title: Is the LAMP stack appropriate for Enterprise use?
body: <p>Is the LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP / Ruby / Python) stack appropriate for Enterprise use? </p>
  
  <p>To be clear, by "Enterprise", I mean a large or very large company, where security, robustness, availability of skill sets, Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), scalability, and availability of tools are key considerations. Said another way, a company that looks for external adoption of frameworks / architecture - Something ubiquitous will be seen as more "valid" than something exotic / esoteric in this kind of environment.</p>
  
  <p>I've seen use cases where Oracle, IBM, and Sun have implemented systems on the LAMP stack for various Enterprises. I've also seen examples where websites like yellowpages.com (Ruby on rails) and Facebook (php) are built on it. However, none of these examples are exactly what I'm looking for. </p>
  
  <p>I'm really trying to find examples where it is an Enterprise standard at a very large bank (I.e., Citigroup), Telecom company (I.e., AT&amp;T), or manufacturer (I.e., Proctor and Gamble). Just to be clear, I'm not looking for an example where it's used in a limited sense (Like at JPMorgan Chase), but where it's a core platform for systems like CRM, manufacturing systems, or HR management, as well as for internal and external websites. </p>
  
  <p>The perception I've seen so far is that applications built on the LAMP stack perform slower and are less flexible. Some of the arguments I've heard are:</p>
  
  <ul>
  <li><p>Linux is seen as not as well supported as Unix, Solaris, or Windows Servers.</p></li>
  <li><p>Apache is harder to configure and maintain than web servers like BEA WebLogic or IIS.  </p></li>
  <li><p>MySQL is a "not ready for prime time" DB for hobbyists, and not a competitor for SQL Server or Oracle (Although PostgreSQL seems to have a reputation for being more robust). </p></li>
  <li><p>PHP / Ruby on rails are optimized for CRUD (Create, Read, Update and Delete operations). Although this is an advantage when building CRUD-intensive web aplications, both perform slower than Java/Java EE or C# (which are both common Enterprise standards). Furthermore, a lot of applications and systems (like manufacturing systems) have a lot of non-CRUD functionality that may be harder to build with PHP or Ruby, or even Python. </p></li>
  </ul>
  
  <p>Can anyone please provide arguments to support or refute the idea of the LAMP stack being appropriate for the Enterprise?</p>
  
  <p>Thanks!</p>
  
  <p>KA</p>
  
  <p>UPDATE: <a href="http://kaiseradvisor.blogspot.com/2009/07/sometimes-lamp-stack-is-appropriate-for.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Some times the LAMP Stack is Appropriate for Enterprise Use: Externally-Facing Blogs</a></p>