based operating system for distributed edge computing. EVE-OS aims to do for the distributed edge what Android did for mobile by creating an open foundation that simplifies development, orchestration and security of edge computing nodes deployed on-prem and in the field. Supporting Docker containers, Kubernetes clusters and virtual machines, EVE-OS provides a flexible foundation for distributed edge deployments with choice of any hardware, application and cloud.
EVE-OS can be deployed on any bare metal hardware (e.g. x86, Arm, GPU) or within a VM to provide consistent system and orchestration services and provides the ability to run applications in a variety of formats. Support for VMs enables users to continue to use existing software investments while building new containerized innovations in parallel. Compared to agent-based edge management solutions, the bare metal EVE-OS eliminates the possibility of bricking a device in the field during an update, requiring an expensive truck roll.
Orchestration of the underlying hardware and installed software is achieved through the open EVE API, providing developers with consistent behavior across a diverse mix of technology ingredients. Offering consistency and flexibility while maintaining a robust, state-of-the-art security posture is a key project tenet.
