openSUSE: An overview of the Linux project

The openSUSE project is co­ordin­ated by numerous de­velopers and the SUSE Software Solutions GmbH to create various Linux dis­tri­bu­tions and ap­plic­a­tions which are known for their stability and user-friend­li­ness. openSUSE Leap and openSUSE Tumble­weed are the most popular dis­tri­bu­tions. However, there are other systems available for special re­quire­ments.

There are several different dis­tri­bu­tions available for Linux. Debian and Ubuntu are well known Linux operating systems, however, a joint project from Franconia has been growing in pop­ular­ity in recent years among the members of the Linux community. openSUSE is sponsored by the Nuremberg company SUSE Software Solutions GmbH, while an in­ter­na­tion­al developer community is re­spons­ible for the main­ten­ance and update of the dis­tri­bu­tion. The dis­tri­bu­tions are open source and strive to offer user-friendly and stable options for servers and workplace computers.

openSUSE began in 2005. At that time, SUSE had been producing com­mer­cial Linux dis­tri­bu­tions for more than ten years and had achieved great success. The know-how acquired in this sector was taken and harnessed in co­ordin­a­tion with a committed community to create a free version for private users known as openSUSE. Corporate customers have also be­ne­fit­ted since the in­tro­duc­tion of openSUSE Leap 2015. There is a new release annually, in con­junc­tion with regular updates and security patches. Although SUSE is the main sponsor, the project is in­de­pend­ent and open to all users.

The crossover between openSUSE and SUSE Linux En­ter­prise Server (SLES), the com­mer­cial Linux dis­tri­bu­tion from SUSE, became even closer with the in­tro­duc­tion of openSUSE Leap. The software com­pon­ents are taken from SLES, while ap­plic­a­tions and in­ter­faces are based on openSUSE Tumble­weed. The free dis­tri­bu­tion is binary com­pat­ible with its com­mer­cial coun­ter­part. This ar­range­ment is ad­vant­age­ous to both sides. Users of the free version get an operating system which is almost on par with the paid options, while the input from the large community has been extremely helpful in improving the com­mer­cial system.

openSUSE is one of the most popular Linux server dis­tri­bu­tions as the operating system has met its users’ needs through years of detailed analysis and op­tim­isa­tion. Other than the RPM package manager, the special features which dis­tin­guish openSUSE are outlined below.

YaST stands for ‘Yet another Setup Tool’ and is included in the basic con­fig­ur­a­tion of openSUSE and SLES. The program is used for in­stall­a­tion, con­fig­ur­a­tion, and ad­min­is­tra­tion of the operating system and the various ap­plic­a­tions and is intended to make daily work easier. YaST consists of an in­stall­a­tion wizard, which guides the user through the first steps of the new system, and a control centre, which is useful in the man­age­ment of the dis­tri­bu­tion. Servers can also be set up and managed with the wizard. The setup is very intuitive and makes it easy for Windows or Mac users to get started.

Snapper ensures that no errors occur in the event of any changes in the system. This is achieved by Snapshots. If new software is installed in openSUSE, such as an update or a change in the con­fig­ur­a­tion, a snapshot will be created auto­mat­ic­ally. Other snapshots will be taken at specified times. Therefore, if there is an issue or if a change to the system goes wrong, the user can simply restore the system to an earlier version. This is es­pe­cially ad­vant­age­ous if you want to try out new ideas on the design and op­tim­isa­tion of the Linux dis­tri­bu­tion.

It is not unusual that Linux dis­tri­bu­tions are con­tinu­ously being updated and improved. However, openSUSE gives the user more freedom to decide which system is best for their needs. openSUSE Leap is the right choice for companies which rely on a solid in­fra­struc­ture. De­velopers who always want to be up to date prefer openSUSE Tumble­weed, which is a rolling release that has the latest updates. There are also suitable systems for other purposes.

In addition to YaST, openSUSE provides other useful tools which make the dis­tri­bu­tion user friendly. The KIWI Image System creates shielded server devices or images of the hard disk and generates a virtual machine. The automatic test system openQA enables safe use by con­trolling all the software and com­pon­ents of the operating system. The Open Build Service (OBS) is well known in other Linux dis­tri­bu­tions and helps with the creation and dis­tri­bu­tion of software packages. The tool was developed by the openSUSE community. Gnome, KDE, Xfce, Lib­reOf­fice, Mozilla Firefox, and Opera are also a part of the in­stall­a­tion setup.

openSUSE offers several Linux dis­tri­bu­tions for different purposes and is committed to their continued de­vel­op­ment.

openSUSE Tumble­weed is the flagship of the project and it is the basis for the other dis­tri­bu­tions. Since the in­tro­duc­tion of openSUSE Leap, Tumble­weed has been delivered as a rolling release. Func­tion­al­ity updates are provided daily, so the dis­tri­bu­tion is always up to date. A rigorous testing procedure ensures that the security and stability of the system is main­tained. In this sense, openSUSE Tumble­weed is more suited to de­velopers. The knowledge gained through the up-to-date system gives the user a greater insight into the work with the other dis­tri­bu­tions and the com­mer­cial SLES.

openSUSE Leap de­velopers have provided a free dis­tri­bu­tion since 2015 which is also be­ne­fi­cial for companies. The system runs stably and receives regular security updates. New packages are thor­oughly tested and optimised before they are available for openSUSE Leap. The operating system is binary-com­pat­ible with SLES.

As the name suggests, openSUSE MicroOS is a rather small and min­im­al­ist­ic operating system. It is also based on openSUSE Tumble­weed, but it is intended for edge computing and con­tain­ers. Updates are installed auto­mat­ic­ally, and the previous version is restored im­me­di­ately in the event of an error. openSUSE MicroOS is also suitable for desktop use.

openSUSE Kubic was developed from openSUSE MicroOS and the Computer-as-a-Service platform. Kubic includes the Kuber­netes Cluster Boot­strap­ping tool kubeadm and uses YaST.

openSUSE Medical is an operating system for users in the medical field. The Linux dis­tri­bu­tion is based on the old openSUSE 11.3 system and is designed for managing patient records, pre­scrip­tions and EEG data in practices and clinics.

openSUSE offers users many ad­vant­ages and has become a serious al­tern­at­ive to Ubuntu or Debian. The operating system is also a good choice for companies, es­pe­cially since the in­tro­duc­tion of openSUSE Leap in 2015. Leap is binary-com­pat­ible with SUSE Linux En­ter­prise and both systems are developed in parallel. The stability of the Linux dis­tri­bu­tions is another great advantage. openSUSE is reliable and is suitable for everyday and com­mer­cial use, no matter what the hardware is. Lastly, the various Linux dis­tri­bu­tions are con­sidered very user-friendly and intuitive. It is the community’s goal to provide a system which makes the changeover easier.