

Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Kali Linux both compete in the operating system category. While RHEL holds the upper hand due to its enterprise support and stability, Kali Linux is favored for its comprehensive suite of penetration testing tools.
Features: RHEL provides stability and enterprise-grade support, ensuring a rock-solid performance suitable for businesses with mission-critical applications. Its robust security and myriad of built-in tools, such as ReaR for disaster recovery, make it indispensable in enterprise environments. It integrates well with other Red Hat products, simplifying infrastructure management. Kali Linux stands out for its extensive library of pre-installed security assessment tools such as Nmap and Metasploit, tailored for penetration testing and security research. Its user-friendly interface supports learning and experimentation in cybersecurity.
Room for Improvement: RHEL could enhance its cloud integration features to streamline hybrid deployments, and potentially reduce system reboot requirements for updates to maintain uptime. Its user interface might prove challenging for administrators without Linux experience. Kali Linux's complexity can pose a challenge for beginners, highlighting the need for simplified interfaces or guided tutorials. Its reliance on community support can occasionally limit immediate assistance for users needing urgent help.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: RHEL excels in ease of deployment with its structured, robust support system, emphasizing continuity and uptime for enterprises. It offers graphical and command-line interface options, easing management across different user expertise levels. Kali Linux, while more complex, allows deep customization for security experts familiar with its environment, although its support model is predominantly community-driven.
Pricing and ROI: RHEL's subscription model, while requiring upfront investment, offers a significant return on investment through stability and comprehensive support for enterprise applications. In contrast, Kali Linux, being open-source, provides a cost-effective option for security professionals seeking powerful tools without acquisition costs. Its ROI is significant for cybersecurity specialists focused on penetration testing and security analysis.
Integrating Kali Linux with DevOps tools has resulted in reduced operational costs due to automated test cases, making it a worthwhile investment with significant returns by decreasing the attack surface area and the frequency of attack incidents.
If we had installed it on-premises or through other means, it would have incurred significant money and effort to create the VMs, deploy it on machines, and then delete and format it after use.
I have saved time by avoiding the lag I sometimes face on the TryHackMe in-built machine, and I have learned more efficiently.
A long lifecycle is key to having a good return on investment.
Being able to transform common manual tasks that previously took all day into processes that take an hour, half an hour, or even less, demonstrates clear value.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux has saved us time and increased productivity.
Since most of the tools and other things are community-based, the documentation and other community support are very good.
I was able to solve the problems I was experiencing.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) support is great, as they go beyond their duty to help resolve issues and provide solutions even for third-party software such as XRDP.
When we do contact customer service, they are generally very knowledgeable and well-versed in our size.
Usually, I send the information, and they have something for me within hours, sometimes even minutes.
You can use it on cloud, VPS, and on-premises.
I would describe Kali Linux's scalability as very scalable because I can deploy it on a range of different machines, whether that is my laptop or using maybe Raspberry Pi or Android.
Regarding the scalability of Kali Linux for my work and projects, whenever I was conducting brute force attacks and provided more than two or three million lines of payload, the system would freeze.
Many of our applications scale really well, with some having several hundreds of VMs, which we couldn't accomplish on Windows.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales very well with the growing needs of our company.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) handles increases in users, applications, or data smoothly, which is why we use it for all our projects, as it provides us with confidence.
Due to the huge user base that uses it, it is kept up to date regularly.
Kali Linux is stable for my use cases, though not the latest version.
Kali Linux is very stable for my needs.
It works consistently with minimal downtime and very few bugs or glitches.
It just works, and that's really the key factor; I can't remember the last time we had a system go down and had to restore it due to a bad patch.
We've not had a service outage with Red Hat in six years.
If real-time customized port scanning can be added, for example, instead of a default port such as 8080 or 443, if we can use a customized port such as 9876, that capability would be great.
I face significant challenges with Kali Linux regarding a major issue with the Grub loader becoming corrupted, which makes it very difficult to recover data.
If there were video courses attached to how to safely use it, especially for absolute beginners with no previous experience using Linux operating systems, I think that could be very useful.
Addressing these limitations would significantly enhance the operating system's flexibility and efficiency.
The built-in security features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux were insufficient for our needs, necessitating the implementation of supplementary security measures.
By providing pre-installed, native automation tools within the operating system, Red Hat would streamline processes and improve user efficiency.
Kali Linux is free software, an operating system that's available to download without any cost or licensing fees.
I simply create a VM, so there are no costs involved.
My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing for Kali Linux has been positive, as it operates under an open-source model.
It may be considered expensive compared to other solutions like CentOS or Ubuntu, which offer some of the same features without additional costs.
Its pricing has room for improvement because it's more expensive in the local market due to purchasing power parity in India.
Windows Servers base their cost on the number of users and have high licensing fees, while Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers free versions alongside its paid, supported versions.
Kali Linux has positively impacted my organization by improving efficiency in penetration testing; its open-source nature permits extensive customization and inclusion of numerous comprehensive pre-installed tools, contributing to a secure network environment with effective monitoring of network applications.
A unique and really helpful feature of Kali Linux, compared to other operating systems, is that many of the offensive security tools are already pre-configured and pre-installed.
Kali Linux positively impacts my organization by allowing us to monitor changes and security posture for the company.
It also has strong security features, is OIS and FIPS certified, and has built-in Linux security configurations.
There is also no downtime.
The operating system allows for the simple addition of kernels, modules, and other applications, making it highly adaptable to various needs.
| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) | 7.6% |
| Kali Linux | 3.2% |
| Other | 89.2% |

| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 10 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 2 |
| Large Enterprise | 16 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 87 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 49 |
| Large Enterprise | 266 |
Kali Linux is widely used by organizations for penetration testing, vulnerability assessments, web application security, network audits, ethical hacking, and open-source intelligence, providing extensive free features.
Organizations run Kali Linux in virtualized environments alongside other operating systems, employing tools for automated scans, malware identification, infrastructure testing, and application development or hosting. These users benefit from lower maintenance requirements and a smaller footprint. The toolset includes Nmap, SQLMap, Metasploit, and Hydra, ensuring effective security assessments. Its high scalability, performance, user-friendly interface, and extensive documentation enhance the platform's usability. Known for stability, flexibility, and virus resistance, Kali Linux supports web security, troubleshooting, and configuration tasks comprehensively.
What are the most important features of Kali Linux?
What benefits and ROI should users look for in reviews?
Kali Linux can support industries in improving security through stable and flexible environments that resist viruses and provide extensive documentation. Users employ it for web security, troubleshooting, and configuring capabilities. Necessary improvements include automation, user-friendliness, and integrating AI and blockchain. Enhancements in security features, faster installations, and better learning tools are also essential. Machine learning integration and non-enterprise user functionalities can address current limitations.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers stability, security, and support for mission-critical applications with robust tools and scalable architecture, ideal for diverse environments and hybrid cloud compatibility.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux provides organizations with a reliable platform ideal for high-performance computing and virtualization. Known for its robust security and seamless network administration, it integrates well with OpenShift and Ansible, ensuring adaptability and scalability. Despite challenges with documentation, upgrade complexity, and cost, RHEL remains a formidable choice thanks to its comprehensive documentation and extensive community support.
What are the key features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux?
What benefits should users look for when evaluating Red Hat Enterprise Linux?
Organizations across industries like financial services, telecommunications, and application hosting implement Red Hat Enterprise Linux for server and application management. Its compatibility with technologies such as SAP, Oracle, and Ansible supports functions including web, database, and enterprise solutions, ensuring stable and secure performance in high-pressure environments.
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