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Windows Server vs openSUSE Leap comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

openSUSE Leap
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
12th
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Windows Server
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
5th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
194
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of openSUSE Leap is 6.3%, up from 5.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Windows Server is 9.6%, up from 8.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

NK
Provides BTRFS file system, which allows you to take snapshots
I only use the tool for testing purposes on my team, but multiple people use it. We don't make a team effort to install the solution. When it comes to maintenance, we ask our company to buy SUSE Linux Enterprise. My team consists of 13 people. We are currently integrating the solution with Ansible to do some coding. Although not a full-fledged automation, we are integrating the solution with Ansible and executing a couple of playbooks connected to openSUSE Leap. I would recommend the solution to other users looking for an open-source solution. Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.
Jai Prakash Sharma - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient Management Achieved with Internal Resources and Reliable Technical Support
Maintenance of Windows Server varies by organization, but for us, it's not very difficult as we have in-house resources managing these tasks. However, it can become a bit tricky when we want to see a collated view of our security posture. Regarding AI integrations with Windows Server, Copilot adoption is progressing, though I have only experienced it on endpoints and not on the server side. We operate significant workloads on AI, but we consume those primarily on Linux rather than Windows Server. I don't have much experience regarding integration capabilities in Windows Server for AI workloads, so I may not be the right person to provide insights on that. Overall, I am quite happy with my experience using Windows Server. I don't have many constraints or concerns, so I would rate it eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"openSUSE Leap has helped me with using containers in Podman."
"Stable - it just runs without the necessity to reboot."
"The solution is easy for me to use because the backend is derived from FreeBSD and this is something I have been using for over 20 years."
"The solution's most valuable feature is the BTRFS file system, which allows you to take snapshots."
"The most valuable feature by far has been the virtualization capabilities of the operating system."
"The solution is very stable after it is configured. It is hard to have a panel slow, a problem, misconfiguration, or any kind of loss function."
"I find Windows Server valuable for its flexibility and user-friendly interface."
"The performance of Windows Server is good."
"We have been using this solution for a long time and it has been stable."
"The solution is easy to use."
"The stability of the Windows Server is good."
"The features that I have found most valuable are that it is quick with an easy installation and has good troubleshooting compared to Linux or any other operating system."
"The most valuable feature of Windows Server is the ease of use and the applications that are available."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is the ESRP that is used with the Windows Platform."
 

Cons

"There is room for improvement in the console."
"I would like openSUSE Leap to have better link integration with Windows."
"Like most Linux-based operating systems, the biggest challenge Leap faces is the GUI."
"It would be helpful if we could easily switch from openSUSE Leap for testing to SUSE Linux Enterprise for production."
"Somehow the change from OS12.x via 13.x to Leap was a bit bumpy and some old issues seemed to reappear."
"In the future, the Active Directory could improve."
"The product's user interface upgrades and firewall services need improvement."
"The cost to use the solution is quite high."
"The optimization of the scalability could improve."
"Security and vulnerabilities could improve."
"The solution could be more secure."
"The solution could improve by being more user-friendly."
"The product has certain shortcomings related to security capability in the area of incident response, making it the tool's component where improvements are required."
"A typical user will find implementing it on their own difficult."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"openSUSE Leap is an open-source solution that is free of cost."
"This is an open-source operating system that can be used free of charge."
"The cost of this solution was reasonable and it was within our budget."
"The solution is open-source."
"One of the problems with Microsoft is the price of licensing, and volume licensing for educational systems is a great option to bequeath licensing for small businesses."
"It is an expensive solution."
"We use only the license versions of Windows Server."
"Licensing fees are paid on a yearly basis."
"Our customers prefer lifetime licenses."
"We use a perpetual license for Windows Server, which is expensive."
"The price is exorbitant for the value one gets with the solution."
"For the on-prem version, you need to go for a perpetual license. If I am planning to run ten operating systems, I will buy a pack of ten licenses, which will be cost-effective for me."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
17%
Computer Software Company
15%
Educational Organization
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Government
9%
University
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with openSUSE Leap?
Both openSUSE Leap and the SUSE Enterprise version use the same kernel. Suppose I have a lower environment where I can run openSUSE to test all my products. It would be helpful if I could easily sw...
What is your primary use case for openSUSE Leap?
I use openSUSE Leap for testing purposes. Before officially using any server in our office, we test it using the solution. My office usually uses production servers on the SUSE Linux enterprise ver...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for openSUSE Leap?
openSUSE Leap is an open-source solution that is free of cost.
What needs improvement with Windows Server?
I don't have experience with Windows Server containers and Kubernetes for deploying cloud-native applications. I cannot provide specific improvements for Windows Server because I don't have extensi...
What is your primary use case for Windows Server?
At the office, the main use case for Windows Server involves different functions, for example, file server or firewall and the IIS server, Microsoft Internet Server, Internet Information Services. ...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Rakuten, Rackspace, Tyco
Find out what your peers are saying about Windows Server vs. openSUSE Leap and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.