OpenStack, a notoriously hard-to-deploy, loosely assembled set of code modules that aim to help companies create private clouds, is now available in a customized distribution from Cisco Systems, a contributor to the open source code project. Cisco claims this version is easier to deploy and more reliable once up and running.

That may give OpenStack a better chance of getting adopted by companies that want to build a private cloud. Several options exist, but OpenStack has attracted broad support as the likeliest project to produce an alternative to VMware's vCloud Director and vCloud Suite.

The Cisco move is an attempt to serve its own customers and counteract a critical assessment by Gartner Analyst Lydia Leong, who on Sept. 14, put out a report that said OpenStack "is an early-stage project whose future, though promising, is still uncertain."