From Developer Community

You've probably noticed that we have a few different versions of SUSE Linux. Why all the different versions, and what are they used for? Hopefully we can shed some light on this from a developer's perspective.

Contents 1 openSUSE 2 SUSE Linux 3 SUSE Linux Enterprise 4 Open Enterprise Server 5 Our Recommendation

openSUSE

At Novell, it all starts with openSUSE. openSUSE is our free, open source distribution of SUSE Linux. You can download it and use it for no charge. You are also welcome to get involved in other ways.

openSUSE is essentially our most cutting-edge Linux distribution available. You can download a more stable, released version, which is still a pretty cutting edge distribution, or there is always the development snapshot for those who like to take a ride on the wild side.

Future versions of our enterprise Linux platforms will eventually come from a selected, stable openSUSE build. By getting involved with the openSUSE project, you can start developing today for tomorrow's enterprise SUSE Linux platform.

Choose openSUSE For Development If:

• You want or need cutting edge Linux capabilities.
• You are developing software that is targeted for an upcoming version of an enterprise SUSE Linux platform.
• You want to use a free version of SUSE Linux.

Choose openSUSE For Deployment If:

• You need cutting edge Linux capabilities not available in other SUSE Linux platforms.
• You are willing to exchange support and possibly some stability for cost savings.

SUSE Linux

Formerly known as SUSE Linux Professional, SUSE Linux is essentially a for-cost version of a stable, release version of openSUSE. SUSE Linux is a versatile, powerful Linux distribution for a variety of uses. When you pay for SUSE Linux, you are essentially paying for media, included documentation (manuals), and maintenance (upgrades).

SUSE Linux is a teenage version of openSUSE, without the raging hormones.

Choose SUSE Linux For Development or Deployment If:

• You want a cutting edge Linux distribution, but you prefer to pay and receive media, manuals, and maintenance.

SUSE Linux Enterprise

When openSUSE grows up, it becomes a SUSE Linux Enterprise distribution. SUSE Linux Enterprise distributions have been through rigorous testing processes and are of enterprise quality, ready for use in even your most mission critical deployments.

We offer two different versions of SUSE Linux Enterprise - SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop (SLED) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES). These two distributions differ from each other only in the packages that comprise the distributions. They both come from a common codebase. This means that you can easily develop SLES applications on your SLED workstation without worrying about software incompatibilities.

Choose SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop For Development If:

• You want a stable, powerful workstation platform for development work.
• You are writing applications targeted for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop.
• You are writing applications targeted for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server.

Choose SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop For Deployment If:

• You want to deploy a stable, supported Linux distribution in your enterprise as a desktop operating system.
• You want enterprise-level reliability for your desktops and desktop applications.

Choose SUSE Linux Enterprise Server For Deployment If:

• You want to deploy a stable, supported Linux distribution in your data center or for other server applications.
• You want enterprise-level reliability for your web applications, web services, and server applications.

Open Enterprise Server

When you combine the flexibility of SUSE Linux Enterprise with the legacy and power of NetWare, you get Open Enterprise Server. Open Enterprise Server includes all of the functionality and capability that NetWare users are accustomed to, but is available atop SUSE Linux Enterprise Server so you can run your Linux applications easily. Probably the most notable of these NetWare capabilities is eDirectory, the world's most powerful and scalable LDAP directory service.

Choose Open Enterprise Server For Deployment If:

• You have applications or services running on NetWare that you want to migrate to Linux.
• You want to leverage eDirectory for identity management or other directory-based services.

Our Recommendation

What is our recommendation? We recommend that you familiarize yourself with a few different versions of SUSE Linux. Here's an example of a wise use of these different distributions in a hypothetical company:

• Open Enterprise Server for directory services
• SLES server deployments for web applications, web services, as well as other server applications
• SLED desktops for the employee populace, where reasonable
• SLED desktops for server, web, and desktop application development
• openSUSE desktops for test builds, to be prepared in advance for the next versions of SUSE Linux Enterprise

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