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Migrating to an upgraded operating system at the Federal Aviation Administration may mean going with a Linux distribution instead of Microsoft's Windows Vista. Hefty hardware specs that are beyond what the FAA provides to its desktop users could put the airbrakes on any plans to rollout the new OS at the agency. A minimum 1GB RAM requirement, faster CPUs, and advanced graphics cards are among the negatives on Vista's side.

A report on EE Times cited an internal FAA memo, obtained by a sister publication, that Vista's requirements go beyond the FAA's typical desktop configuration.

In March, FAA CIO Dave Bowen put forth the possibility of recommending an alternative to a Vista upgrade path. The report said the FAA could consider migrating people to Linux desktops running Google Apps as an option.

The memo contained a money quote about Microsoft's likely sales efforts: "We anticipate that this introduction will be accompanied by significant advertising hype and salesperson activity." The FAA could be just the first of many federal agencies that publicly balk at a potentially expensive Vista upgrade.