Career Boost: Why FreeBSD Experts Choose to Have Careers at Mobica

Introduction

Welcome to the next chapter of our Career Boost blog series, in this post we explore a topic for FreeBSD enthusiasts and users. If you're on the hunt for a company that appreciates your expertise and champions open-source contributions, then Mobica might be your destination.

Let's navigate the realms of EuroBSDCon, FreeBSD, and the dynamic offerings of Mobica for tech experts eager to level up their careers.

At Mobica, we're not just aware of FreeBSD's immense potential, we're active contributors to its evolution. This makes us a compelling hub for FreeBSD users who are passionate about their craft. Buckle up for an exciting journey with us!

But what is FreeBSD

For those who often compare the two, let's get one thing straight — FreeBSD is not Linux. Sure, they often get pitted against each other, but let's toss those comparisons aside for now.

So, what FreeBSD actually is? FreeBSD is an open-source, complete operating system with a strong community of contributors, which are actively developing and maintaining its features. FreeBSD is derived from Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD), the version of Unix developed at the University of California. It focuses on features, speed and stability and it's a perfect solution for a variety of applications from simple web, and mail hosting to complex embedded systems. [1]

FreeBSD is known for being very secure. The dedicated team of developers work to find and resolve vulnerabilities as soon as possible. It is also a reliable and stable system, able to run for a long time without rebooting or crashing. FreeBSD contributors put pressure on the system’s performance, as it is paramount for the system to handle heavy workloads with no issues. It also has support for a wide range of network protocols, packet filtering and routing tools. FreeBSD can be run on many different hardware platforms and architectures like ARM, PowerPC or MIPS. [1]

Many companies use FreeBSD for their mission-critical applications, including Netflix in its content delivery network (CDN), WhatsApp for its backend servers, NetApp in some of its storage appliances or Juniper Networks in many of its routers and switches. The list of popular FreeBSD users is a lot longer. [3]

FreeBSD license

FreeBSD has a BSD License, an open-source license that's all about user freedom! Want to tweak and share the software? Go for it! And no, you don't have to release your modified source code. The only requirement is to include information about the original code authors and the license content in the product. In fact, this means that users are permitted to use FreeBSD code as a foundation for any other software without the necessity of paying a fee or releasing modified source code. [1]

EuroBSDCon 2022

In general, EuroBSDCon is the most popular European convention related to BSD operating systems. It's a buzzing hub for FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD enthusiasts and more. Here, developers, users, and fans alike connect, swap insights, and totally revel in their shared passion. The vibe? Nothing short of electric!

Our Involvement in the Community

In September of 2022, Mobica sent representatives to EuroBSDCon, which was hosted in Vienna. We got to mingle with the brightest minds from the FreeBSD world while expanding our knowledge of the FreeBSD operating system. Plus, exploring the breathtaking beauty of Vienna was an absolute treat!

At Mobica, we are stoked about the BSD community — it's not just about contributing, but about being a real part of the action. Just look at EuroBSDCon 2022! We shared, and soaked up new ideas, fueling personal and professional growth for Mobicans involved in the BSD community.

EuroBSDCon 2022 was an exciting, three-day whirlwind of insights, split into three simultaneous tracks. You had the freedom to pick the talks that fired you up the most! Whether you're a developer, contributor keen on BSD technical nitty-gritty, or an admin looking to ramp up BSD use in a production environment, this event was an absolute goldmine of info! If you are interested in a detailed conference plan, find it on the official EuroBSDCon website [3].

The FreeBSD community gathers passionate people from all around the world. It is a network of professional and amateur developers, as well as users and administrators volunteers. The community is active on mailing lists and IRC channels (yes, it’s still in use), providing their support to anyone who needs it.

Quotes & Insights From a FreeBSD Power User

Does Mobica have FreeBSD contributors? Certainly, yes. We have engineers, who still participate in FreeBSD development or did it in the past. It's Krzysztof Zdziarski, Michał Gulbicki and Julian Grajkowski. Their work relates to Intel QuickAssist Technology in-tree driver enablement. QuickAssist Technology is a hardware accelerator designed to make cryptography and compression faster and more effective [2].

Michał Gulbicki, a Mobican involved in FreeBSD development projects said:

While the decision to upstream the driver was suggested by the customers, as a team, we had been considering this for quite some time. It didn't happen without hard decisions that we had to make by ourselves, such as whether to upstream the full version of the driver - available only through our internal API or a stripped-down version supporting only a limited set of algorithms and make them available through a unified cryptographic interface. Due to the fact that it is widely used by other kernel subsystems and various userland applications, 

e.g. OpenSSL we felt a sense of responsibility on our shoulders. Finally, we decided to take the risk and chose the more ambitious option by integrating the full version with OCF (Open Crypto Framework). It cost us more time, and it could have easily led to drawbacks and missed deadlines. However, the risk paid off. Shortly after integrating the first version with the kernel, customers started asking about features such as the OCF-accessible driver in a virtual environment. Thanks to the earlier risk we took, we were able to deliver the functionality with almost minimal effort.

The FBSD community itself welcomed us quite warmly. We received valuable feedback during the review process, which helped us better understand community principles. During the conference, we had the opportunity to meet personally the people responsible for the direction in which the FBSD is heading, with whom we had been working for some time.

What positively surprised me was that it turned out to be not only a place for enthusiasts of a niche OS but also a venue where giants like Netflix presented their experiences with FBSD and shared the details of fighting for performance.

There were also some suggestions regarding potential customers for the product we are working on, which indicates that the conference itself has not only technical but also business potential.

The FreeBSD community organises several events throughout the year and the EuroBSDCon is one of them. The other, probably most popular is BSDCan, hosted in Canada. There were also smaller, local events organised in the past such as BSD Hackathons and BSD Projects Days.

Mobica is involved in many open-source activities, mainly on behalf of our clients but also on our own initiative. We’ve been known for contributing also to other operating systems, such as mbed-os or two open-source software from Khronos Group. In particular, the embedded domain, which focuses on selling hardware has grown significantly in the open-source world The software is provided free of charge and with ease of modification as an addition to the hardware platform, being the main commercial product.

Why You Should Consider a Career At Mobica

Mobica is a global software services company with a diverse range of projects. We value the skills and passion of FreeBSD enthusiasts, and we have a collaborative work environment that supports growth and learning. Here, you will not just be part of the company, but you will be part of a thriving open-source community.

Expand Your Skills 

Mobica provides an opportunity for software engineers to expand their capabilities. As a FreeBSD expert, you can broaden your knowledge base and skill set by working on diverse projects.

Work with Visionaries 

Mobica believes in the visionaries. By joining the team, you will have the chance to work with talented engineers who are building software that brings the physical and digital worlds together from all over the world.

Contribute to Pioneering Projects 

Mobica is involved in creating pioneering journeys for customers. We’ve been recognised as one of the Top 20 Most Promising Semiconductor Technology Solutions Providers by CIO Review Magazine. 

Career Growth 

With its diverse range of services and projects, Mobica offers ample opportunities for career growth and advancement.

In conclusion, a career at Mobica is more than just a job. It's an opportunity to be part of a company that is at the forefront of technological innovation. Whether you're a FreeBSD expert or a software developer looking for a new challenge, Mobica offers a career path that is rewarding, fulfilling, and full of opportunities for growth.

Join us today and let's shape the future of technology!

Get started with Mobica today!

References:

[1] https://freebsd.org – FreeBSD official website,

[2] https://01.org – Intel open-source projects,

[3] https://2022.eurobsdcon.org – Official EuroBSDCon in Vienna website,

[4] List of products based on FreeBSD – Wikipedia.