FreeBSD is an open source and server oriented operating system derived from BSD (Berkeley Software Distribution), the version of UNIX developed at the University of California, Berkeley. It offers advanced networking, performance, security and compatibility features today which are still missing in other operating systems, even some of the best commercial ones.
Distributed as installable or Live CDs for five architectures
The project is distributed as installable only CD ISO image that support the 32-bit/x86 compatible (including Pentium and Athlon), 64-bit/amd64 compatible (including Opteron, Athlon 64, and EM64T), IA-64 (ia64), PPC (PowerPC), and SPARC instruction set architectures.
It is also essential to mention that this operating system is not a Linux distribution, and it features several stable branches. While the 10.x branch delivers all the latest BSD technologies and it is considered the latest stable release, the 9.x and 8.x branches have been classified as legacy releases.
Boot options
The operating system provides users with a text-mode, minimal boot menu from where they can boot into the multi user or single user environments, drop to a shell prompt for system rescuing tasks, choose a stable or old kernel, as well as to reboot the machine.
Additionally, you can configure various boot options, such as support for ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface), safe mode, single user and verbose. After the system boots, you will be asked if want to install the distribution of use the live environment.
Bottom line
Summing up, FreeBSD is without no doubt an advanced operating system that powers some of the most modern desktop, server and embedded systems around the world. Thanks to its state-of-the-art security and advanced features, FreeBSD is used by a plethora of powerful companies to deliver modern services, as well as to respond to changing needs and demands.
