In my particular case, we have some development and testing environments that we run on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), and we currently produce specific software for financial entities that is developed and certified for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), with clients running it in production and us delivering support to those clients.
RedHat 8 Minimal with support by ProComputers
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Operates consistently across different platforms and provides good stability and performance
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
Stability and performance are what I appreciate the most about it.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) makes it easier to manage hybrid environments because it is widely compatible with all kinds of platforms and protocols, allowing integration with various systems. It is very convenient for me since I have both on-premises installations and cloud installations. A few years ago, we transitioned several machines from baremetal systems to the cloud, and the process was very smooth. One of the advantages of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is that it operates consistently across different platforms, meaning you don’t have to change your processes or tools when working with various environments. This reliability is particularly beneficial for my operations.
What needs improvement?
One improvement could be more radical removal or disabling of obsolete, non-secure features, specifically regarding hardening the system. While I'm not sure if this is different on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 10, my team has installed the first one today.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for 10 years now, and I have been working with Red Hat as an older brand for about 25 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is very stable, and I don't recall the last time we had an issue that was not caused by a user.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is very good because it allows changes to be introduced on the fly without having to reboot machines, and it is very stable. We have reached a maturity level in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that is very efficient, giving us a lot of confidence in the product.
How are customer service and support?
I haven't contacted technical support or customer support regarding Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in the last few years.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
While not exactly comparable, we also work with AIX from IBM as another platform, which is currently provided by the same group because IBM owns Red Hat. I have worked in previous years with other Linux distributions, such as Debian, Ubuntu, and Slackware, although I haven't worked with them for a while.
I have a very strong empathy for open-source systems, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) runs on an open-source kernel, which I appreciate because it allows for innovation and development of the system itself based on collaboration from different inputs. AIX is more closed with its own benefits, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) runs on more platforms, while AIX is IBM-based.
How was the initial setup?
Deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is easy. It isn't a complex process right now, and there is a lot of documentation and information available to support them during that process.
The patching process is currently stable and very efficient, with frequent and scheduled releases that allow us to plan how we roll them out on our side. We have a scheduled patching process every month, even if there isn't anything to do. There are usually updates available, and we also have monitoring features that ensure the system is healthy and working properly, so we don't require live monitoring by a user, just some occasional cleanup in terms of logs and environment since it's mainly a development and test setup.
What other advice do I have?
When you have your own systems on-premises, defining a lifecycle means needing to replace hardware, storage, and acquire equipment beforehand, whereas in the cloud, you don't have to do that because you pay as you use. This makes it easier to acquire new VMs on the cloud and install new images, moving from old machines to new ones without needing to get rid of old physical machines, thus making the cloud more flexible in the lifecycle perspective.
The business value of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) compared to other Linux distributions lies in the full set of systems and services it offers. While I haven't used the service support in recent years due to having a mature team that can solve problems, the support from Red Hat gives us great confidence in the software's quality, patching, and continuous development.
I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a 9 out of 10.
Support and automation significantly save time and cost
What is our primary use case?
It depends on the company environment and client environment. Currently, we are using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for application deployment and server management, and sometimes we use it for DB deployment also.
We use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for learning purposes for new things in Red Hat technology.
What is most valuable?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) offers a very easy-to-use experience in the Linux environment apart from any other flavors, and it's a very easy, systematic structure that provides easy support from Red Hat if any complex issue arises, which is the best point of RHEL, along with its affordable subscription model.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) saves time, saves money, and it's very easy for automation purposes; we support third-party tools for automation, so it's very beneficial.
I see a return on investment from using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) because patching is very easy; it supports third-party tools such as BMC or BigFix, so it's very time-saving for patching and performing any operation to fetch data from multiple servers.
What needs improvement?
To improve Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), they have to provide a playground for their OS for free or for some time, or they have to provide OpenShift multitenant clusters for improving skills in Red Hat technologies and in RHEL also, which will be very easy for a growing career in technology and providing support in an organization.
They have to make it easier to raise a ticket for Red Hat. Currently, when we raise a ticket, they show multiple options, so they should provide a direct option for raising the support cases.
They should provide patches on a quarterly basis instead of monthly, as patching every month makes it a burden on us.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) since my career started in 2020.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is stable. In my last five years of experience, I haven't encountered any stability issues when everything is done properly.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has good scalability, and with the RHEL OpenShift tool, we use the scale up and scale down features.
How are customer service and support?
Customer support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is very quick and provides support on call. It's easier to get support from RHEL compared to other enterprises such as IBM.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We did everything manually before Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), but since working with RHEL, we use automation, which saves time and costs.
How was the initial setup?
I am not aware of billing, but for the setup of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), it's very easy because we directly get a golden image and replicate to make a new machine, so it can be set up in very little time.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Before choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I evaluated other options such as CentOS, Rocky Linux, and Ubuntu. However, RHEL is an enterprise OS that provides multiple features and support, with a very systematic structure.
What other advice do I have?
The Ansible tool is very nice, and currently, they have released OpenShift, which is also a very nice product provided by Red Hat.
I would advise others looking into using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that if they don't have budget issues, they should go for RHEL; otherwise, they can consider AlmaLinux or Rocky Linux, which are also open-source products.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a very nice Linux distribution that provides quick support, and in my last five years in the corporate world, I found it to be a very good OS, but they should lower their charges for mid-scale and startup companies in countries such as India, Bhutan, and Nepal, as they can't afford that much amount in dollars.
On a scale from one to ten, I rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Improves workload efficiency through multithreading and gives us long-term stability
What is our primary use case?
We use Red Hat Enterprise Linux to host web applications written in the Java programming language, along with an Apache server. We deploy applications using Red Hat Enterprise Linux for both internal and external customers. Additionally, we utilize Red Hat Linux to host our Oracle database.
How has it helped my organization?
It provides us with long-term stability, meaning we often don't have to reboot servers for months. This contrasts with Windows, where we typically have to reboot every week. Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers long-term stability and security, allowing for prolonged periods without reboots. Moreover, the Linux operating system is regularly patched, ensuring a secure environment. We receive timely updates from Red Hat whenever there is a new patch available.
Security requirements were significant consideration in choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux. As a bank, security and performance are our top two priorities. We are promptly notified by Red Hat whenever any zero-day security vulnerabilities or loopholes are discovered. This allows us to quickly inform our team and make decisions on whether to apply patches immediately or to wait. We prefer not to experience any downtime during the week, so we typically wait until Saturday to perform any necessary shutdowns for patching. For some patches, Red Hat offers hot patching, which means we don't have to shut down our servers. This allows us to apply patches while the servers are still running, minimizing downtime.
What is most valuable?
Multithreaded environment is a standout feature. It enables Java to execute multiple workloads simultaneously, which speeds up processes. Instead of executing tasks sequentially, we can handle them in parallel. It allows us to deliver more code execution in the same period through parallel execution, providing real-time benefits. We can monitor our progress in real time.
What needs improvement?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) can be improved, particularly in the documentation side.
I would also suggest improving performance and allowing the OS to be run on Intel and optimized for Intel as well as AMD CPUs. Improving compatibility with hardware is also important so that we can run on any hardware.
Additionally, we would appreciate Red Hat offering a built-in monitoring solution so that we don't have to depend on third-party tools such as Dynatrace and others. Better integration with built-in solutions would increase reliability on Red Hat.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for over ten years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux has indeed helped us mitigate downtime and lower risks. We can run for months without needing to reboot, which contributes to its stability.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales efficiently with the growing needs of our company because we have a recovery time objective. We have Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) installed in our primary data center as well as in the disaster recovery data center. When we do a failover and fail back, it meets the timing that we specify.
How are customer service and support?
If we run into issues, such as OS-level issues, we raise Internet tickets with the Red Hat team. We have a dedicated account manager who helps track the ticket status to ensure it is resolved within a timely manner.
I would rate them an eight out of ten because sometimes we get very experienced people. They resolve issues quickly, but sometimes we get a junior person, so there is a different level of response. They can offer a consistent level of service. Rather than mix junior and senior engineers in the same team, and just give us more senior engineers.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
Our overall experience deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has been positive. However, we sometimes encounter challenges with documentation, as it may not always be up-to-date. There are occasions when our OS version is ahead of the corresponding documentation. We patch our OS, and that version may be newer than what the documentation reflects. This can lead to inconsistencies, so we often request that they refresh their documentation to ensure it is in sync with the OS. On the plus side, another benefit is that there are many online discussion forums available due to its wide usage, where we can seek answers if we encounter issues.
We operate on-premises due to regulations and compliance requirements, as we are a bank. We handle many personally identifiable sensitive information, which we cannot deploy to the cloud, so everything is hosted on our servers.
We host Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) on our servers and use VMware to virtualize them. On a single physical server, we can run three or four virtual servers. This approach enhances server utilization and allows us to manage more workloads on the same hardware.
I've participated in upgrades from version 6 to 7, 7 to 8, and 8 to 9. The only issues we encountered were related to the Samba file-sharing system, where we had to uninstall and reinstall it instead of migrating directly. This was frustrating because we expected everything to be backwards compatible. Additionally, we faced challenges when upgrading from version 6; we couldn't jump directly to version 9 and had to go through intermediate versions, which was a pain point for us. We wish we could upgrade from version 6 to 9 directly instead of having to go from 6 to 7, then 7 to 8, and finally 8 to 9.
Regarding our upgrade or migration plans, we recently migrated to version 9, which is a long-term service version. We plan to stick with version 9 for the next year or so.
What was our ROI?
The biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is that it's a very stable overall operating system and is really optimized for running Java-based workloads, meaning we can get more workloads done. This stability gives us a consistent performance which translates into a strong SLA service level agreement.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We receive volume licensing as part of our IBM relationship. We use many IBM servers, so we get a volume discount. We tend to go through a value-added reseller to secure that volume discount.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
In India, we prefer Red Hat because it offers the industry-leading container platform, Open Shift. As a result, we are gradually transitioning away from VMware and exploring other options to better meet our needs.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) if you're looking for a very stable operating system and if you happen to run Java-based workloads and you want high performance, high stability, and high availability. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has been around for more than 20 years, and you're looking for an excellent track record. If a bank can trust Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I'm sure that all other industries can trust it because we require the most stable, secure platforms.
I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Efficient installation process accelerates task completion and boosts performance
What is our primary use case?
My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are on the infrastructure side, including patching, building, engineering, administration, and a little bit of everything.
What is most valuable?
The feature I appreciate the most about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is its installation, which includes numerous capabilities. The installation process, especially when automating tasks, provides great satisfaction when it works. These features benefit my company because they enable tasks to be completed quickly.
What needs improvement?
I cannot identify specific improvements needed for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) at this time. We are currently using version 9.6, and it is performing satisfactorily. I would need to work with it daily to provide specific feedback. However, the documentation could be more user-friendly and comprehensive. Instead of simply stating procedures, it should provide more detailed explanations through multiple layers of implementation. The documentation could be simplified for beginners who are unfamiliar with the system. In our organization, we write our own documentation to address these needs.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) along with CentOS throughout this period.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me address vulnerabilities, particularly high CVEs with scores of 10 and nine. The build-out capabilities are beneficial, and Ansible integration works effectively with RHEL.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales very effectively to meet my company's needs.
How are customer service and support?
The customer service and technical support are good, though they have declined in quality compared to previous standards. Currently, support often responds by sending PDF documentation, and scheduling direct calls can be challenging.
How would you rate customer service and support?
How was the initial setup?
Security requirements were a key consideration in choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) due to its ease of use, robust security features, and comprehensive experience and support. Support availability was particularly important among these factors.
What was our ROI?
From my perspective, the biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has been its excellent performance and issue resolution capabilities.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I am not considering alternative solutions to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) at this time due to our current three-year contract commitment.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a 9 out of 10 and advise other companies considering RHEL to proceed with implementation. They should complete their customer assessment and work with Red Hat representatives. The solution is highly recommended, despite minor support-related concerns.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Facilitates centralized management and provides platform consistency and stability
What is our primary use case?
I am a platform engineer, so I help build out the infrastructure for app owners to use. I manage the OS.
How has it helped my organization?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) provides us with a standardized Linux that has controlled package versioning so that there's no scope for issues when we're applying patches. It's pretty stable and gives us stable releases.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) benefits my company overall because compared to other operating systems, it has a lower TCO. It's lighter weight than Microsoft Windows and simpler to use in some aspects, making it easy to use without having to worry about a graphical interface and similar elements.
What is most valuable?
The features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) I appreciate the most include the management, specifically that Red Hat Satellite is nice. This management feature is great because it centralizes what I need to do to keep an eye on all the systems in the environment.
What needs improvement?
There are some features of Red Hat, not just Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), that have a higher cost of entry, which prevents us from trying out things such as Ansible Automation Platform due to its high cost. We are still deciding if we're going to go that route.
There are some positive aspects to the consistent packaging of Red Hat, which is great. However, there are times when the latest and most exciting releases available online are not included in the version of Red Hat that we have. For example, the version included in Red Hat can sometimes feel outdated compared to the open-source versions that are currently available.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for 15 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Its stability and reliability are very good.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has helped us to mitigate downtime and lower risks, not necessarily due to its nature but because we design our systems to be highly available. We have multiple nodes and we only bring down some nodes, leaving others up, depending on the application, which sometimes dictates how it becomes highly available.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales pretty effectively with the growing needs of my company.
How are customer service and support?
They are pretty knowledgeable. If they don't know it, they know someone who does, so they can always route me and my questions to whomever is able to answer.
I would evaluate the customer service and technical support of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as good, although sometimes opening a case and waiting hours seems excessive, depending on the severity of the issue. It may be a P2 to us, but a P2 with a 4 to 8 hour response seems too long sometimes, and they won't escalate. However, once all that's completed, I would still rate them at least a solid eight.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
My experience with deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) involves lots of scripting and golden images, but there's a newer version of creating the images, and I'm looking forward to using that.
We have a hybrid environment with on-premises and cloud deployments.
We use Red Hat Satellite for provisioning and patching, and I am satisfied with that.
Upgrading or migrating Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) from on-premises to the cloud went mostly well. However, there were some caveats to consider when moving to the cloud that we hadn't anticipated. For instance, some migration tools had hardcoded values that shouldn't have been fixed in that way. We did encounter some issues that required remediation, but for the most part, the process has gone smoothly.
Our upgrade or migration plans to stay current involve evaluating Red Hat 9 now, and we will be evaluating Red Hat 10 afterwards. I don't think there are any other Red Hat products with a major upgrade upcoming. We are still using Red Hat Satellite, currently at version 6.16, and it needs to get upgraded to the next version pretty soon. The version of Ansible within Red Hat can sometimes feel way behind the version of Ansible that's available open source. Some migration tools hardcoded certain values that shouldn't have been hardcoded.
What was our ROI?
The biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for me is its consistent nature, as it has stable releases. I don't have worries when patching because everything is backwards and forwards compatible depending on the version.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We don't consider other solutions in our company that do the same thing as Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), nor did we use other solutions before choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). We stick with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), and if anything comes up that looks different from our OS, we heavily push back because we've established a relationship with Red Hat, and we're not looking to introduce a new flavor of Linux and a new support model after all the training we've had already.
What other advice do I have?
My assessment of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)'s built-in security features for simplifying risk reduction and maintaining compliance is that while I haven't used OpenSCAP much, the documentation of their CVEs and vulnerabilities is pretty easy to use through the website. It helps me identify if a CVE is applicable or not applicable, which is useful in case an event occurs and I need to research its impact and remediation.
I rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) an eight out of ten.
The integration of tools enhances autonomy and operational efficiency
What is our primary use case?
My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are for our private cloud, so we deploy it and use RHEL extensively for that. We set up the environment and their applications will run on our environment, and I work in that architecture space where we will set up the environment for our customers to come and deploy their applications.
What is most valuable?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve pain points with all the integrated tools that it brings to us, including all the Ansible Towers that we exceedingly use. My favorite feature of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is Ansible as a tool to work on RHEL. The combination of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) reduces the operational overheads and helps keep us autonomous, allowing us to move faster with less time.
What needs improvement?
AI features in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) would be an improvement because they reduce operational time and help administrators with features such as finding and troubleshooting issues and resolving them automatically.
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?
The stability and reliability of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is, so far, very good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Regarding scalability, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) keeps up with our demands, so I think it is on par, as we've been partnering for a long time.
How are customer service and support?
I would evaluate the customer service and technical support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as great. From one to ten, I would rate customer service and technical support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as an eight.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Security requirements were definitely a consideration before choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). The reason security requirements were considered is that it's just part of our bread and butter as a company, and we would not be able to do anything without security.
How was the initial setup?
Currently, we are not in the middle of any migrations or upgrades regarding Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), so it's running what we have right now, and that's what we're focusing on.
What about the implementation team?
I am not directly involved in managing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems when it comes to provisioning and patching, but I have teammates who do that, and they seem to have a very good experience.
What was our ROI?
From my point of view, the biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is the platform itself; I would say it's a good investment that keeps our job running.
What other advice do I have?
My assessment of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)'s built-in security features is that I have had good experiences so far. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has helped me to mitigate downtime and lower risks, though the specific details are confidential at this time.
The improvements with AI in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are exciting, as I was attending one of the sessions, and RHEL 10 with AI is already coming. In Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 10, I look forward to seeing the AI features they were describing.
I assess the knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as pretty good; there is still extensive documentation that I constantly refer to if I get stuck. My advice to any other company that's thinking about choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as their solution is to try it out and find out for yourself. I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) overall as an eight.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Patching capacity transforms infrastructure management
What is our primary use case?
My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are server virtualization.
How has it helped my organization?
It allows us to stay more in line with our mandates.
What is most valuable?
What I value the most about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are the patching capacity and the patching capacity with Ansible. The patching capacity of RHEL has improved my company significantly. It allows us to stay more in line with our mandates for our infrastructure. I assess the knowledge base offered by RHEL as fantastic.
Security requirements were a consideration when choosing the solution. We liked that the patching rules were straightforward. We've had good experiences with provisioning and patching.
It helps support risk reduction and maintain compliance. The user interface is very intuitive.
We'll be migrating more to RHEL 10. Some in our environment are still in RHEL 7.
It's helped us mitigate risk. Any time we've had to do a patch update, the patch time is minimal. The risk reduction has been significant.
The knowledge base offered by RHEL is excellent.
What needs improvement?
Even though I don't have complaints, I would like them to focus even more on what they're doing with Lightspeed and the AI assistance, so they could look more into that.
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?
I have never had any problems with the stability and reliability of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) platform.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve pain points by being more scalable.
How are customer service and support?
I have not yet had any experience with customer service and technical support.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We have not used another solution before choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), nor are we considering another solution; we've been staying a RHEL shop.
What was our ROI?
From my point of view, the biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is that it's very easy to scale up with regards to patching and updating.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I really dont have much to do with the licensing aspects.
What other advice do I have?
The advice I would give to other companies considering Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is to seriously look into it and really not be too stuck or hung up on one single platform, and explore your options.
I rate RHEL a nine out of ten.
Offers peace of mind, reliability, and comprehensive insights
What is our primary use case?
My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) cover all the tiers from web application to the database.
What is most valuable?
The feature of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that I prefer most is Insights. I have been using Insights, and it can give me the health of the system, CPU, memory, and everything, allowing me to see everything including security patches, vulnerabilities, and missing patches.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve pain points because it is a stable platform, so I don't have to fix many issues because we're using Ansible to automate everything. Since we have a very stable environment and Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is very stable, we don't have much pain. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) benefits my company significantly because by using it, we are using a stable platform, and all our environments are working as expected.
It has excellent features in terms of security. Everything is there. I just need to deploy it, and we have the SELinux, OpenSCAP, and many tools that I can use to configure the system to make it more secure. For upgrade or migration plans to stay current, we're using the automated LEAP process for migrating from a lower version to the latest version.
What needs improvement?
I see that there's a lot of improvement needed, but I can see that Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 10 has some of the features that I'm looking for.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for eight years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I have peace of mind, so everything with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is reliable and stable.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has helped me to mitigate downtime and lower risks because we have everything in place to mitigate any issues since we have a failover on the other side.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales effectively; all the needs of our company are being met by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
How are customer service and support?
I have experience with customer service and technical support. The experience with customer service has been pleasant, but some of the features that I am looking for are not met, so they're still working on it. I would rate the customer service an eight out of ten.
The knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has improved now because of AI. Previously, when I searched for something, it didn't give me everything, but now I am more satisfied.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
My experience with deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is smooth. We are using an automated process; we're using VMware VRA and Ansible to customize the environment. Everything is smooth in building Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) because we have the process from end-to-end, it's very well-defined, so we don't have any problem deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
We have a hybrid environment with on-premise or cloud deployment. We use all cloud providers.
When it comes to managing my Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems for provisioning and patching, we're using automation with Ansible Automation Platform, AAP, and everything is going smoothly, and I am satisfied with that experience.
I am looking to make the deployment much easier because there's the Image Builder that I prefer, and in building using the Image Builder, all the packages or repositories that I need are inside that feature.
What was our ROI?
The biggest return on investment for me when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is peace of mind; I don't have to worry about the operating system because it's running smoothly as expected.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Security requirements were a consideration when choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) because since we're in the government, I'm the one that set up the compliance requirements, and I deployed using the OpenSCAP, but I cannot tell the profiles as it's confidential.
While using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I have not considered other solutions; we are working on moving to OpenShift, which is still Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as a nine out of ten; I don't give a ten because it's a perfect score.
My advice to other companies that are considering Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is that it is the best operating system currently, so they can use it in deploying their system, wherever they want to deploy the applications.
Package management and upgrades have supported critical application uptime on cloud infrastructure
What is our primary use case?
My main use case for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is as the operating system for all of our applications. I'm our Ansible SME, so we install on top of that and then use that application to manage the RHEL for the enterprise.
What is most valuable?
The features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that I most appreciate include the easy package management and the straightforward upgrades. The stability and support are also impressive.
The benefit that my company sees from these features is significant. In my particular applications, it's not allowed to be down for more than five minutes consecutively, so it's helping me meet my requirement.
What needs improvement?
When considering how Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) can be improved, I would say for the enterprise, having easier hooks for these air-gapped lab environments would be beneficial. The reason why these lab environments are air-gapped is we want to test new things, and we can't have it interact with the rest of our network until it's fully vetted. That's why we have these labs to fully vet those types of things. It's normally a hassle to get RHEL up in those environments until we work out the right treatment.
The improvement would be if there's an easy way to, through that air-gapped environment, entitle the RHEL images.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
In terms of assessing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)'s built-in security features, I find that out of the box, we are able to manage golden images and that keeps us in compliance.
It is very easy to manage.
How are customer service and support?
I haven't had experience with customer service and technical support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) items, but I have on the Ansible side.
The portal is excellent. They integrated OpenShift AI, so sometimes when I'm filling out the ticket, it already has the solution there and I end up not opening the ticket. When I do have to open the ticket, I get a good response. That's on the Ansible side, but I'm sure it's the same on RHEL if I ran into something.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We have considered different solutions, not so much Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) itself. Our company started with mainframe way back and has been long time RHEL customers.
We have looked at different container solutions and things in the Red Hat ecosystem, and Red Hat came ahead in those.
What was our ROI?
From my point of view, the return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is definitely significant.
If we were not able to meet our regulatory impact, we would not be able to do business. It is table stakes.
What other advice do I have?
The advice I would give to other companies that are considering Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) right now is to do a comparison and get feedback from their engineers.
They will see that this is a much more stable platform with a lot of support. I would rate RHEL a 10 out of 10 because it's how we do business.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Easy virtualization simplifies processes and mitigates downtime
What is our primary use case?
My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in this company include running some mission-critical databases, which include Oracle, and one of our document imaging applications.
What is most valuable?
The best feature of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is the easy virtualization on any of the VMware platforms, and now we are also trying on OpenShift, which is very helpful. These features benefit my company by reducing the downtime, which is the main help.
What needs improvement?
I describe my experience with deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as a bit challenging because it is very advanced on the AIX side or HP-UX side in terms of creating the image and directly building a new server or recovering a server; that is still a challenge on the Red Hat side with that rear image, but now they are improving upon that, and I'm hoping Red Hat 10 will have better options.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) can be improved to keep pace with the dynamic world of IT, especially as artificial intelligence and other technologies evolve.
So far, we are very satisfied with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)'s built-in security features when it comes to simplifying risk reduction and maintaining compliance. However, we are exploring further, as there are always challenges, especially when it comes to well-known bugs that need addressing before deployment. I’m expecting more automation in this area. Ideally, it should be handled automatically, allowing us to say, "You don't need to do anything; I’ll take care of that."
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for probably fifteen plus years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has helped mitigate downtime and lower risks because we used a lot of freeware Linux systems before, which posed challenges when bugs came up, leading to struggles when solutions weren't available. With Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and support from Red Hat, if issues arise, we can get quick support and resolution, making it very helpful.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
So far, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales with the growing needs of my company, but we need to see how this next big change towards artificial intelligence will unfold.
How are customer service and support?
The knowledge base on their website and other resources is quite helpful. However, I have faced several challenges with support, not only with Red Hat but also with other vendors. Typically, when we open a support case with Red Hat, it is assigned to the first level of support. Even when we clearly outline the issue and request a timely response, the case often takes longer than expected to resolve. Sometimes, the support team asks unnecessary questions that are not relevant to the issue at hand.
I believe this is not just a problem with Red Hat; many vendors exhibit similar behaviors. There are knowledgeable individuals on the support team who could assist effectively, yet the initial support level often asks basic questions that do not pertain to the problem we're experiencing. It would be beneficial to streamline the process to ensure that appropriately skilled personnel are assigned to cases more quickly.
My experience with customer service and technical support has been mixed; sometimes it has been excellent when we get the right person at the right time, but otherwise, it is always a challenge, even though we pay for the highest support and have a special Account Executive or Account Manager assigned to us.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We mostly used free Linux, but our critical systems were on Red Hat ever since we started migrating from HP-UX, which is not Intel-based, but rather RISC-based systems, even AIX.
What was our ROI?
I expect to see a return on investment once we start migrating from VMs on VMware to Red Hat or OpenShift.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I have not considered switching to another solution that does the same, but there is always pressure from the company to reduce costs. They question why we don't just use free Linux, Ubuntu or other flavors, which we are using, but not for our critical applications. The main difference is support.
What other advice do I have?
Security requirements are always a consideration before choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) because we are living in a different world. I always have upgrade or migration plans to stay current and we are very aggressive about it, except when the application vendor says it's not supported on the new version yet, which is the only bottleneck.
For the management of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems, a lot of processes are currently manual, although we are using some features and trying to do a lot of automation with Ansible, which we just started implementing, to complete the automation process.
We are always very aggressive with upgrades, except when an application states that it does not support the new version. That's the only drawback we face.
For someone considering Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for their company, I advise conducting some kind of PoCs to understand how it works, and I would then recommend going ahead as it represents the future.
I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) an eight out of ten.