Oracle Linux Reviews

We use Oracle Linux with multiple clients for multiple applications.

Over a period of time, feature-wise, functionality wise, the reliability is important for us. 

First of all it is a zero-dollar value, it is free. We only have to pay for support. So it brings down the overall cost. And it is providing the same functionality as any other Linux system that is out there in the market.

Some customers feel about Oracle licensing, while it is free, they are not able to understand the support model for it. They feel the price is high for support. 

I have seen running production systems on it, there is no issue at all, because of the operating system.

I have no experience with scaling, but I believe scalability is as part of it as any other Unix based operating system that is out there in the market.

It is world-class.

It is straightforward and well documented. If people have basic Unix knowledge, they can jump on it. But I would definitely recommend going through the documentation before implementing any operating system in an enterprise environment.

Regarding criteria when selecting a vendor, if I am working in an Oracle world, I would what's important is being "family." If you are using Oracle as a database, using Oracle Linux is a good choice, because you are in the same family. Support is coming from the same vendor. The chances of vendor conflict - for example, being able to pull in people from different vendors; if I'm using Red Hat Linux I would be pulling people from Red Hat Linux, I would be pulling people from Oracle databases - that kind of scenario would not be there. Support would be seamless.

In terms of advice I would say, know your needs first, and if you know your needs, compare Oracle Linux with other operating systems. If you are running Oracle systems, Oracle databases, Oracle Linux is certified by Oracle. I believe all of Oracle is using it internally when building the system. For example, when they're developing Oracle databases or when they're developing Oracle EBS, they're running it on Oracle Linux.

Go for it. Evaluate it, know your needs first, and then see what solution is addressing your need.

We are using the firewall for intrusion prevention, and it has performed well.

It prevents intrusions. It does what it says it will do quite accurately.

It does intrusion protection.

It does not have any reporting on attempted intrusions.

It is perfectly stable; no downtime.

We have scaled it. It is sufficient to meet our needs.

I have not used technical support.

We were not previously using another solution.

The initial setup was a bit complicated, as there are a lot of pieces that you have to look at.

The pricing and licensing are good.

Nobody else was on the shortlist. We chose it because we were using it.

Most important criteria when selecting a vendor: We look at the characteristics of the vendor, then see if they suit us.

Oracle Linux is very easy to use and very easy to configure for other Oracle products. For example, if you use NoteTaker, it's so easy to just get to the part that's the pre-validated package and very easy to script everything. I can get a new machine in a few minutes. Of course, you don't need a subscription, you can use the public key repository, so it makes the installation even easier. I can run tons of Linux boxes like this for all of our QA, for example. I can just spin a new one and that's very nice.

It needs things like OpenStack and LXC containers, support for Docker and resource manager in Docker. However, this is all in their road map and they have it all covered. Even before I find something lacking, Oracle already knows about it and it will get done.

I've used it since version 4.

We've had no issues with deployment.

It's rock solid. It's completely perfect. It's enterprise-grade Linux, so we've had no issues with instability.

I don't really know about its scalability because we don't use it for large installations. We just usually use many smaller ones so we can run independent tests on them.

It's been so stable that I've never had to contact technical support.

It's very straightforward and simple to set up.

We implemented it ourselves without in-house team.

I am using Oracle Linux for running my personal and business applications.

Oracle Linux is a secure solution.

The solution needs to improve there their capability with most of the applications.

I have been using Oracle Linux for approximately one year.

The solution is stable.

Oracle Linux has been scalable.

The time and the number of people you need for the implementation depend on the project. If it is only a small project, then at least one Linux administrator would be fine. However, if it is a larger project, then you have to have a project manager and then at least two administrators.

We have a team that does the implementation of the solution.

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate Oracle Linux an eight out of ten.

KSPlice feature that allows you to install kernel updates within a live environment without downtime.

Less downtime during updates installations.

The documentation of the product can be improved. It often lacks a lot of documentation, but so do a lot of Oracle solutions.

I am not the end customer, but I have been supporting the product for a year now.

No issues encountered during deployment. Very smooth deployment

There were a few stability issues because of the hardware that we used. For the most part, it is a very stable solution.

There were no scalability issues.

I do the technical support with the help of Oracle.

The setup was a straightforward implementation.

The product is a part of an Oracle Enterprise Solution. You only pay for support to use the product. It is a free product.

We wanted to implement a virtualized environment under the Oracle VM for x86. This was the right product for that, so we did not look at any other products.

It is a great product to have. It is even better to run it on Oracle hardware.

The most valuable feature for us with Oracle's Linux product is the online kernel patching.

It gives us the ability to cover kernel bugs by using Oracle Ksplice online patching. The best part is that we can do this whole process without any unnecessary downtime.

In terms of improvement, from my experience the documentation and resources are not complete and I sometimes have to refer to Red Hat for Linux documentation.

Also, because we use HP servers, the drivers for Oracle Linux are not complete yet.

I've been using Oracle Linux for about four years.

I've had no issues with the deployment.

I've had no issues with the stability.

There have been no issues scaling it for my needs.

I'd say that technical support is good.

For the initial setup, you need some expertise to configure a good and stable system.

I perform all Oracle Linux implementations myself. The most important point that I've found is to plan, plan, plan, and then deploy.

The price is good.

New infrastructure for Oracle databases: deployment of several database environments with no issues and in a faster way.

Speed, simplicity, and performance. Every DBA and OS administrator like the simple fact that one RPM install can be very powerful and can configure all prereqs.

Simplicity and agility to deploy Oracle Database configurations with a single RPM and custom tweaks on Oracle Linux kernel.

Improve performance and integration with new releases without affecting the ability and stability of the system.

It's a solution that enables us to deploy a valid distribution of Linux. Regarding looking around for a valid patch, and support, so we can sleep well at night with this release.

The idea is to have something that is coming directly from the vendor, instead of having trouble looking around for solutions. We are supported directly from Oracle and this means we can achieve better stuff.

What is missing on this operating system, but it's missing on any Linux flavor, are the clustering capabilities of Solaris. The best clustering solution is on Solaris. Having this kind of feature also on the Linux side would be a good idea. 

No, problems. A year’s running without problems.

At the moment, for us, this is not important for us because we designed the solution in a proper way. Today I'm not facing this kind of problem.

For sure, choosing a vendor that has been around a long time is important for us. The relationship with the vendor is important, because if you have to run a business on top of this operating system, you need to be sure; you don't want to have nightmares, because production is first of all. Then, all the other stuff.