Bonum Certa Men Certa

Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 Release: An Overview

HAVING WATCHED very closely the announcements of this product, I finally present what I was able to gather.

We wrote about the release of SLE* 11 on Tuesday and on Thursday, where we separately remarked on Novell's announcement. Here is the official announcement/press release (also in Linux Electrons). We start with Novell's own coverage.

The Spinners



Novell's PR Director, Ian Bruce, wrote about this release and there was a chunk of videos from Grant Ho who works for him.

Except for E-mails that Novell's PR department must have sent to many reporters, here is its direct output from the past week:

  1. It’s here!


  2. Grant Ho Episode 5 - It's here!


  3. We couldn’t do this alone


We covered some more of it before and we usually find that they throw some of that IDC 'study' into it, despite the fact that Novell paid for it too.

In an article that quotes us, SJVN calls SLED/SLES 11 "Novell's marriage of Linux and Windows." "I believe you pronounce SLES as 'sleeze'," says one person in Digg in response to this article.

.NET-savvy or Microsoft-savvy? Microsoft Linux?



Coverage from Jupitermedia was particularly interesting because it treats Novell's submission to Microsoft as though it's all fine and dandy. Here is what Sean wrote:

Novell generates a large portion of its Linux revenues from Microsoft as a result of a November 2006 deal between the two companies. SLES 11 benefits from the Microsoft partnership and will offer at least one feature that no other enterprise Linux distribution has ever had, support for Microsoft's .NET framework.

The .NET support comes by way of the Novell led Mono effort which to date has only been available on community Linux distributions like Novell's openSUSE and Red Hat's Fedora. Red Hat has told InternetNews.com in the past that it was not interested in including Mono with its Red Hat Enterprise Linux release.

Technically, Novell is calling the .NET support, SUSE Linux Enterprise Mono Extension. It's intended to enable users to run fully supported Microsoft .NET-based applications on Linux.


Some corresponding comments can be found here.

Eric Lai, who typically covers Microsoft and its intersections with OSS, wrote an article stating that "With SUSE Linux 11, Novell draws even closer to Microsoft"

The latest version of SUSE Linux Enterprise, Novell's commercial distribution of the open-source operating system, bears more fruit from Novell's controversial two-and-a-half-year-old interoperability alliance with Microsoft.


Here is the comments section where it says:

[A]s much as I like SuSE as a distribution: I'm inclined to avoid it in order to prevent dragging myself into the fray and to watch the situation very carefully to examine what evidence might come forth as to Microsoft's true end goal.


Other Announcement Coverage



Being a major announcement, it has received a lot of coverage. Here is what we netted.

The Inquirer: Novell SUSE Linux 11 out

AFTER TWO YEARS IN THE MAKING, Novell is releasing latest flagship SUSE Linux platform.

Linux, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 11 and SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop (SLED) 11 are the first major updates since SLES and SLED 10 in 2006.


Pam Derringer at SearchEnterpriseLinux.com: SUSE 11 could boost Linux adoption with cloud

Novell SUSE Enterprise Linux 11 debuts today with numerous enhancements that should boost performance in the data center. Novell and IBM also teamed up on a cloud computing initiative that could potentially bolster SUSE Linux adoption in the long term.


Alastair Otter at Tectonic: Novell releases Suse Linux Enterprise 11

Novell yesterday released Suse Linux Enterprise 11 which includes a number of features intended to make the operating system interoperate better with Microsoft’s Windows OS. Major changes in the interests of interoperability include improvements in systems management, virtualisation and document formats.


Desktop Linux: SLE 11 adds enterprise features

Meanwhile, Novell has added a number of enterprise-oriented features and extensions to the new SLE distros, led by the new Mono support for .NET compatibility. Novell points to its somewhat controversial five-year partnership with Microsoft as a key to helping make SLE 11 work seamlessly with Microsoft Windows "in cross-platform virtualization, systems management, identity/directory federation, and document compatibility," says the company.


David Meyer at CNET and ZDNet: Novell releases Suse Linux Enterprise 11 (also in mirrors)

Paula Rooney at ZDNET: Novell delivers SUSE Linux Enterprise 11

Richard Adhikari at ECT: Novell Aims for the Clouds With Suse Enterprise 11

David Berlind at InformationWeek: Podcast: New Rev Of SUSE Linux First To Officially Support .NET, Silverlight

Charles Babcock at InformationWeek: Novell Launches Suse 11 With Eye On Virtual Appliances

Daniel Robinson at VNUNET: Novell ships Suse Linux Enterprise 11 (also in here)

J.A. Watson at ZDNet UK: SuSE Linux Enterprise 11 Released

Kevin McLaughlin at CRN: Novell Takes Wraps Off SUSE Linux Enterprise 11

Liam Lahey at eChannel Line (strongly pro-Novell): Novell ships SUSE Linux Enterprise 11

LinuxQuestions: SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 Released

OSDir: Novell SUSE Linux 11 Release

Heise Online: SUSE Linux Enterprise 11

Heise: SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 released

TechRadar: SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 is here

ITNews( in Italian): IT: Novell presenta SUSE Linux Enterprise 11

OSNews Novell Releases Suse Linux Enterprise Server 11

Zmanda piggybacked this announcement to issue one of its own

Zmanda Delivers Data Protection for SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 from Novell



Zmanda™, the leader in open source backup and recovery software, today announced that its flagship products, Amanda Enterprise 3.0, and Zmanda Recovery Manager for MySQL 3.0 have been certified on SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 from Novell (NASDAQ:NOVL - News), the Linux platform that drives mission-critical computing from the desktop to the data center, for physical and virtual environments.


Beyond the Announcement



The Novell channel peddled a SLE 11 wallpaper and a review came from Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols, who had received a copy of SLED 11 in advance. Being a pragmatist who has been a SUSE user for years, he concluded with:

SLED, with all of its Microsoft integration, isn't a Linux for free software purists. But it is a desktop Linux distro that makes a fine drop-in replacement for Windows at most offices.

Why would you want to do that? Because while there are some things that Windows users take for granted, such as being locked into Microsoft's document formats, there are security threats, such as Conflicker, that could destroy a business. If you want Windows compatibility, but you'd prefer a cheaper and more stable and secure alternative, then SLED 11 is the desktop operating system for you.


Here are SJVN's screenshots and here is long analysis from The Var Guy, who has not tried SLED 11 yet (so he mostly echoes what he hears from Novell or the press).

The Indian press combined news about the economy with this release of SLE.

Strengthening its strategy for open source and Linux, Novell recently announced its latest offering in SUSE Linux - the Enterprise Version 11. The new version comes to the market almost a year and a half after Novell released version 10.


Amy Newman, who writes about virtualisation, asks about the effects on this release from Novell on her area of interest/focus.

On Tuesday, Novell released version 11 of Suse Linux Enterprise Server. Key feature improvements are enterprise Mono support (.NET on Linux), high availability enhancements and a streamlined operating system build geared toward appliance vendors.

Even more significantly, is SLES 11's shift in focus. As virtualization has gained ground, vendors and analysts alike have been eulogizing the operating system. It appears Novell is among the first to take the message seriously.


So that's about all for the time being. Moe reviews will surely come soon.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Tesla's Debt More Than Doubled in 2 Years and the Company Will Operate in the Red (at a Loss) Quite Soon
If your first-quarter net income is $409 million and you borrow billions from banks, plus interest to pay on those loans, then you're not far from returning to losses
Microsoft and Windows Have Many Back Doors, But LLM Slop Keep Claiming That Linux Has "Backdoor"
It's another example of LLM slop as FUD amplifier, via slopfarms as well
 
Links 05/08/2025: Samsung and Microsoft Layoffs
Links for the day
Rumours of Mass Layoffs at Red Hat Next Week (August 11th, 2025)
The eleventh means next Monday
IBM is Shutting Down (Piecewise)
IBM is basically being liquidated
The Debian Language Police Department (PD)
"there has never been complaints about anyone that was offended by this -off package"
When The Register MS Says "Linux Backdoor" It Actually Talks About Malware
The leading story in The Register US/MS this morning is Microsoft
Microsoft Windows Fell to 19% "Market Share" in Montenegro
Microsoft must be well aware of this trend
Why We Also Include Gopher Links in Our Gemini (Protocol) Links
There are still many people who use Gopher to relay their messages (like blog posts). They're mostly technical people.
Shouting is an Indication of a Lack of Convincing Argument
Beware what they are attempting to distract from
Mongolia: Microsoft Windows at All-Time Low
in 2009 when Windows was at 99.45% in Mongolia the company was "worth" less than 200 billion dollars
About a Quarter of Today's "linux" News in Google News Came From One Domain and It's a Slopfarm
Not kidding!
Gemini Links 05/08/2025: Zombie Threat and Switching to NixOS
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, August 04, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, August 04, 2025
ChatGPT in Trouble
Watch out for the newer buzzwords
The Register MS Links to the Wrong statCounter Page
They link to older data
Dr. Andy Farnell Explains How Google Turned From "Librarian" Into "Oracle", Telling Us What to Think Instead of Where to Look
Google was always a lousy librarian
Microsoft Layoffs Continue in August 2025
If Microsoft is doing so well, how come about 10 rounds of layoffs in about 7 months in 2025?
In Many Countries Vista 11 Adoption Stalled or Became Negative
Not just because people move to GNU/Linux
Microsofters' Lawyers Are Name-calling and Insulting Microsoft Critics, Even Their Spouses
How not to win arguments
Flagging or Tagging Slop That We Find Online
Right now we use ImageMagick
Links 04/08/2025: Very Bad Weather and Travel Restrictions in China
Links for the day
Gemini Links 04/08/2025: Misiamisia and Mobile Linux
Links for the day
Microsoft's Stock is Like a Religion, Microsoft Goes Into 'Hiding' (From Shareholders)
like a religious person or devout believer, the media just parrot anything Microsoft says
Links 04/08/2025: 80 Years Since Last Nuclear War, IPv6 in China
Links for the day
Groklaw Static Site Relaunches With New Theme, But Many Pages and All the Comments Are Missing
We suppose that's still a lot better than the site being offline, as it was for several months
"For Five decades; For freedoms; For all users" (Original EMACS Turns 50 Next Year)
Linus Benedict Torvalds was only 6 when EMACS started
In Spain, Microsoft's Search Engine Market Share Fell to 2%
16 years have passed since Bing was introduced
Protecting GNU/Linux-Centric Journalism From Serial Sloppers
Unoriginal slop is taking away traffic from the people who did all the real work
It Looks Like Managers at Oracle Now Use LLM Slop to Write Blog Posts
Did he cheat by prompting LLMs for mindless text "filler"?
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, August 03, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, August 03, 2025
Gemini Links 04/08/2025: Qubes OS and Curious crypto case of certificates (CCCC)
Links for the day
They Tell Us That "Cloud Storage" is Safe and Robust to Incidents Like Fires
Do you have backups? Where are they and who controls them?
"Allowing SDL to default to Wayland caused a number of customer issues so keep the default at X11 for now"
2025 is another year of Wayland ambitions. It's also a year of self-fulfilling prophecies.
In The United Kingdom (UK), Microsoft Search (Bing) Falls to All-Time Low
Grow? What grow??? It's collapsing.
GNU/Linux Reaches 5% in Oman
Some GNU/Linux distros are made in Oman
Google's "AI Mode" is a Pathetic Joke Prematurely Introduced in the UK (Like "Bard", Which Sank the Company's Shares)
what Google "thinks" about PCLinuxOS
What the Free Software Foundation Started Four Decades Ago is Becoming Mainstream
"Four decades; Four freedoms; For all users"
Doing a Better Job at Labelling Slop Images
we'll label screenshots that contain slop, typically with red-coloured text overlay
Social Control Media is Out of Style
What's your excuse for wasting time on (or in) it?
Maldives: GNU/Linux at All-Time High, Windows at New Lows
data from statCounter shows a reassuring trend
Efficiency is Good, So Why Won't Governments Cull LLM Companies Using Stronger, Stringent Policies?
Like every bubble that ever existed, including some recent ones, an end will come
The Defunct Site LinuxConfig Has Published a Fake Article About Richard Stallman Using LLM Slop, Which Stallman Calls "Bullshit Generator"
Worse yet, it is writing using a "Bullshit Generator" (the term used by Stallman) about Stallman's health
Microsoft Windows Falls to All-Time Lows in Morocco and Algeria
About 70% or even less
StopGenAI in the Cyber Show (C|S)
covering a theme that we too covered a lot lately
Gemini Links 03/08/2025: Once-a-Decade Couch Shopping and Blessings in Disguise
Links for the day
Links 03/08/2025: Political Catch-up, Global Warming, and Hunger
Links for the day
Brittany Day Entered LLM Slop Into LinuxSecurity.com and Something Hilarious Happened: The Site is "Exploited"
The brainless, effortless copypasta of "slop artists" shows its limits
Links 03/08/2025: Microsoft Exchange 0-day Exploited and Avoidable Nuclear Escalation
Links for the day
Next Month 'New Techrights' Turns Two
Next month, on the fourth week, it'll be 2 years since the migration
Definitely Not a Ponzi Scheme
Bitcoin v Microsoft
Online Safety Act Tries to Accomplish the Impossible
All I can say is, "good luck with that!"
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is a Billionaires' Lobby
Billionaires that control tech companies
Microsoft Borrows 3 Billion Dollars Per Month, a Company Truly Worth Trillions Would Not Do This
if Windows (and Office) "market share" fell from about 90% to barely 30%, how come Microsoft is now "valued" at 20 times more?
It's Even Worse Than Microsoft Lunduke Puts It; GNOME is SLAPPing Journalists
In our experience, GNOME is so malicious - some elements of it in particular - that it would launch multiple simultaneous SLAPP campaigns not only against journalists but also their spouses
GNU/Linux Adoption Reaches All-Time Highs in Chile, statCounter Indicates
This month marks 4 years since Vista 11 came out (as a fake "leak") and some surveys still measure its adoption at less than 40%
Slop Will Not Change the World
Some of us grow up sooner and leave that nonsense behind (or altogether avoid/skip it)
Gemini Links 03/08/2025: Nostalgia and TOFU
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, August 02, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, August 02, 2025