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Kali Linux vs Oracle Solaris comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
8.5
Kali Linux provided cost-effective vulnerability testing, enhancing system security and efficiency, while integrating with DevOps and facilitating faster learning.
Sentiment score
5.8
Oracle Solaris enhances ROI with integration, ease of use, troubleshooting efficiencies, despite concerns about costs and limited feature benefits.
Integrating Kali Linux with DevOps tools has resulted in reduced operational costs due to automated test cases, making it a worthwhile investment with significant returns by decreasing the attack surface area and the frequency of attack incidents.
I have saved time by avoiding the lag I sometimes face on the TryHackMe in-built machine, and I have learned more efficiently.
In terms of ROI, there have been performance improvements because Oracle Solaris is lighter.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
4.6
Kali Linux support relies on active community forums, offering reliable guidance and documentation, with limited traditional support.
Sentiment score
5.2
Oracle Solaris support is reliable with 24/7 service, though some users find self-resolution faster than official assistance.
The technical support by Oracle is good.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.0
Kali Linux offers strong scalability, efficiently supporting single to multiple users for both personal and professional environments.
Sentiment score
6.9
Oracle Solaris offers robust scalability and adaptability, excelling in both vertical and horizontal scaling for large enterprises.
Regarding vertical scalability, Oracle Solaris is probably one of the most scalable operating systems in the industry.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
Kali Linux is highly praised for its stability and reliability, particularly in virtualization, despite occasional system-specific issues.
Sentiment score
8.4
Oracle Solaris is renowned for its high stability, reliable security, and minimal crash occurrences compared to other operating systems.
 

Room For Improvement

Kali Linux needs better automation, AI integration, user interfaces, security, and community engagement for improved user experience and compatibility.
Oracle Solaris users seek better compatibility, modernization, open-source support, and enhanced documentation, with improved interfaces akin to Linux.
If real-time customized port scanning can be added, for example, instead of a default port such as 8080 or 443, if we can use a customized port such as 9876, that capability would be great.
Making Kali Linux more customizable would allow users to personalize it to their style.
Making it more user-friendly and encouraging the use of GUI tools can significantly enhance the overall experience.
They either have to do cross-platform migrations, which are costly solutions, or they have to change many things.
Oracle Solaris needs to improve its compatibility with office tools like Excel.
 

Setup Cost

Kali Linux is free and open-source, offering cost-effective tools without licensing fees, except for potential setup costs.
Enterprise buyers find Oracle Solaris competitive yet costly, valuing integration and security but noting complex licensing and setup expenses.
Kali Linux is free software, an operating system that's available to download without any cost or licensing fees.
My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing for Kali Linux has been positive, as it operates under an open-source model.
I find the pricing of Oracle Solaris to be affordable compared to competitors like Windows.
 

Valuable Features

Kali Linux offers robust tools, security, scalability, and efficiency, enhancing penetration testing and reducing cybersecurity threats effectively.
Oracle Solaris excels in virtualization, security, and performance with features like Zones and ZFS, offering reliable cloud readiness.
Kali Linux has positively impacted my organization by improving efficiency in penetration testing; its open-source nature permits extensive customization and inclusion of numerous comprehensive pre-installed tools, contributing to a secure network environment with effective monitoring of network applications.
The overall focus on security in Kali Linux is what I find most useful.
Kali Linux has the capability of real-time data scanning for vulnerability assessment for backend services.
Additionally, regarding security, you do not have to implement any antivirus software.
The operating system is lightweight, which makes it easier to use on an average computer compared to systems like Windows.
 

Categories and Ranking

Kali Linux
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
16
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Oracle Solaris
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
52
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of Kali Linux is 3.0%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Solaris is 1.9%, down from 3.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Operating Systems (OS) for Business Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Oracle Solaris1.9%
Kali Linux3.0%
Other95.1%
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

Aditya Pillai - PeerSpot reviewer
Has helped me learn penetration testing through hands-on tasks and faster workflows
It would be helpful if Kali Linux could be involved in more systems or laptops. Windows is a standard for many laptops and comes pre-installed on many devices available in the market. If Kali Linux could do the same and increase their reach to better areas, it would be beneficial. They could improve Kali Linux's UI/UX. They have been following a standard UI/UX. They could add more options, similar to how CachyOS distro of Arch Linux has many different UI options to select from. Making Kali Linux more customizable would allow users to personalize it to their style. Many users utilize Kali Linux through virtual machines. Sometimes Kali Linux has issues detecting hardware such as inbuilt or external Wi-Fi adapters. Improving device detection would be beneficial.
Prabir Kumar Kundu - PeerSpot reviewer
Experience robust performance and security for large organizations
For big organizations who look for performance, better security, and better manageability, I usually recommend Oracle Solaris. It is not recommended for smaller organizations because you need a specialized person to manage this operating system. Linux can be managed by anybody. However, maintaining Oracle Solaris, creating clusters, and tuning at the OS level needs a specialized resource. Smaller organizations may not have those resources, or it will be too costly for them to maintain. Everybody is moving towards the cloud. I am not sure how they are going to do that because it is going to be a dead product already compared to its competitors. I would recommend Oracle Linux instead of Oracle Solaris now. On a scale of 1-10, I rate Oracle Solaris a 9.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
13%
University
12%
Computer Software Company
12%
Educational Organization
11%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise7
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business21
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise31
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Kali Linux?
I use the tool with Nmap to perform network audits. We use it to find vulnerabilities in our network through attacks. It's for those who want to launch or create viruses or perform attacks on syste...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Kali Linux?
Kali Linux offers a perpetual license, meaning you pay for it once and can use it. While free versions of Linux are available, Kali Linux, being an enterprise edition, usually comes with a perpetua...
What needs improvement with Kali Linux?
We don't know if Kali Linux has the port scanning capability yet, but that is an area of improvement because we are working with DMZ zones and customized ports. If we can add featured customized po...
How does Oracle Linux compare with Solaris?
When comparing Oracle Linux and Solaris, I believe that Linux is more secure and more flexible. It is also very suitable for enterprises that are already Oracle solution users. I found Linux to be ...
What do you like most about Oracle Solaris?
We use the solution as an internal operating system.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Solaris?
I find the pricing of Oracle Solaris to be affordable compared to competitors like Windows.
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

No data available
Solaris 11, Solaris
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Siemens, IVV
Find out what your peers are saying about Kali Linux vs. Oracle Solaris and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,202 professionals have used our research since 2012.