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Brian Lovato - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Manager, System Engineering at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Top 5
May 12, 2026
Enterprise support and training have strengthened secure, long-term virtual machine operations
Pros and Cons
  • "RHEL helps solve our pain points by providing the benefit of having the Enterprise edition so we can get support when we need it, being able to get the repos and download the latest packages and security."
  • "I would like to see improvements in RHEL for closed environments, as it is not straightforward to go from RHEL 8 to RHEL 10 without a seamless upgrade."

What is our primary use case?

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) serves as the operating system for virtual machines that our applications run on. I use RHEL as an operating system, and overall it is a quality product.

I use Satellite in RHEL to be able to download the packages inside our network because it is a closed environment.

I have tried using the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Image Builder or system roles.

RHEL plays a role in my company's implementation of the Zero Trust model for Application and Workloads.

We do use Ansible, but not much.

We went from RHEL 7 to RHEL 8, and now I am looking to go to RHEL 10.

What is most valuable?

RHEL helps solve our pain points by providing the benefit of having the Enterprise edition so we can get support when we need it. The support is probably the biggest thing, being able to get the repos and download the latest packages and security.

Satellite in RHEL is a big benefit in navigating our security risks.

I have a dedicated team that supports our account with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). I email them questions, and they get me support really quickly.

The availability of training for people to find information and work through and solve problems with their online documentation is valuable.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see improvements in RHEL for closed environments, as it is not straightforward to go from RHEL 8 to RHEL 10 without a seamless upgrade.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using RHEL for the last 20 years.

Buyer's Guide
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
September 2026
Learn what your peers think about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: September 2026.
914,109 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I have not experienced any downtime or crashes with the stability and reliability of the platform.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability is smooth.

How are customer service and support?

I have a dedicated team that supports our account with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). I email them questions, and they get me support really quickly.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Prior to adopting RHEL, we were using proprietary solutions from vendors that addressed similar needs.

How was the initial setup?

The deployment experience with RHEL is straightforward.

What about the implementation team?

We have not used RHEL to do AI workloads as we are just starting that.

What was our ROI?

The biggest return on investment when using RHEL is the availability of training for people to find information and work through and solve problems with their online documentation.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing for RHEL is fine. I get an enterprise discount, so our pricing is quite good.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I did not consider switching to another solution.

What other advice do I have?

My experience with the upgrade was seamless with no issues.

It is straightforward to start up a new VM within minutes.

Somebody else manages that.

We use some playbooks. We do not really use Ansible too much, but there is a lot of information available.

I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a 10 overall. There is a cost factor to it, but you get what you pay for. I would recommend Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) over a lot of other open-source products. I would rate the overall experience a 10.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: May 12, 2026
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Tat Cheong Wong - PeerSpot reviewer
Consultant, Information Technology Quality Assurance at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Top 5
Nov 11, 2025
Has reduced downtime while supporting our web servers cost-effectively
Pros and Cons
  • "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has helped to mitigate downtime and lower risk, and my assessment of its built-in security features for simplifying risk reduction and maintaining compliance is a score of eight or nine, as everything is clearly stated and listed in the documents, so it's easy for us to follow."
  • "The issue we have is that it's not a fixed time that we need to patch, but when we patch, the system would just stop working."

What is our primary use case?

My main use case for it is that we just support the application.

What is most valuable?

In general, it benefits our organization because it's more cost-effective. We save money, that's it.

The main point it helps me solve is that it's just a web server.

What needs improvement?

I don't have specific feedback on what works well and what Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) needs to improve on.

I cannot think of any additional features that should be included in the next release.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for about eight years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I have not experienced any downtime, crashes, or performance issues.

I assess the stability and reliability of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

So far, so good with how Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales with the growing needs of my organization. Everything is supported.

I expand usage of it every year.

How are customer service and support?

I evaluate the customer service and technical support as very good.

On a scale of one to ten, I rate it a ten.

Every time we have an issue, someone is there to fix it and troubleshoot, which is why I say that.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

When I joined, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) was already selected, so that's what was there.

In my role, I have not considered other solutions in the past.

How was the initial setup?

I would describe my experience with deploying it as straightforward.

What about the implementation team?

We use Azure as our cloud provider.

What was our ROI?

I have not seen ROI with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).

I don't know the exact number, so that may be because I just am not in charge of that kind of thing.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

My experience with the pricing and the cost of licenses is that if you compare it to the different operating systems, it's a little bit cheaper. The support is also good as well.

What other advice do I have?

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has helped to mitigate downtime and lower risk.

My assessment of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)'s built-in security features for simplifying risk reduction and maintaining compliance is a score of eight or nine.

Everything is clearly stated and listed in the documents, so it's easy for us to follow, which is what could make it better.

Security requirements and considerations were important in choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in the cloud because we are banks, so we have a lot of security regulations to follow.

When it comes to managing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems for provisioning and patching, that's our wonderful part of the day, as we use it as well. The issue we have is that it's not a fixed time that we need to patch, but when we patch, the system would just stop working. This is not a direct issue from Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), but from the line.

I have been involved in some Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) system upgrades or migrations.

The upgrade migration was straightforward.

I can talk about it a little bit more by saying we just upgrade it, patch it, and reboot it. That's all.

My upgrading or migration plans for the same product are that whenever we have new items that we assess, most likely we will get it.

I assess the knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as good.

I don't need more from it; it's good.

My advice for other organizations considering Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is that they should take into account the cost and support, especially when talking to someone in a different segment or an old colleague.

I rate this product a ten overall.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
September 2026
Learn what your peers think about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: September 2026.
914,109 professionals have used our research since 2012.
reviewer2843001 - PeerSpot reviewer
Systems Engineer at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Top 20
May 18, 2026
Integrated automation has reduced downtime and accelerated secure VM delivery for our teams
Pros and Cons
  • "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has done an excellent job overall."
  • "The security portions of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) could be improved and made easier to work with."

What is our primary use case?

My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are for applications, primarily. We provide Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) to other teams because we are from the operations team and have infrastructure responsibilities. We provide Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) VMs for developers and other teams to run their applications on.

Before adopting Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), my company used many Windows VMs. From the time I have been working in the company, we have been a Linux shop with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) VMs, along with a few Windows VMs.

What is most valuable?

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve pain points because Linux in general is easy to work with. The automation is straightforward. Because we have an ecosystem of Red Hat OpenShift, Ansible, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), the integration flows naturally.

The features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that I prefer most are the security features, which are very useful. The domain join realm and SELinux are also excellent.

For navigating our security risks with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), we currently use SELinux for security. We do not use Lightspeed at this time. We have FirewallD and other services for security. For identity management, we have our own Kerberos agents that we use for identity purposes.

Satellite helps maintain our environment overall because we have integration with Ansible and the Ansible Automation Platform. When we need to create a new VM, we start with Satellite and have all the bootstrap processes integrated with Ansible. The VM then comes up automatically, and we provide it to customers or whoever wants to use it.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has helped me mitigate downtime and lower risks.

The capabilities of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that have assisted me with this are mainly the integration aspects, such as Satellite and the Ansible Automation Platform. Everything has helped us reduce downtime for customers and accelerate VM deployment.

What needs improvement?

The security portions of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) could be improved and made easier to work with. SELinux in general is not intuitive because customers and developers do not know how to work with the VM. This part could be more user-friendly.

In my company's implementation of the Zero Trust model, we have not yet implemented this with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Because we are from the operations team, there is another team that handles other responsibilities. We do not necessarily handle that aspect.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We have occasionally experienced downtime, crashes, or performance issues with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), but not frequently. Overall, it has been reliable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability-wise, the scaling process for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is smooth. We have scaled many applications and have not encountered any issues. The performance has been solid.

How are customer service and support?

I evaluate the customer service and technical support from Red Hat as very good. I have never had any issues with the technical support. I have created multiple tickets with the Red Hat team and they have been quick and effective at responding and fixing the issues. I would rate the customer service and technical support a nine out of ten.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

The advantages of having Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) instead of Windows servers are that the development process is easier. I think Windows is limiting. Linux in general provides more opportunity to try different approaches, work on different projects, and avoid being restricted to certain functionalities that are imposed on clients who use the operating system. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has done an excellent job overall.

How was the initial setup?

I would describe the experience of deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as straightforward. It is not complicated. We use Satellite to deploy the VMs and the process is very straightforward with minimal complexity.

What about the implementation team?

We have used the Ansible Automation Platform through a dedicated automation team who handles all the automation for us.

What was our ROI?

From a technical point of view, the biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is the integration aspect. Working with OpenShift and having VMs on it is very smooth. Even though some features are not intuitive, the integration is seamless.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

My company has not considered switching to another solution that does the same thing as Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). We are committed to continuing with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).

What other advice do I have?

I would assess the knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as very good. I believe there could be more information available. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in general is excellent, but counterparts such as OpenShift could improve with respect to documentation and the knowledge base.

We performed a major version upgrade of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) using the Leapp upgrade tool manually. Although the process has been automated, we have not used automation to upgrade many VMs. We successfully upgraded forty to fifty VMs from Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) version seven to eight and from eight to nine using the Leapp upgrade.

The advice I would give to other companies is that from the time of deployment until the customer uses the system, having a pipeline ready and integration prepared for every component makes it much easier to deploy and use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). I would rate this product an eight out of ten overall.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: May 18, 2026
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Andre Vaillancourt - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Devsecops Engineer, Chief Architect, Program Manager (Multiple Teams) Va Customer at a outsourcing company with 201-500 employees
Real User
Top 10
May 12, 2026
Secure automation has improved compliance and supports a zero trust model for hybrid workloads
Pros and Cons
  • "The stability and scalability of the platform are commendable, ensuring our systems can handle growth efficiently."
  • "Regarding improvements, I think RHEL could benefit from better user interface enhancements for future releases."

What is our primary use case?

My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) today include developing applications and managing server environments efficiently. I use Red Hat Satellite and Red Hat Lightspeed overall, which streamline our operations significantly.

What is most valuable?

RHEL helps me solve various pain points, such as ensuring system stability and security across our infrastructure. I particularly appreciate the advanced security features of RHEL the most, as they enhance our overall protection.

RHEL plays a crucial role in my company's implementation of the zero trust model by ensuring secure identity and authentication measures. Using Ansible Automation Platform has been a smooth experience overall, enabling better automation in our workflows.

I use features in RHEL such as identity management and Satellite, which help my company maintain compliance and security. The stability and scalability of the platform are commendable, ensuring our systems can handle growth efficiently.

What needs improvement?

Regarding improvements, I think RHEL could benefit from better user interface enhancements for future releases.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working in my current field for several years now and have gained valuable experience during this time.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

RHEL helps mitigate downtime and lower risks thanks to its robust design.

How are customer service and support?

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate the customer service and technical support as an eight, as they are responsive, but there is always room for improvement.

How was the initial setup?

I would describe the deployment process of RHEL as mostly straightforward, although some challenges may arise.

What was our ROI?

From my perspective, I have seen a return on investment using RHEL, primarily through improved efficiency and system reliability.

What other advice do I have?

My company is still working on artificial intelligence workloads, as we are in the early stages of exploring this technology. I would not say that RHEL has directly helped those customers yet, as we are still gathering data on effectiveness.

Regarding the knowledge base offered by RHEL, I find it very useful and assess it highly due to its comprehensive information. I do not specifically handle insights on pricing, setup costs, or licensing, as that is managed by another department in my company.

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate RHEL overall as a nine. I advise other companies to thoroughly assess their needs before implementation.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Other
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partners
Last updated: May 12, 2026
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Hunaid Vekariya - PeerSpot reviewer
Site Reliability Engineer Software Labs at IBM
Real User
Top 20
Jan 21, 2026
Strong security and automation have supported reliable hybrid deployments and growth
Pros and Cons
  • "The knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is excellent; the documentation is fantastic and is supported by a large community that answers questions effectively."
  • "A disadvantage is that it is not open source, meaning limited flexibility, and the high cost associated with Red Hat compared to others."

What is our primary use case?

I work with both the cloud version and the on-premises version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). I have worked with Red Hat Cloud and Red Hat Enterprise on-premises.

For the cloud-based products, the main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) include deploying websites and complex software for customers, such as SaaS software on the cloud, specifically Red Hat Cloud.

What is most valuable?

When choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in the cloud, security requirements were not a consideration for me because Red Hat provides us with the SLA regarding security compliance. I am more than satisfied to use Red Hat Cloud for security purposes, while I manage some other forms of security, such as my own keys and access in Red Hat Linux systems.

I really appreciate the zero trust networking that Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has, and it also provides the WAF, along with certified images from Red Hat. For my current work on containers, Red Hat provides certified images that minimize vulnerabilities of CVEs, improving security significantly.

Although I do not have much knowledge about virtualization technology, I can say that for the hybrid cloud on OpenShift with the operators provided by Red Hat, the ready-to-use operators take care of underlying security, patching, and updates, so I do not have to handle monitoring or security myself.

Security is highlighted as an advantage across various aspects, such as the zero trust networking feature and the availability of certified images, which are instrumental in minimizing vulnerabilities and enhancing security.

What needs improvement?

While there are good aspects, I would appreciate improvements in the command-line interface (CLI). Red Hat could do more on the CLI side instead of focusing so much on UI development.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for around five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Regarding stability, I have not experienced performance issues, crashes, or downtimes with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL); any problems usually arise from my applications, not from the Linux system.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is definitely scalable.

Whether I have expanded the usage of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) depends on the business requirements, as RHEL comes with a cost that my company can afford because IBM owns Red Hat, so everything scales on RHEL.

How are customer service and support?

Regarding my experience with Red Hat's technical support team, I find that they come very quickly with answers. However, sometimes the first person who responds might be a technical support agent without in-depth knowledge, so for more complex issues, a specialized engineer comes to the rescue, depending on the criticality of the subject, especially if it is production or a staging environment. They answer according to the SLA and support terms.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Determining whether Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is cost-effective depends entirely on the business. If your business faces compromises leading to significant losses, then investing in Red Hat Enterprise is truly necessary. However, if your business is small or medium-sized, you can manage with the free versions.

How was the initial setup?

Regarding the deployment aspect, my experience has been straightforward because it is all automated with Ansible; all I need to do is provide an IP address, and it takes care of all the variables and boots up automatically.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Regarding the pricing, setup costs, and licensing costs of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I have heard that the licensing cost is significant compared to free alternatives such as CentOS or AlmaLinux, which are managed by Red Hat. I previously used CentOS, which is free, but I had to manage everything, including security, patching, reboots, and storage.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

The key differences between Red Hat and other Linux technologies I have used include the advantages of excellent technical support, good documentation, and a large community for problem-solving. A disadvantage is that it is not open source, meaning limited flexibility, and the high cost associated with Red Hat compared to others.

What other advice do I have?

I would advise other organizations considering Red Hat to start using it as their applications grow larger, rather than waiting for their business to become huge, as delays can lead to complications.

Currently, I am working on bare-metal services where I install Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Using AWS for Red Hat is indeed a good option, as you can get the image directly from AWS with a subscription cost per hour for Red Hat licensing.

Red Hat helps keep applications operational because it provides built-in monitoring tools that offer a good overview of all running services, including built-in agents that come with the Red Hat subscription to identify potential breakouts. Regarding reducing risks, Red Hat also provides secure images that indicate the latest security patches available worldwide.

The knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is excellent; the documentation is fantastic and is supported by a large community that answers questions effectively.

When comparing the business value of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) to other Linux distributions, I find that RHEL is more stringent with its security, requiring users to be careful not to trespass, whereas other Linux systems do not enforce such strict security measures, and users must manage security themselves.

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) overall as a product and solution at eight, possibly eight and a half.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: Jan 21, 2026
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Sr Software engineer at a consultancy with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Top 20
Oct 5, 2025
Ease of managing workloads and saving time with effective infrastructure automation
Pros and Cons
  • "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has positively impacted our organization because all of our enterprise applications run on Red Hat RHEL only, which is the enterprise version, and for our application runs and application connections, we use Red Hat, which is very helpful for managing our entire application."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for our workloads, DevOps and SRE workloads, to manage our application and CI/CD pipeline runs.

    We use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in our DevOps and SRE workloads for DevOps and CI/CD pipeline runs and also for managing our infrastructure.

    We mostly use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) to automate our infrastructure, and we use it to automate our image cataloging and all those things.

    What is most valuable?

    The best features Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) offers are that it is very easy to use, and the commanding is also straightforward. It's easy to install, easy to configure, and easy to manage all aspects.

    When we need to install or upgrade our version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), we have straightforward commands. Using the DNF command, we execute the commands. When we upgrade the OS version, it is without downtime. We can run that in minimal time.

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has positively impacted our organization because all of our enterprise applications run on Red Hat RHEL only, which is the enterprise version. For our application runs and application connections, we use Red Hat, which is very helpful for managing our entire application.

    We have very minimal downtime, which is beneficial for us. We can improvise our application connectivity and interconnection. Everything performs exceptionally well.

    What needs improvement?

    As of now, there are no notable things to advise, from my understanding. As per customer interaction, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) listens, every word is counted, and it is improved. At this point, everything performs as expected.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for almost five-plus years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is always stable, and I definitely recommend choosing RHEL.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    In terms of scalability, reliability, and application upgradation, I am satisfied with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).

    How are customer service and support?

    The customer support is very interactive and provides quick responses. It is very helpful for us to improve our system.

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

    How was the initial setup?

    When we need to install or upgrade our version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), we have straightforward commands. Using the DNF command, we execute the commands.

    What was our ROI?

    In terms of investment, we have saved both time and money.

    In terms of hourly and weekly savings, we save almost six to seven hours per week with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). This is based on user experience, deployment, configuration, and high availability perspectives.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    At the enterprise level, the pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is as expected. It's quite standard - not very high, not very low. It's appropriate because the support is provided within and depends on our SLO and SLA.

    What other advice do I have?

    Everything is set as expected, which is quite good. We are also expecting the same kind of support from Red Hat. All aspects look good.

    On a scale of 1-10, I rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a 9.5.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Public Cloud

    If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
    PeerSpot user
    Server administrator at Northrop Grumman
    Real User
    Top 20
    May 22, 2025
    Empowers collaboration through streamlined integration and extensive documentation
    Pros and Cons
    • "The GUI is really interactive, and it's really easy to build from scratch."
    • "I rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a ten out of ten."
    • "We have many Windows users that use Outlook and Skype or Teams to collaborate on our network. They want Linux desktops due to the fact that they want to use containers. Their biggest complaint is, 'I need two workstations to do my container work and one to collaborate.'"

    What is our primary use case?

    My main use case for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is hosting applications.

    How has it helped my organization?

    My company benefits from using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) by having more secure workstations and inviting more beginner users.

    What is most valuable?

    The feature of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that I appreciate the most is the new Boot C that's coming out. That's been pretty interesting. 

    RHEL helps me solve the pain point of feeling disconnected from the community. I've been feeling more involved and considered. Previously, a lot of documentation was for connected instances, and I work for an air-gapped network. Now I appreciate seeing that the documentation actually has disconnected settings. It's neat to be included in there. 

    I appreciate the documentation. The knowledge bases are pretty good. Usually, when I have an issue and find a Red Hat knowledge base, it addresses the issue.

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)'s built-in security features are really well designed for simplifying risk reduction and maintaining compliance. I see many new technologies coming out are geared toward security or enhancing security. It's neat that it's continuing to evolve.

    My upgrade or migration plans to stay current with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) involve leaning on our unclassified environment before we can upgrade, as I'm in a disconnected network. As soon as we're able to, I'm trying to upgrade as often as we can. It's because I want to utilize all the new tools coming out in 9.6 and now 10. We just got to RHEL 8, and I'm already ready to leap RHEL 8 to get the newest features.

    What needs improvement?

    Improving Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) can be tough, however, a significant area is collaboration tools. We have many Windows users that use Outlook and Skype or Teams to collaborate on our network. They want Linux desktops due to the fact that they want to use containers. Their biggest complaint is, 'I need two workstations to do my container work and one to collaborate.' If somehow RHEL can start introducing or collaborating with Teams and Outlook so their users can work with their Windows peers, that would be great. But I don't think that's available yet.

    Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, there needs to be more of an education piece to it. For instance, when purchasing 10 or 100 node licenses, they could suggest, 'We also offer this 1,000 node license instead, and it'll save you specific amounts.' Just more education on their offerings would be helpful, because usually, we're coming out with the requirements, and then they just provide it to us. They could inform us about saving by bundling it differently or using alternative approaches.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I've been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) since 2012, which is 13 years now.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    The stability and reliability of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) have been pretty good. We haven't had any issues, major crashes, or anything similar.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The scalability of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) platform has been able to meet my company needs for servers. The workstations are a little difficult, but overall it meets our requirements.

    How are customer service and support?

    Regarding customer service and technical support of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I really enjoy it. 

    With many other vendors, I have problems with support and back and forth, getting escalated, routed all over the place. Usually, when a case gets assigned to someone from Red Hat, it's handled in a timely fashion, and it's precise. There's no guessing or reading from scripts. It's direct to the point.

    I would rate the customer service and technical support of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) an eight and a half to nine. The only reason for not giving a perfect score is that there could be more knowledge base articles or documents. There's not always a Red Hat instance for what I'm looking for, however, when there is one, it's always accurate.

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    Before implementing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I used CentOS and Fedora. The main difference between Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and those prior solutions is the support.

    How was the initial setup?

    I would describe the experience of deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as pretty simple and straightforward. The GUI is really interactive, and it's really easy to build from scratch.

    What was our ROI?

    The biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), from a technical point of view, is that it reduces man-hours. 

    With Ansible, it definitely reduces man-hours in patching or being able to configure or manage systems across the country with hundreds of systems. The approximate reduction of man-hours that RHEL provides is in the hundreds. I couldn't imagine administering a couple of hundred servers one by one. 

    We have to implement quarterly security checks and remediations that come out in bunches of 30 at a time. Having to do that on each box would take forever. I could probably only do four or five a day with our few hundred servers.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We did not consider any other solutions while using RHEL.

    What other advice do I have?

    I have been involved in migrations or upgrades of RHEL, and I just completed a leap upgrade from RHEL 7 to RHEL 8. We manage our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems when it comes to provisioning and patching by using templates from VMware to deploy our RHEL boxes, and for patching, we use Red Hat Satellite to provide the patches. We also use Ansible platform to run the plays, to kick off the updates and the reboots.

    I rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a ten out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises

    If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

    Other
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Sistem Yönetmeni at Türkiye İş Bankası
    Real User
    Top 20
    May 13, 2026
    Automation has transformed our deployments and has improved security and operational efficiency
    Pros and Cons
    • "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has mitigated downtimes and lowered risks in our organization, especially with the latest features."
    • "I think the support should be more concerned about the new standards of technology."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for applications. Our use case involves its very easy deployment and usability, along with substantial support from the community and open source resources. We are looking forward to using much more OpenShift applications and Red Hat Open as well. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve pain points related to scalability, enabling us to deploy several servers in one.

    What is most valuable?

    The AI and automation features such as Ansible and Ansible Tower stand out to me. We build streams in our automation features, using playbooks in Ansible for patching the application servers in a timely manner. We are also using automations for fault detections and fixing configurations, as well as building pipelines to deploy new features such as Windows 2019.

    The open source environment has positively impacted our organization due to the package feature with the satellite, allowing us to download open source codes, which has been very flexible, resulting in enormous savings. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has mitigated downtimes and lowered risks in our organization, especially with the latest features.

    What needs improvement?

    I would like to see smoother integration with the AI components that would use other Red Hat products such as OpenShift and Ansible in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). I think the support should be more concerned about the new standards of technology. Customer support could be a little bit better, but it is definitely very good overall.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been working for 26 years in the application management team.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is definitely stable, and we are very happy about it.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)'s scalability is very well configured and very straightforward.

    How are customer service and support?

    Although my team is not responsible for patching and maintaining Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems, I hear from my colleagues that they are very satisfied with the features, stating that it is easy to maintain the Linux environment and flexible. I have a Red Hat account and look on the internet for knowledge bases.

    Since I am not responsible for managing the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) hardware in our environment, I cannot give a detailed explanation of how I access the knowledge base. However, I research on the internet and with my account, I try to go into labs and find the appropriate knowledge base.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We used a different solution primarily for automation, which was the main reason for our switch.

    What was our ROI?

    We have saved costs, but I cannot provide specific metrics at this time.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    Since we are a big bank, the pricing, setup cost, and licensing were through an end-user master agreement, which made us really happy because it was beneficial for both sides.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We had some options, but we were very enthusiastic about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), so we chose it.

    What other advice do I have?

    We navigate our security risks using features such as identity management, which we fall in love with more every day because it is really key to organizing security. The most important security feature for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that stands out to me includes the accessible accounts groups.

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is part of an open-source community, so I advise others to develop their own solutions within the environment and community while still being supported and free of enhancements. I would rate this product a 9 out of 10.

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    Last updated: May 13, 2026
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    reviewer2840514 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Cloud Systems Engineer at a real estate/law firm with 10,001+ employees
    Real User
    Top 20
    May 13, 2026
    Automation has reduced patching time by half and manages cloud security risks efficiently
    Pros and Cons
    • "From a technical point of view, the biggest return on investment when using RHEL is the time spent in work man-hours, as it has reduced our patching time by a very large amount in the Linux environment."
    • "I think RHEL could be made faster."

    What is our primary use case?

    My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are patching and automation.

    What is most valuable?

    The features of RHEL that I like the most are Satellite and Ansible, as those are the only ones I really work with so far.

    They benefit our company by providing solutions that are quicker and save money overall, which reduces time spent overall and saves us resources.

    I use Satellite for patch management of our Linux devices, including our Red Hat devices, which helps my company navigate security risks.

    What needs improvement?

    I think RHEL could be made faster.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for about a year.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    I have not experienced any downtime, crashes, or performance issues with RHEL, as everything runs smoothly, and we do not have many tickets regarding our RHEL products or RHEL VMs.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    RHEL scales well with the growing needs of our company, as anything we add automatically gets pulled into Satellite.

    How are customer service and support?

    I would rate the customer service and technical support a 10, because I have not used it much, but my coworkers who have opened tickets have not reported anything negative about their experience.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    Before adopting RHEL, we mainly built the operating systems ourselves with a mixture of different Linux operating systems. For patching, we were using Ivanti before that.

    The biggest difference between Ivanti and RHEL is that both have automation, but it is more seamless with Satellite, as it is owned by Red Hat and already integrated. We do not have to build out as many tasks and workflows inside Satellite, as it picks everything up and sends it out automatically.

    What was our ROI?

    From a technical point of view, the biggest return on investment when using RHEL is the time spent in work man-hours, as it has reduced our patching time by a very large amount in the Linux environment.

    I would estimate that the patching time has been lowered by about 50 percent.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    I have not considered switching to another platform that is not RHEL, as I am not part of those discussions.

    What other advice do I have?

    We are using RHEL in the cloud.

    RHEL supports our cloud environment mainly for patching right now, as we have not started using it for migrations yet, but we will probably start doing that eventually.

    I have not done any AI workloads through RHEL.

    RHEL does not play a role in our company's implementation of Zero Trust; it would be more for workloads and data running on our Linux VMs, as we do not use it for identity or access at this time.

    I have used Ansible Automation Platform somewhat and am learning it. My experience with it is good; I do not use it that much, but other people on my team are using it a little more, and we have not used it in production yet, although it is definitely something we will be doing soon.

    We do not use RHEL for auditing, as far as I know; my boss sends me a list of things to fix, and I fix them.

    RHEL has definitely helped to mitigate downtime and lower risks at my company, especially with patching, as we do not have to manually patch or reboot our VMs as much while managing the patching process.

    The knowledge base that RHEL offers is pretty good; I use it personally the most for the training platform while trying to learn all the different systems they have, and I use that a lot.

    I would rate this review a 10 overall.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Public Cloud

    If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

    Other
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    Last updated: May 13, 2026
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    reviewer1341057 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Principal Analyst at a marketing services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
    Real User
    Top 5
    Sep 19, 2025
    Guides clients to manage hybrid cloud complexity through a unified Linux environment
    Pros and Cons
    • "Since we started recommending and our clients started using it, I can see the cost-to-performance ratio go up by over 50%."
    • "I would suggest focusing more on the cloud-native aspect. Kubernetes and microservices are built in natively; however, it would help to bring the service mesh and service mesh handling. That would be one of the improvement areas."
    • "Since Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 10 was recently launched, there were some bugs that needed to be fixed and performance issues."

    What is our primary use case?

    I don't directly use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). I advise our clients to select this kind of technology for their hybrid cloud requirements.

    When looking at hybrid cloud, the entire ecosystem is very complex; public cloud, private cloud, everything comes together and becomes very difficult to manage. The best use case I can see when Linux systems are involved is to use one common platform to manage all the infrastructure and the platforms on top of that. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) would be the best choice for that particular use case.

    What is most valuable?

    The ability to manage complex environments, especially when it comes to hybrid cloud, helps us significantly, along with the Linux environments which are natively in-built into Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). The reduction in complexity, ease of use, and managing the entire hybrid cloud landscape was easier with this software. Service mesh and Kubernetes support contribute significantly, allowing better handling of complex cloud-native applications efficiently.

    We use third-party platforms to manage the risks and put the security guardrails in place, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has its own native security guardrails as well, so we use both.

    Indirectly, we help other enterprises implement this solution, and I can tell how other enterprises are benefiting. They reduce complexity and achieve faster time to market as they improve efficiency and use these tools to improve their development process. This helps them move faster and release their software as soon as possible.

    We are trying to move most of our workloads to public cloud environments; however, not everything will go to the public cloud. We are trying to find a balance between on-premise, private cloud, and public cloud. Currently, the split is 50% on public cloud, 40% on private, and 10% on on-premise.

    Since we started recommending and our clients started using it, I can see the cost-to-performance ratio go up by over 50%.

    What needs improvement?

    I would suggest focusing more on the cloud-native aspect. Kubernetes and microservices are built in natively; however, it would help to bring the service mesh and service mesh handling. That would be one of the improvement areas.

    Most importantly, since we deal with mostly Fortune 500 clients who are global in nature, as the data is siloed from multiple sources and has to be pulled in, it's very important that the data is secure and all the security guardrails are in place.

    Since Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 10 was recently launched, there were some bugs that needed to be fixed and performance issues. If those are cleared, then it would be a good fit for everyone.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    There has not been much downtime with the system.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The scalability is above average. It has scaled up and created its portfolio in line with market demands.

    How are customer service and support?

    The customer service was good. 

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We did not use any previous solutions.

    How was the initial setup?

    Deployment is fairly easy. The support that is required is appropriate for both full-fledged full stack developers and starting developers. The support overall is good.

    What about the implementation team?

    We implement mostly through service integrators who help to do the groundwork.

    What was our ROI?

    Since IBM's acquisition, we thought there might be some changes, yet surprisingly, it was kept aside. IBM was kind enough to let them operate on their own, which is a plus sign. The stability has been good, and we have no complaints.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    The pricing was good and did not affect much of the decision-making. It was appropriate, though I would suggest the team improve upon offering higher discounts on bulk purchases.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    There are not many options available besides Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).

    What other advice do I have?

    I am a principal catalyst who works with AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, the hyperscalers, public cloud, and private cloud, both on the client side and on-premise.

    The ability to manage complex environments, especially regarding hybrid cloud, helps us significantly, along with the Linux environments which are natively in-built into Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).

    I rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a nine out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Hybrid Cloud

    If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

    Other
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
    Updated: September 2026
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.