Microsoft and Novell announced that Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, became the latest customer to take advantage of the benefits of the new collaboration on interoperability between Microsoft Windows and Linux. The agreement has Microsoft delivering SUSE Linux Enterprise Server subscription certificates to Wal-Mart for use in Wal-Mart's IT infrastructure. The engagement among the three companies opens a Microsoft and Novell announced that Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, became the latest customer to take advantage of the benefits of the new collaboration on interoperability between Microsoft Windows and Linux.The agreement has Microsoft delivering SUSE Linux Enterprise Server subscription certificates to Wal-Mart for use in Wal-Mart’s IT infrastructure. The engagement among the three companies opens a host of other potential opportunities for both Microsoft and Novell to provide Wal-Mart with additional software resources and support, building on future joint research and developments in virtualization and interoperability. “Customers tell us every day that they need to operate a cost-effective IT organization and leverage the most they can out of their investments,” said Ron Hovsepian, president and CEO of Novell. “Through our relationship with Microsoft, we’ve created new opportunities for enterprise interoperability and virtualization that ultimately result in real savings for our customers. We are delighted that Wal-Mart has chosen SUSE Linux Enterprise, and we look forward to collaborating with them for many years.” By working together with Microsoft and Novell, Wal-Mart gains the ability to manage Windows and Linux by extending its existing Microsoft management tool set and authentication platform: Systems Management Server, Active Directory and Microsoft Operations Manager. Wal-Mart can also move to lower-cost commodity server hardware while simultaneously improving the customer experience. Software Development