We use this as our operating system. It's a platform to deploy solutions.
SAP Director at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Stable, scalable, and has good support
Pros and Cons
- "I have not experienced any issues with this operating system."
- "The initial setup could be simplified."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
I have not experienced any issues with this operating system.
What needs improvement?
The initial setup could be simplified.
I would like to see integration with other solutions.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with SUSE Linux Enterprise for three years.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It's a stable solution. I have not experienced any issues.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
SUSE Linux Enterprise is a scalable product.
We have approximately 200 users in our organization.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is okay.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have been working with the cloud version of Microsoft. NET Framework for 10 years. We use it for administration processes and finance.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is a bit complex. You need to have an expert with the expertise to assist you, but, it doesn't take a lot time.
We have a team of five people to maintain this solution.
What about the implementation team?
You definitely need the help of an consultant for the installation.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I have to pay for a license in order to get support.
What other advice do I have?
I am responsible for project management. I follow up and track the progress and provide reviews to the customers.
I would recommend this solution to others who are interested in using it. That said, there is always room for improvement.
I would rate SUSE Linux Enterprise an eight out of ten.
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.
Enterprise Solutions Architect at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Out-of-the-box SLES supported all of our HBAs and hardware specific components. I have not been overly impressed with their technical support.
Pros and Cons
- "Out-of-the-box SLES supported all of our HBAs and hardware specific components."
- "It also was very easy to setup, and offered an easy to use advanced setup option as well. This helped to create special configurations for different use cases."
- "When working in a Department of Defense environment, Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs) have to be followed. SLES is not really addressed directly here. It did make following security policy difficult."
- "I have not been overly impressed with their technical support."
What is our primary use case?
My colleagues and I have been using the product for several years now. Overall, I have been very satisfied with it and the way it has integrated into many of the solutions that we have placed in service. SLES is a mature, solid Linux offering. I recommend that companies, which have not reviewed its potential, take a second look.
My experience with SLES extends for at least eight years.
How has it helped my organization?
The organization was using an Oracle database and application server, and the Orarun package made deploying those products so easy. It even allowed us to move most of the Oracle software configuration effort away from us to DBAs and application support personnel.
I do not know if YaST or Orarun made the most impact in our organization. Both made life a lot easier. YaST just made administration a breeze.
What is most valuable?
The best experience would have to be the upgrade process. It has progressed to be very easy and seamless.
The most valuable aspect of the product was the support for the Oracle product stack. The Orarun package was such a tremendous help in our shop.
What needs improvement?
When working in a Department of Defense environment, Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs) have to be followed. SLES is not really addressed directly here. It did make following security policy difficult. Red Hat is more friendly in this respect.
For how long have I used the solution?
More than five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I do not recall any stability issues up until Hyper-V was added to the mix. I am not really sure it should be counted because we were not privy to the underlying configuration, and there were other VMs experiencing similar behavior.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
With respect to scalability, there have never been any issues. The product was always able to perform the way we needed it to. The SDK and HA software extensions really helped to make many of our solutions possible.
How are customer service and technical support?
Unfortunately, I have not been overly impressed with their technical support, except on one occasion. I was completely blown out of the water by the outcome of ticket I opened on setting up an IMAP server. The support rep assisted me and drafted a document that would be published for others to benefit from.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
My organization moved from Solaris and HP-UX to SLES. These vendors' OEM hardware became too expensive and we were looking for an alternative.
SLES proved to be a very extendable product, supporting most, if not all of our infrastructure. The major reason I chose to use the product was the extensive enterprise peripheral support. Out-of-the-box SLES supported all of our HBAs and hardware specific components. This was really what sold me.
How was the initial setup?
It also was very easy to setup, and offered an easy to use advanced setup option as well. This helped to create special configurations for different use cases.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
As far as licensing goes, there is nothing unusual here. The price and model have worked fine for my organization
What other advice do I have?
Any company looking to standardize on a Linux platform should seriously review this product. It has served me well for many years.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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SUSE Linux Enterprise
June 2025

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860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Systems Support Specialist at a hospitality company with 201-500 employees
YaST simplifies the server management allowing for a centralized utility to control most of the server functions
Pros and Cons
- "YaST simplifies the server management of SUSE allowing for a centralized utility to control most of the server functions."
- "The initial setup for most modern Linux distributions is normally straightforward. Most of the common distributions use an ncurses or GUI install."
- "All distributions of Linux could use some improvement."
- "The only stability issues that I can recall encountering with SUSE would be with KDE. However, that is limited to just the desktop environment as I have not had stability issues with most server functions."
What is our primary use case?
I have been using SUSE and OpenSUSE since 1999 in various capacities.
What is most valuable?
There are several items which make this distribution a good product, however I think YaST is probably what I like most about it. YaST simplifies the server management of SUSE allowing for a centralized utility to control most of the server functions.
What needs improvement?
All distributions of Linux could use some improvement.
For how long have I used the solution?
More than five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The only stability issues that I can recall encountering with SUSE would be with KDE. However, that is limited to just the desktop environment as I have not had stability issues with most server functions.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Not that I can recall.
How are customer service and technical support?
I have never actually used the technical support. If I had an issue, then I would search the forums to find others that may have encountered similar issues.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have used various different distributions of Linux. Currently, I am supporting Ubuntu and CentOS server deployments.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup for most modern Linux distributions is normally straightforward. Most of the common distributions use an ncurses or GUI install.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I would advise others to download the free or strictly open source versions, then test them in their environment before committing to a purchase. This will allow for testing suitability for applications that they want to run.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I have evaluated several different versions of Linux distributions over the years. It depends upon the planned use as to which platform will work best. I have tested RedHat, Debian, Ubuntu, SUSE, Linux Mint, SparkyLinux, SliTaz, Gentoo Linux, and several others.
What other advice do I have?
Verify this product will do want you need it to do. As with all server class distributions, it can be setup with or without the GUI.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
IT Admin at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Compared to Windows, use is more stable and scalable; easy to manage.
What is most valuable?
SuSe has an offline repository in DVD media. It's easy to use, although not as easy as Ubuntu is.
The administration tools are very useful.
How has it helped my organization?
We use it as a webserver: DNS Server and LDAP server.
What needs improvement?
The updating package:
We had trouble installing packages outside of the repository.
There were often conflicts in the existing version;
A depends on B, B depends on C, and etc...so we must upgrade to C and B before installing A.
For how long have I used the solution?
Since 2010.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
So far the use is very stable and we've never experienced any constraints.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
No.
How are customer service and technical support?
We do not pay for a subscription, so we do not get support. But out there, there are a lot of forums that can help us to solve the problem.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Previously, we used Microsoft products. The expensive license fees made us switch to open source.
Compared to Windows, use is more stable and scalable; easy to manage.
How was the initial setup?
Initial setup is straightforward. They have a very good GUI/user interface.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We're not subscribed to any support. So far, without a subscription, there are no obstacles.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We've tried some Linux distro.
Limited internet connection made us look for distros which have repository on DVD.
Ubuntu may be the best choice for beginners if you have reliable internet access.
What other advice do I have?
Look for products that have broad support and community, because it is very helpful when experiencing problems.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Head of Service at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
A solution which is easy to use and manipulate, performs well and secure
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is easy to use, secure and allows for simple manipulation."
- "In the next release it would be nice to see more integration and better automation of processses."
What is our primary use case?
The solution can be useful for operating systems, such as running certain applications. We use it as a community solution.
What needs improvement?
In the next release it would be nice to see more integration and better automation of processes.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SUSE Linux Enterprise for around 20 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The performance is good. I am satisfied with it.
How are customer service and support?
We have a maintenance contract with Oradist, which is the Oracle firm in Tunisia.
How was the initial setup?
I was not involved in the installation. I am part of the development team, am responsible for the integration of our solution and belong to the BI team. I use Pentaho Business Intelligence and take advantage of the community.
What about the implementation team?
We have 16 people responsible for the deployment and maintenance.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The license we pay is for Oracle. We make use of the community edition.
What other advice do I have?
While I don't install the solution, I use it as part of the development team.
The solution is easy to use, secure and allows for simple manipulation.
I feel no need to modify the interface or GUI.
The solution comprises our entire server. We have many people who make use of the solution.
I recommend the solution to others, both SUSE OS and Oracle Database.
I rate SUSE Linux Enterprise as a ten out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
System Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Open-source, reliable, easy to use, and has good support
Pros and Cons
- "It's a flexible solution."
- "I would like to see GUI improved, it could be more user-friendly."
What is our primary use case?
SUSE Linux Enterprise is a critical component. We also use it with SUSE Rancher.
This solution is used to run the master node of Kubernetes and Rancher, which are co-dependent, and it does not run on Windows.
What is most valuable?
It is very powerful and different from Windows.
It is very simple to use.
You don't have to click, you just enter the commands.
It's a flexible solution.
What needs improvement?
I would like to see GUI improved, it could be more user-friendly.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SUSE Linux Enterprise for seven months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
SUSE Linux Enterprise is a stable product.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is very strong. Many resources can be found on the internet.
They offer enterprise-level support, similar to Red Hat and SUSE.
We are satisfied with the technical support.
How was the initial setup?
If you are a technical person, the setup is easy, but if you are not, it can be quite complex.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Anyone can use Linux because it is open-source. If you require technical assistance, you will have to pay for it.
What other advice do I have?
I don't have a lot of experience with this solution, I have recently completed my MCA, as well as my internship.
I would rate SUSE Linux Enterprise a ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
DevOps Strategist at a marketing services firm with 1-10 employees
Easy to use, gives you more control on a Unix system
Pros and Cons
- "Linux is easy to use. You have more control on a Unix system."
- "SUSE could make more APIs available."
What is our primary use case?
We have a large user base and applications that are distributed. So some are on Unix, and others are on Windows.
How has it helped my organization?
Linux is easy to use. You have more control on a Unix system.
What needs improvement?
SUSE could make more APIs available.
For how long have I used the solution?
We've been using Linux Enterprise for almost two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Linux Enterprise is quite stable.
How are customer service and support?
We haven't had to contact SUSE support thus far.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The price of Linux Enterprise could be lower.
What other advice do I have?
I rate SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 out of 10.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
DevOps Software Engineer at Integra Micro Software Services
An efficient operating system with good stability
Pros and Cons
- "It is a stable platform."
- "They should improve their educational portal."
What is our primary use case?
SUSE Linux Enterprise is an operating system for server workstations, desktop computers, and other platforms.
What needs improvement?
They should improve their educational portal. There should be a dedicated lab to learn about features similar to Red Hat's portal.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using SUSE Linux Enterprise for seven months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a stable platform.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The product's scalability is better than DevSecOps. We have enterprise and medium customers using it.
How are customer service and support?
There are limitations in terms of getting administrative rights or comprehensive data support.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
The installation and registration process was complicated because of security settings. We didn't receive support services to tackle the difficulties. It requires four to five executives for maintenance.
What other advice do I have?
I rate SUSE Linux Enterprise an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner

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Updated: June 2025
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Although I would agree that Ubuntu is a good choice for beginners, I would not suggest using it in an enterprise environment. CentOS, fedora, or OpenSuse are better for learning enterprise level servers as I have found that most enterprise customers prefer RHEL or SLES over the debian based distros.