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Oracle Linux vs Oracle Solaris 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
7.7
Oracle Linux enhances efficiency with cost savings, zero downtime, reliable support, and strong integration, offering significant ROI benefits.
Sentiment score
8.2
Oracle Solaris is praised for efficiency, integration, performance, and low maintenance, despite cost variability and complex ROI assessment.
Everything from Oracle tools to applications is well integrated within Oracle Linux.
Our team is comfortable using Oracle Linux as it integrates well with Oracle tools, making everything work seamlessly.
Oracle Linux contributed to reducing our operational costs by about ten percent by saving us from the operating system and license costs we would have had to pay Microsoft.
In terms of ROI, there have been performance improvements because Oracle Solaris is lighter.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.2
Oracle Linux users appreciate expert support with comprehensive resources, though concerns about response time and cost persist.
Sentiment score
6.0
Oracle Solaris customer service is available 24/7, reliable, knowledgeable, but sometimes slow; improvements in speed and expertise needed.
Not all support engineers at Oracle are the same, so sometimes I experience good support that resolves issues quickly, while other times, it loops.
Oracle's technical support is excellent.
It is not as helpful or friendly as their application support.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Oracle Linux efficiently scales for diverse workloads, excelling in clusters or cloud setups, despite occasional hardware compatibility lags.
Sentiment score
8.1
Oracle Solaris offers exceptional scalability and performance, especially with SPARC processors, supporting smooth hardware transitions and virtualization.
It handles device performance well, automatically managing any issues that arise.
Oracle should make the process faster, as we sometimes have to use a previous processor model to ensure compatibility.
New processor models sometimes lack immediate compatibility with Oracle Linux, requiring the use of previous models until support is available.
Regarding vertical scalability, Oracle Solaris is probably one of the most scalable operating systems in the industry.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
Oracle Linux is praised for stability, reliability, and integration with Oracle products, providing minimal downtime and a dependable experience.
Sentiment score
8.3
Oracle Solaris is renowned for its unparalleled stability, minimal downtime, and solid performance, earning high praise from users.
Testing determines stability, as continuous Linux use and installations reveal more bugs.
Oracle Linux is very stable.
Our environment is locally deployed, and there are no performance issues or latency problems.
 

Room For Improvement

Oracle Linux users seek enhanced reporting, compatibility, security, frequent updates, improved UI, and better training, pricing, and support.
Oracle Solaris needs improvements in compatibility, user experience, training, marketing, and performance for better adoption and usability.
Having a user interface would make tasks easier, saving time by avoiding the need to remember command-line instructions.
There are significant limitations as we are not able to customize the system, and we are forced to use standard features which are not suitable for our business.
Oracle Linux's outage management can be improved to better handle outages.
Oracle Solaris needs to improve its compatibility with office tools like Excel.
 

Setup Cost

Oracle Linux provides cost-effective open-source solutions with lower support costs compared to Red Hat, starting at $500 annually.
Oracle Solaris offers performance and security, though licensing costs and complexities may be high compared to Linux alternatives.
While ERP might be expensive, Oracle Linux and KVMs are not on the higher side.
The cost of Microsoft OS is pretty high, and switching to Oracle Linux, which is free, reduced our costs by about 20% to 25%.
Oracle Linux is affordable.
I find the pricing of Oracle Solaris to be affordable compared to competitors like Windows.
 

Valuable Features

Oracle Linux offers performance, compatibility, cost-effectiveness, and comprehensive support, ideal for enterprises using Oracle applications.
Oracle Solaris excels in virtualization, security, and stability, with robust features making it ideal for critical applications.
Since it's from the same vendor as Oracle applications, it's easier to manage issues, making not just the solution cost-effective but also streamlined in management.
Oracle Linux offers an unbreakable system.
Oracle Linux has American Standard levels of security, which I consider to be quite good.
The operating system is lightweight, which makes it easier to use on an average computer compared to systems like Windows.
 

Categories and Ranking

Oracle Linux
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
3rd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
119
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Oracle Solaris
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
51
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 Oracle Linux is 8.4%, down from 15.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Solaris is 2.0%, down from 3.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

Thomas Waltair - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides outstanding performance and resource savings with effective customer service
The solution works closely with the operating system kernel, which gives better performance in terms of multi-threading and a distributed database. We work based on Oracle specifications, and whenever there are critical patches and vulnerability tests, we update with the latest security patches. The collaboration with Oracle WebLogic and other Oracle tools enhances performance as well.
Peter Karlsson - PeerSpot reviewer
Advanced security and predictive features improve IT management capabilities
There can always be enhancements. The usability can be enhanced, and they need to enhance the web management. In Linux, you have the Cockpit that is fairly useful. The Oracle Solaris similar features are more cumbersome to use because they are designed for more advanced users, so the ease of use for novice system administrators might be something that should be improved. There are things with ZFS I would to see improved when it comes to device removal, the ability to shrink a Z-pool, and to be able to remove devices and restructure a Z-pool without having to rebuild it from scratch. There are other technical and feature functions that are a couple of layers deeper than what most people are looking for.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Educational Organization
8%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
University
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

How does Oracle Linux compare with Solaris?
When comparing Oracle Linux and Solaris, I believe that Linux is more secure and more flexible. It is also very suitable for enterprises that are already Oracle solution users. I found Linux to be ...
Which would you choose - Ubuntu Linux or Oracle Linux?
Ubunto Linux is a complete Linux operating system that is freely available with both community and professional support. This solution is suitable for both desktop and server use. It has a very app...
What do you like most about Oracle Solaris?
We use the solution as an internal operating system.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Solaris?
I find the pricing of Oracle Solaris to be affordable compared to competitors like Windows.
What needs improvement with Oracle Solaris?
Oracle Solaris needs to improve its compatibility with office tools like Excel.
 

Also Known As

Oracle Enterprise Linux
Solaris 11, Solaris
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

See here
Siemens, IVV
Find out what your peers are saying about Oracle Linux vs. Oracle Solaris and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.