SUSE backs its distributions with 19 years of support – second to none in Linux

Berlin: In SUSECon, SUSE, the global Linux and cloud-based software leader, announced significant enhancements across its entire line of Linux distributions. These new capabilities focus on delivering faster time to value and reducing operating costs, emphasizing the importance of choice in today’s complex IT landscape.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 15 Service Pack (SP) 6 is the focus of these upgrades. This update future-proofs IT workloads with new Long Term Services (LTS_Package Support Core). How long is long term? Can you believe 19 years? This gives SLES the longest support period in the enterprise Linux market. Even Ubuntu, Canonical recently extended LTS for another 12 yearsdon’t come close.

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You may be wondering: “Why 19 years?” SUSE General Manager Business Critical Linux (BCL) Rick Spencer, explained in an interview that the reason was that at 03:14:08 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT, also known as Coordinated Universal Time) Tuesday, January 19, 2038, we have reached the end of computing time. Not really, but Linux and all other Unix-based operating systems, including some versions of MacOS, achieve so-called era.

That’s when the time-keeping code in 32-bit Unix-based operating systems reaches the end of the number of seconds it has counted since the beginning of time — 00:00:00 GMT on January 1, 1970, for Linux and Unix systems involved — and reset to zero. Like the Y2K bug, that means all unpatched 32-bit operating systems and software will have the appropriate bug. The Linux kernel itself fixed the problem in Linux kernel 5.6 in 2020, but many other programs have not yet resolved this issue.

However, until then, if you’re still running SLES 15 SP6, you’re covered. I highly recommend upgrading before then, but if you want to stick with that distro to the end, you can.

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Additionally, the new SLES boasts an updated kernel version 6.4. It also includes new libraries, such as OpenSSL 3.1Ensure security according to strict regulations.

Thinking about security, SLES now boasts superiority Supports secret calculations. With confidential computing, your data is not only encrypted when stored or transmitted on the internet, but also in memory. SLES provides this additional level of security on systems using Intel TDX (Trusted Domain Extensions) and AMD SEV (Secure Cryptographic Virtualization) processors. This includes remote authentication with SUSE ManagerEnsuring end-to-end capabilities for maximum security and compliance.

SAP users will also be happy to see SLES for SAP 15 SP6 applications: This release provides SAP customers and partners with a secure and reliable Linux platform to run mission-critical SAP workloads, from the data center to the cloud. It includes access to the latest innovations from​​ Trentoan open source web application that helps system administrators avoid common infrastructure issues with SAP systems that can lead to delayed service deployments or unplanned downtime.

If you prefer a lighter Linux distribution for edge calculation or smaller servers, SUSE has also released SUSE Linux Enterprise Micro 6.0. This immutable, lightweight, and secure open source server operating system is optimized for virtualized and containerized workloads. It simplifies standalone container deployment and provides a stable foundation for Kubernetes deployment. It also includes support for full-disk encryption to enhance your data security.

SUSE is also building its own platform for AI using Linux distributions called SUSE AI. This is not your ordinary AI game. Instead of rolling out its own Large Language Model (LLM) and chatbots, SUSE is providing the tools companies need to build their own private and secure AI programs. For example, if you want to use your own data without worrying about someone monitoring your virtual role to create intelligent AI troubleshooters for your products, SUSE will allows you to build that.

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On one side of the SUSE line is SUSE’s latest Linux release, SUSE Liberty Lite Linux. This distribution is a replacement for CentOS 7, which while still very popular, will reach the end of its supported life on June 30. SUSE’s answer is a true replacement. You can literally change your repository from CentOS to Liberty Lite and keep running.

Furthermore, Liberty Linux Lite is the first Linux distribution to be built on Open Enterprise Linux Association (OpenELA) Linux Codebase. In OpenELA, CIQ, Oracle and SUSE collaborated to create a Linux codebase for RHEL clones.

No matter what SLES you are running, you can use it SUSE Manager 5.0 to monitor your server and Linux version. Indeed, SUSE Manager supports more than just the SLES family. It currently supports more than 16 different Linux distributions. Including Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), its countless copies; Debian; Mint; and Ubuntu Linux. Indeed, you can even use it with Raspberry Pi OS, formerly Raspian, so you can manage your Raspberry Pis as well as your big iron.

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SUSE Manager, based on DevOps Salt System, delivers automated patching and compliance management for any Linux, anywhere, and at any scale. It is packaged for resiliency, scalability, and portability, and adds remote attestation capabilities to SLEX 15 SP6.

Get the picture? SUSE remains fully committed to SLES. In fact, the company is working on additional enhancements for the next major release of its flagship business-critical Linux platform: SLES 16 and SLES for SAP Applications 16 in 2025. Tomorrow looks bright for both SUSE and Linux.