I have been a sysadmin handling everything about Red Hat Enterprise Linux, primarily for on-premises environments. I have built projects based on Red Hat Enterprise Linux, including development and support projects in the companies. I have handled pretty much everything. Anything you can imagine, I have probably done with it.
Linux HPC Systems Administrator at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Reliable patch management, high uptime, and incredible knowledge base
Pros and Cons
- "I enjoy the patching processes and the way Red Hat Enterprise Linux has elements set up. I have never had a patch session fail, even when installing a thousand packages at a time."
- "Their security library is well-maintained."
- "I wish IBM would give them more leeway. IBM seems to have restricted Red Hat Enterprise Linux more since the acquisition."
- "The organization moved away from Red Hat because IBM introduced paywalls and additional barriers that did not exist before, which made everything a lot harder."
What is our primary use case?
How has it helped my organization?
In terms of security, it does a lot of things that most people still turn off. SELinux is turned on by default. They have pretty good firewall rules in their defaults. The audit rules always take tweaking, but, overall, it comes out of the box not too bad. I used to write scripts to harden them from there.
There are multiple ways to provision and patch. You have everything from local repositories to doing it by hand.
Their knowledge base is incredible. There is so much information out there. It has never taken me longer than 30 minutes to find an answer to anything, even very tough ones.
One company I worked for was a security company, and we did a lot of patching on everything. It was designed around security and email hosting, and uptime was pretty much whatever we wanted it to be. I have had a couple of times when the uptime was bad, but it was caused by a third-party solution. In fact, the Norton antivirus was definitely the worst. Red Hat had nothing to do with it.
What is most valuable?
I enjoy the patching processes and the way Red Hat Enterprise Linux has elements set up. I have never had a patch session fail, even when installing a thousand packages at a time.
Their implementation of Yum is effective. I have used it quite a bit to pull additional information out because, for a while, I was doing security work. It is nice to have all the security information they provide on the inside. Their security library is well-maintained. I have used it exclusively for 15 years now, and I have been nothing but happy with it.
What needs improvement?
I wish IBM would give them more leeway. IBM seems to have restricted Red Hat Enterprise Linux more since the acquisition.
The organization moved away from Red Hat because IBM introduced paywalls and additional barriers that did not exist before, which made everything a lot harder. They moved from there to the Rocky version, which is a fork of Red Hat. It is run by people who have left IBM or Red Hat engineers who left IBM. Giving Red Hat Enterprise Linux more independence could be beneficial.
Buyer's Guide
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
September 2026
Learn what your peers think about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: September 2026.
916,582 professionals have used our research since 2012.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux exclusively for about 15 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It has demonstrated great stability, with systems running for multiple years without issues. I have no problem with uptime. It is as long as you want it to be.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It offers excellent scalability. The HPC system that the organization runs is a small one, but it has 8,000 computers. Each computer has at least 24 to 72 CPUs in it, and everything runs on Red Hat Enterprise Linux or Rocky. It is eminently capable. They run jobs because they do some of the hurricane forecasting and things. The things that they run on it take 900 nodes and 70,000 CPUs. You walk into that data center, the air comes out of the floor at 50 degrees. By the time it gets through the computers, it is about 110, so they are working them hard. The room itself stays at about 90.
How are customer service and support?
Before the acquisition by IBM, support was incredible. I could directly engage with developers and get immediate assistance. It was great.
I have not had a lot of experience with them post-acquisition. At this point, the entire department is moving to Rocky. It is not a huge change for me, but a part of the move was the lack of support through IBM.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
The company we are contacted with has just moved from Red Hat to Rocky, which is Red Hat-based. It is a fork of Red Hat, so it is like all Red Hat derivatives. It is binary compatible. You can do anything you want with it. For the things the organization does with the HPC environment, it is a lot nicer because there are fewer restrictions. Open source works best for HPC environments. You have to recompile a lot of drivers and things to get things to work. Being able to do that is critical in that business.
How was the initial setup?
For the most part, upgrades and migrations are very straightforward. In one of the cases, it was very straightforward to install the OS, but it was a lot more problematic to find all the pieces that ran the underlying hardware and get those working right. We had to do a lot of testing between lots of different versions of both the OS and the hardware drivers before we found good combinations. From what I hear, going from Red Hat to Rocky was a lot cleaner than going from Red Hat 6 to Red Hat 7. That was a big change.
In terms of maintenance, for the most part, once you get it set, you can walk away from it.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I do not have any insights, but I know why the prices went up. At the time, it made sense. I do not know what the pricing is like now. Previously, the pricing model was advantageous as it allowed unlimited installations for a single price, focusing on support. The recent introduction of paywalls complicates the cost landscape.
What other advice do I have?
I have used the web console, but I am more of a command-line person. I did not see a lot of use for it, but I have used it in the HPC world because you can do some things that are handy, such as pulling in entire groups of things and building them as a boot group. It is nice to have when you need it.
Overall, I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Founder at Asynka
Using robust security and detailed documentation has improved our enterprise operations
Pros and Cons
- "The best features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are its stability and the RPM, Red Hat Package Manager, which is perfect."
- "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is very expensive. It is not suitable for an SMB company; it is not payable or affordable."
What is our primary use case?
I use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), and we have a couple of customers using OpenShift, the Kubernetes platform based on Red Hat, and also Red Hat Virtualization. My first contact with the Linux platform was with Red Hat.
What is most valuable?
The best features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are its stability and the RPM, Red Hat Package Manager, which is perfect. They also deliver Satellite, a platform for updates. It is a very robust, excellent platform.
For me, and for every Linux distribution, the most important security feature in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is SELinux. Security is often misunderstood by others. SELinux is very important because it provides security for the kernel. Many people disable SELinux, but it is the most important and most misunderstood feature. People do not understand it. The updates and SELinux are very important to me. SELinux is very good, but it is complex, and I have seen many administrators disable it because instead of helping them, it causes trouble. For example, securing my NGINX configuration is a pain. It is a very good security option, but I would say it is excellent only if one is an expert.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) documentation is very good and very complete. Regardless of my opinion about the IBM acquisition, the documentation is excellent.
What needs improvement?
IBM committed two major mistakes with Red Hat. The first was destroying the CentOS project, which was a fork of Red Hat. The second was limiting the use of free options and restricting hardware to support Red Hat on just some limited hardware. One can use the system for free, but the statement is not entirely true because it is limited to a couple of virtual processors and I do not remember if it was 24 or 16 GB of RAM. If one goes beyond that configuration, one has to pay, and IBM is IBM. Many companies were in trouble because from one day to the next, IBM said they would no longer support CentOS and told them to move to another distribution. People had to migrate, and for that reason, there are Rocky Linux, AlmaLinux, and other Linux distributions that are trying to rise and taking advantage of that situation. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is just for corporate companies with money to waste on licensing.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is very expensive. In the case of our customers, the couple of customers with OpenShift, they have enough money to license Red Hat. They bundle Red Hat with virtualization and OpenShift packages. However, it is not suitable for an SMB company. It is not payable or affordable. For me, it is very expensive.
For how long have I used the solution?
I use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a lot, though I do not remember the exact frequency.
How are customer service and support?
I have worked with Red Hat support, and it is very good because they have very good engineers. In Latin America, during my time, the support in Spanish was mostly provided by engineers from Argentina. In Colombia, I have worked with a couple of engineers from Colombia, and they were very good. I have not worked with support in English for Red Hat, only in Spanish with those engineers.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
What other advice do I have?
My first Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) certification, Red Hat Certified Engineer, was for version 6, which was approximately 12 to 15 years ago.
I have tried Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Image Builder and System Roles, and it is pretty good.
I would rate the support at an eight out of ten. My overall rating for this product is ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Other
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
Buyer's Guide
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
September 2026
Learn what your peers think about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: September 2026.
916,582 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Senior System Engineer at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
Systems remain reliable and secure with prompt updates and reduced downtime
Pros and Cons
- "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is stable and secure; these are the two biggest factors that drive our usage."
- "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve pain points."
- "Reducing the frequency of changes would help."
- "Cloud licensing is confusing. We have subscriptions available to us, which is why we opted for bring-your-own-subscription. However, even then, the options make deployment difficult since we need to ensure the OS is registered to our satellite system for subscription management, not through the cloud services."
What is our primary use case?
My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are for work and business-critical applications.
How has it helped my organization?
My company benefits from these features as our systems must remain operational. When systems go down, it results in significant monetary losses per hour, so having RHEL running and security patches available quicker than other distributions is crucial for maintaining satisfaction.
What is most valuable?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve pain points. It's a good server operating system, better than all the alternatives, with full support and stability whereas many other Linux distros may be more flighty and not as stable.
It's more reliable, more stable, and doesn't break down. Stability is the feature of RHEL that I appreciate the most since systems remain operational without rebuilds. Security and stability are definitely important aspects.
We manage our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems for provisioning and patching using Red Hat Satellite for patch management, which is acceptable but could use some modernization, and we also use Ansible for configuration management. I'd prefer to see those two tools work better together, and if we could use configuration as code for Red Hat Satellite, it would make it even better.
I have been involved in RHEL upgrades and migrations in general. The process typically involves rebuilding and migrating; we rebuild the OS and migrate. We have tried the upgrade-in-place method, but it can be very lengthy and has more room for errors. Generally, we build new and migrate over first, and if we can't do that, we'll do the upgrade-in-place for applications that people understand, really just needing the same setup as before.
What needs improvement?
I would suggest to RHEL to maintain vigilance on vulnerabilities and resolve them more quickly. People compare other operating systems based on vulnerabilities. I know that RHEL is stable, but other teams might look at the overall vulnerability counts. Maintaining performance is also important; RHEL has very good performance, so maintaining those fundamentals is crucial as that's what people sometimes seek.
To make it a perfect ten, I would suggest there is always room for improvement; reducing the frequency of changes would help. There are always significant changes, such as with SystemD, and I understand that's more of the community driving much of this change. Other changes are coming through, such as changing command names. Maintaining backwards compatibility would help turn a nine, which is already very good, into a ten.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for approximately 12 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is stable and secure; these are the two biggest factors that drive our usage.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales very with the growing needs of my company. It can natively handle however many servers we need to deploy.
We can manage anything we need to do, and now that we can do it all as code, that enables scaling. RHEL natively works very with code, and everyone that manages Linux in our company does it either through command line or code, which differs from the Windows experience and helps us scale.
How are customer service and support?
The customer service and technical support of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is good. That said, it depends on who you get and how they understand our problems. Sometimes our problems are simple and sometimes very complex. Generally, we're able to get our issues resolved with minimal intervention or administrative burden.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We consider other solutions while using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), and we're constantly looking at other vendors. Their products aren't as good; they might be less expensive, however, they aren't as fully developed.
How was the initial setup?
Cloud licensing is confusing. We have subscriptions available to us, which is why we opted for bring-your-own-subscription. However, even then, the options make deployment difficult since we need to ensure the OS is registered to our satellite system for subscription management, not through the cloud services.
What about the implementation team?
We decided to bring our subscription instead of purchasing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) on AWS Marketplace.
What was our ROI?
From my perspective, the biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is its stability and support, with stability being a core fundamental.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
My experience with pricing and setup costs indicates that licensing is confusing in the cloud. We have subscriptions available to us, which is why we opted for bring-your-own-subscription.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Some other solutions we consider include Canonical and Ubuntu, which sometimes perform better in the desktop world since they have support for desktop distributions. SUSE is another option we consider; those are the big three, and we wouldn't consider anything outside of that group extensively.
What other advice do I have?
On a scale of one to ten, I rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Threat Engineer at Proficio
Granular access controls have strengthened security testing and streamlined user administration
Pros and Cons
- "The business value of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is quite high, as it provides excellent availability and never crashes, so the machine performs reliably when I need it, resulting in very few downtimes."
- "I would like to see improvements in the CLI, making it somewhat easier instead of the complicated commands that are currently used."
What is our primary use case?
I mostly use Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for security purposes, conducting security testing, cyber security testing, and general administration purposes, including maintaining accounts.
What is most valuable?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) offers extensive customization options that I can tailor to my specific needs. I love the customizability and adaptability.
The knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is quite comprehensive and vast. I search through it and use AI to resolve any queries I have.
The most important security feature in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is the excellent administration policy regarding which user can access which file and what type of permissions I can assign. I appreciate this as a local IAM system.
The IAM feature is most valuable for us because we have around 200 to 300 users, and it can be difficult to track which people have what type of privileges. This feature provides a very neat and detailed view of the privileges that people are assigned.
What needs improvement?
I would like to see improvements in the CLI, making it somewhat easier instead of the complicated commands that are currently used. Keeping it simple and easy to remember would be beneficial.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for three years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is very stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Regarding scalability, I find Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) to be quite scalable and does not require much time for scaling.
The only concern is the costing when it comes to cloud instances.
How are customer service and support?
I have never escalated any questions to the technical support or customer service teams regarding Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have not used any different product for operating systems before.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup process for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) was straightforward.
What about the implementation team?
I completed the setup and deployment myself.
What was our ROI?
The business value of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is quite high. It provides excellent availability and never crashes. The machine performs reliably when I need it, resulting in very few downtimes.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Regarding the pricing aspect of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I mostly use free resources and have not procured any license. I prefer to use open-source options and maintain my own set of rules.
With the open-source nature of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), the measurable benefits I have seen are primarily cost benefits. It is highly customizable and saves considerable time because I do not need to explain what I want to anyone; I simply conduct research and implement those features into my instances.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I chose Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) because I am familiar with it and receive good updates and security updates.
What other advice do I have?
I have not worked with LEAP or Red Hat Insights yet.
I have mostly worked with Red Hat Enterprise Linux Image Builder and System Roles. System Roles have been helpful for me as I started using them recently. I previously limited some resources in my systems by using only a specific percentage of available hardware resources and reducing bloatware, which involves resource controlling.
I have never tried Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in a hybrid environment. I mostly connect to some instances in the cloud through SSH but have never used hybrid solutions.
Until now, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has not helped me solve specific pain points, except for using the command line terminal and assigning many different permissions to accomplish one task.
The controlled updates and patches save a lot for me regarding Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
From a features perspective, there are no missing features that I would see included in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in the future.
I obtained Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) directly from Red Hat. My overall review rating for this product is 9.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: Sep 24, 2026
Flag as inappropriateSpecialist Cloud and Infrastructure at LTI - Larsen & Toubro Infotech
Red Hat Enterprise Linux isn’t just about stability—it’s about giving enterprises peace of mind with proactive security, automated management, and effortless patching.
Pros and Cons
- "More applications are adopting a Red Hat way of operating. I personally observed many application teams port their applications to Red Hat due to these vulnerability considerations."
- "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales ahead of the game with the growing needs of my company."
- "When considering ways Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) could improve, I often hear from the SUSE side that Red Hat isn't certified quickly enough with the SAP workloads. This is something Red Hat should start considering."
- "Red Hat isn't certified quickly enough with the SAP workloads."
What is our primary use case?
Our primary use case for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) revolves around running and managing critical enterprise workloads. We rely on RHEL’s stability and security to support key applications, including Oracle databases, EBS (Enterprise Business Suite), and NMS (Network Management Systems).
One of the standout advantages of RHEL in our infrastructure is its integration with Ansible, which allows us to automate configurations, streamline patch management, and reduce manual intervention across multiple systems. This automation helps us maintain consistency, enhance security, and minimize downtime.
How has it helped my organization?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has significantly enhanced our organization's efficiency, security, and automation. As the foundation for our enterprise workloads, RHEL provides a stable and scalable platform that ensures high availability and performance across critical applications. One of the biggest improvements we've seen is through Ansible, which has helped us automate configuration management, deployment, and patching processes. This has not only reduced manual workload but also minimized the risk of human errors, leading to a more resilient infrastructure.
What is most valuable?
One of the most valuable features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for our organization has been its simplicity and automation capabilities. Managing enterprise workloads can be complex, but RHEL streamlines this through Ansible, allowing us to automate configurations, deployments, and patching. This has significantly reduced manual intervention and improved operational efficiency.
Security is another critical factor, and RHEL’s robust vulnerability management ensures continuous updates for Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs), keeping our systems protected. The integration of Red Hat Insights allows us to proactively identify and mitigate risks, strengthening our overall security posture.
Additionally, the stability and scalability of RHEL have been essential for supporting key applications like Oracle databases, EBS (Enterprise Business Suite), and NMS (Network Management Systems). The long-term support and extended lifecycle maintenance ensure smooth operations, minimizing downtime and disruptions.
Overall, RHEL’s combination of automation, security, and reliability has enabled us to optimize infrastructure management, improve security, and maintain seamless operations for mission-critical applications.
What needs improvement?
One significant area for improvement is SAP certification and compatibility. Many large enterprises rely on SAP workloads, and RHEL’s limited official certifications for certain SAP solutions create challenges for businesses looking for seamless integration and performance optimization. Expanding certification coverage and tuning RHEL for SAP applications would strengthen its positioning in enterprise IT landscapes.
Another key improvement would be user-friendly patch management. While RHEL provides strong security updates, further enhancing the patching process—especially with live-patching options—could minimize disruptions and make the update workflow even more intuitive for IT teams managing large deployments.
Additionally, expanded cloud-native support would be beneficial as organizations continue shifting toward hybrid and multi-cloud environments. Strengthening native integrations with cloud service providers, optimizing containerization tools, and improving Kubernetes compatibility could boost RHEL’s efficiency in cloud deployments.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for the last ten years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
One of the key contributors to its stability is the predictable release cycle and long-term support. Red Hat provides extended lifecycle maintenance, allowing organizations to run workloads without unexpected disruptions. Additionally, the continuous security updates and proactive vulnerability management reinforce system integrity, reducing potential risks and downtime.
Moreover, RHEL’s robust package management system, combined with Ansible automation, further enhances stability by ensuring consistent configurations across multiple deployments. The ability to automate patching and system updates significantly reduces errors that could impact performance.
Overall, RHEL stands out as a highly stable and dependable solution, making it an excellent choice for enterprises seeking a secure, scalable, and resilient operating system.
How are customer service and support?
The knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is excellent. You just need to search for your concern, and the answer is right there most of the time, and it's accurate. If something isn't there, support is also good. If you log a ticket, the response and the level of attention that you get on a support ticket is very good.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We are in both the cloud and on-premises with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). On the cloud, we use Azure. On-premises, we have VMware and Nutanix.
I wasn't involved in discussions about considering other solutions before choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for my company, however, if that decision came to me, I would have chosen Red Hat since I have previous experience with Red Hat in my last organization.
We did have SUSE before we chose Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). We still have SUSE since SAP workloads run on SUSE, as they have better collaboration between SAP and SUSE. We tried changing that to Red Hat maybe a year ago, however, the response from the SAP team was not supportive as they wanted to go with SUSE due to some licensing and support models that were not clear to me.
How was the initial setup?
The transition is straightforward. The documentation is great. It's accurate. If you have a Red Hat account, you have access to knowledge articles.
We're on the cloud and on-prem.
What about the implementation team?
We don't use AWS for purchasing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
What was our ROI?
One of the key areas where we see ROI is through automation with Ansible, which has helped us streamline deployments, patching, and configuration management. This has significantly reduced manual effort and minimized human errors, leading to higher productivity and cost savings.
Another major factor is security and vulnerability management. RHEL provides continuous updates for Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs), ensuring we remain protected against emerging threats. The ability to implement proactive security measures has reduced downtime and the costs associated with mitigating security incidents.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
When considering setup costs, pricing, and licensing for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I always advise others to evaluate their organization's scale, workload requirements, and long-term support needs.
RHEL follows a subscription-based model, which ensures access to continuous security updates, patches, and support rather than a one-time licensing fee. While the upfront cost may seem higher compared to some alternatives, the value comes from its predictable pricing, enterprise-grade security, and extensive support ecosystem.
For organizations with large deployments, leveraging Red Hat Satellite and Ansible automation can help reduce administrative overhead, making the investment in RHEL more cost-effective in the long run. Additionally, Red Hat provides different pricing tiers based on usage—ranging from standard support to premium offerings, allowing businesses to tailor the subscription to their specific needs.
For startups or smaller teams, I often recommend exploring Red Hat Developer subscriptions, which provide access to RHEL for development and testing at a reduced cost. Similarly, cloud-based RHEL instances through AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud offer flexible pricing models, allowing businesses to scale efficiently without heavy upfront infrastructure investments.
Ultimately, I advise organizations to conduct a cost-benefit analysis, factoring in security, automation, and long-term stability rather than looking solely at initial setup costs. RHEL's value extends beyond pricing—it’s an investment in reliability and enterprise support."*
What other advice do I have?
No
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Solutions Architect at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
High availability and automation enable significant time savings and reduced downtime
Pros and Cons
- "The features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that I appreciate the most include the most recent iterations such as no-downtime patching, live patching, and the ability to snapshot or snapshot LVM's; these features are more of a Linux capability, however, they have been really beneficial to us."
- "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales fantastically with the growing needs of our company."
- "If I had to suggest one improvement for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), it would be clearer licensing information."
- "There could be easier licensing paths for Red Hat; currently, it's included with many different things, yet just more clearly defined skews would help."
What is our primary use case?
Our main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) currently involve general server workload, including numerous Oracle-based workloads.
What is most valuable?
The features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that I appreciate the most include the most recent iterations such as no-downtime patching, live patching, and the ability to snapshot or snapshot LVM's; these features are more of a Linux capability, however, they have been really beneficial to us.
High availability has been extremely beneficial for us to support. These features benefit our company by providing less downtime. We are not taking downtime to do patching on tier-one systems, and we spend less manpower and time to perform the types of automation and management that would normally take considerable time to accomplish hands-on, resulting in significant time savings.
Security requirements are always a consideration in choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in the cloud. Anytime we make any decision, security is definitely one of the foremost considerations we have taken place.
The biggest thing we look for is the ability to abide by STIG, as we do, and then apply our NIST policies as well as our defined HIPAA policies; Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) makes that a really easy process through the automation aspects.
We manage our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems for provisioning and patching using a combination of VMware vRealize for actual deployment, and then we use Ansible Automation for the day-two configuration and lifecycle. Once software deployments and configurations are all Ansible automation, it couldn't work any better for us. As long as you have a coding background and understand YAML, Ansible works fantastically.
What needs improvement?
If I had to suggest one improvement for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), it would be clearer licensing information. There could be easier licensing paths for Red Hat; currently, it's included with many different things, yet just more clearly defined skews would help. That's the main consideration.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have used Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for a total of about a decade now.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Regarding stability and reliability, our experience is that we don't have to reboot our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) servers as we do with Windows servers every 90 days for something bad.
We only have to reboot our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) servers for updates or some unusual code push. We can count on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) just as we can count on Cisco UCS.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales fantastically with the growing needs of our company. We have clustered our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) servers, and as far as size, they far outweigh anything else in the environment.
Our largest clusters run on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), and we continue to see that as we grow, it is able to grow with us.
How are customer service and support?
I would evaluate the customer service and technical support of this solution as being excellent when we need them.
The information in the knowledge base is so readily available that we don't very often have to contact customer service, however, when we do, they are generally very knowledgeable and well-versed in our size.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Before we chose Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for the first time, we were mostly using Windows. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) was really our first enterprise Linux that we brought into the environment under the enterprise scale.
What was our ROI?
The biggest return on investment when using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is the manpower; it's the ability to automate significant management tasks. That is the biggest ROI on the amount of time we spend managing this system, as we can take that time back and dedicate it to other types of innovation.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
My experience with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)'s pricing, setup costs, and licensing has been pretty consistent, and honestly, compared to the rest of the market, it's pretty fair.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We've certainly considered other solutions before choosing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), including open source; we do use a bit of open source such as Rocky Linux, which most are going to be Red Hat derivatives. We also looked into other options, however, for anything tier one or most tier two, our current tier-one environment is Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). From a stability and supportability standpoint, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a clear winner.
What other advice do I have?
Currently, I can't say that Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) necessarily supports our hybrid cloud strategy; what it does do is make the deployment of several deployments and conception models much easier for us to consider versus having to do custom imaging for our cloud presence.
It helps us bring down the amount of time it takes us to deploy.
On a scale of 1-10, I rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) an 8.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Ingeniero en sistemas en infraestructura at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Linux has streamlined middleware deployments and has reduced incidents across environments
Pros and Cons
- "A concrete result I have observed after the migration to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is that deployments are now much easier, going from about six to ten days down to three days for delivering a complete environment across development, testing, and production, while incidents caused by antivirus issues, library blocks, and application blocks that prevented installation or access to the operating system were completely eliminated."
What is our primary use case?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is used in my organization primarily to install platforms and middleware, such as WebLogic or WebSphere. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) makes it easier to install and run platforms like WebLogic or WebSphere because the installation is more transparent and less complex, and it can be automated more easily with commands.
What is most valuable?
The best features offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) include scalability and ease of use. The aspects of scalability and ease of use that are most valuable for me in my day-to-day work with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are that it integrates much more easily with automation applications. Java-based platforms run better on those platforms. Antivirus solutions are less invasive on that type of operating system, and the code is more stable and less prone to crashes or instability of the operating system.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has positively impacted my organization as we have practically migrated to installing middleware applications on Red Hat. It is much simpler, there are no library conflicts, there are no conflicts with antivirus, and they are more stable.
A concrete result I have observed after the migration to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is that deployments are now much easier. They went from about six to ten days down to three days for delivering a complete environment across different environments: development, testing, and production. Additionally, the incidents that always caused conflicts with antivirus issues, library blocks, and application blocks that were not allowing installation or access to the operating system were completely eliminated.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is an extremely stable operating system. It is very open in terms of integration with other applications and migrations, and the applications developed for this type of operating system or that support these operating systems are more stable for a financial company like the one I work for.
What needs improvement?
At the moment, I do not think there is any functionality, documentation, or support that could be optimized. I have not had any problems with it. In fact, external documentation is very extensive, which is a big advantage because you can find documentation through searches on the internet itself.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in my organization for approximately four years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is an extremely stable operating system.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The aspects of scalability and ease of use that are most valuable for me in my day-to-day work with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are that it integrates much more easily with automation applications.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I give Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) a rating of 10 because I used to work with Windows and found too many integration issues. Even though it is visually easier, I prefer working with the command line and the stability and scalability.
What other advice do I have?
I use VMware as the private cloud provider to deploy Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). I hardly handle patching in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), but Satellite is used for patching and updates, and I am satisfied with that management experience.
I have not tried tools like Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Image Builder or System Roles, so I cannot speak to how useful they are.
The knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is extremely useful and truly well documented.
The most important security features in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) include user levels, which have very good restrictions at the file level and at the execution level and obviously at the modification level. Additionally, viruses are still very restricted.
An example of a specific situation in which these levels of restriction and security have made a difference for my organization is that end users try to delete files, and it does not allow them. The audit features, which it handles very well, allow you to track down any problem, any execution or modification.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve challenges and pain points in my daily work regarding integration and interaction with artificial intelligence. I gave this review a rating of 10 out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Private Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Other
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: May 12, 2026
Flag as inappropriatePlatform Engineer & Manager at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Automation has reduced downtime and supports reliable zero‑disruption deployments
Pros and Cons
- "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a robust operating system, and I believe it is much better than Windows."
What is our primary use case?
I am currently working with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as I administer a lot of Kubernetes clusters installed on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
For Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I use it as an operating system for our platform which powers all our company's software, mostly for Kubernetes or for IBM BPM or IBM PEL.
What is most valuable?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a robust operating system, and I believe it is much better than Windows. I work with Windows and Ubuntu, but Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is the best distribution I have worked with.
The knowledge base offered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is excellent. Red Hat documentation is the most valuable documentation in the market.
For Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), I think the most time-saving aspects come from Red Hat Ansible because we use Ansible to automate many tasks and repetitive tasks on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and Windows. Ansible automation and the Ansible automation platform are the most valuable products that save us time and money.
Overall, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me save time through automation using Ansible. For OpenShift, the core of containers saves time by automating the DevOps processes using the Red Hat pipeline built into OpenShift, Tekton, and source-to-image build. All of this saves us time.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps to mitigate downtime and lower risks for me, as most of my work is with OpenShift which enables us to do a zero downtime deployment. The deployment is done without any downtime. Red Hat OpenShift is a stable system. Red Hat OpenShift and Linux are very stable and the downtimes are very minimal.
What needs improvement?
I think Red Hat needs to implement more AI features in the operating system or Red Hat OpenShift.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for about 14 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is very stable. The product is very stable and very mature. All issues are documented in documentation or in the support portal and support knowledge base. When I have an issue, I primarily search the knowledge base and the support portal and find the solution. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a very secure operating system, and they provide security patching every month.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I find Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scalable.
How are customer service and support?
We have many cases where Red Hat helped us with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) or OpenShift, and their support is great. On a scale of one to ten, where ten is the best, I would rate the tech support a nine.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Most enterprises work on Linux, and as I am a DevOps and platform engineer, most of our systems run Linux, including Kubernetes, OpenShift, and the DevOps pipeline, all working on Linux. This is why I switched to Linux.
How was the initial setup?
For Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), the setup is very straightforward. OpenShift is a little complex, but once you do it once, you will master it.
What about the implementation team?
I performed the deployment all by myself.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
When it comes to our business value, most of our customers are enterprise-grade customers from banking and government sectors, and they prefer to use an enterprise-grade operating system, not Ubuntu or CentOS. Additionally, in many cases, we need enterprise support from Red Hat as Ubuntu does not provide this.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Software Dev at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Commands and packages have supported automation through shell scripting and cron job management
Pros and Cons
- "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales very well with the growing needs of my organization, and within on-prem, it's very easy to scale it, so we've never had any problems."
What is our primary use case?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) on and off for at least 10 years, as I've changed many companies. My main use cases for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are mostly on the server-side for deployment.
What is most valuable?
The features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) that I most appreciate are the inbuilt commands and the packages that come with it, which are pretty helpful for us, as we usually deal with a lot of shell scripting. These features benefit my organization by allowing us to write cron jobs and related tasks.
What needs improvement?
I don't have much to say about how Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) can be improved.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working in my current field for 20 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve the pain point of periodically needing to keep it updated, but apart from that, it's very stable, which is one of the best things about it. We have already expanded usage.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales very well with the growing needs of my organization, and within on-prem, it's very easy to scale it, so we've never had any problems. The process has been smooth; even on-prem, it's all automated, and we are using OpenShift, so using that software makes it very easy to scale.
How are customer service and support?
I evaluate customer service and technical support from Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) as very good; I have personally called customer support and was surprised at how easy it is to get a hold of someone. It was easy for them to come to a solution.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Prior to adopting Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), my company was using different Linux environments before moving to RHEL, although mostly the companies that I've worked in have always used Linux for deployment.
How was the initial setup?
The deployment model for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) includes both on-premise and cloud, as we are using OpenShift for on-prem and cloud also.
What about the implementation team?
We have our migration and upgrade team which manages Linux; as soon as the new, stable version of Linux becomes available, we try to update our Linux version to the latest.
What was our ROI?
I have seen a return on investment with the solution; in our team, we have noticed that the cost doesn't increase drastically, and it's a very stable product, although this is not my domain since mine is very specific, mostly development.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Before selecting Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), my company considered different Linux environments, as I have worked in Fedora, Red Hat, and Ubuntu, but I feel most companies now are adopting or going with RHEL due to its stability and better pricing; again, this is not my domain, I can just surmise.
What other advice do I have?
My advice to other organizations considering Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is to go for it, as it's a pretty stable product. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) overall around an 8.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Saves time with automation and improves operational efficiency
Pros and Cons
- "By using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), our team saves approximately 10 hours per week on routine patching and monitoring housekeeping tasks, which allows us to focus more on innovation topics."
- "Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is stable and secure, but I think one area for improvement is that licensing should be automatically updated, particularly in multiple environments."
What is our primary use case?
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) regularly in my current role since 2021, and I leverage RHEL for our daily Linux administrator administration tasks, orchestration tasks, patching, monitoring, and self-healing, while ensuring compliance with all security standards. From a product perspective, RHEL's robustness allows us to use Ansible, Jenkins, and ArgoCD to optimize our CI/CD processes, and we manage more than 50 clusters across five regions: Amer, Paris, Hong Kong, North Singapore, ensuring all deployments are secure. It is reliable and offers enterprise support, making it suitable for scaling workloads in both on-prem and cloud environments.
I have been using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) on a daily basis as a foundation for my DevOps and Kubernetes infrastructure tasks, where it stands out as a primary tool for managing clusters. I regularly monitor system administration tasks such as patching, performing OS level troubleshooting on RHEL servers, and executing kernel updates on a monthly cycle, all while leveraging automation using Ansible. For monitoring, we utilize Prometheus, Grafana, and Kibana to visualize performance metrics, health checks, and set up alerts for CPU, memory, and disk usage on RHEL nodes. Regarding container orchestration on Kubernetes, we are responsible for deploying and maintaining workload shifts on OpenShift and Kubernetes clusters, which are built on RHEL nodes to ensure stability and scalability. Thus, RHEL is a core VM for both Kubernetes and OpenShift, with OpenShift being the main focus to ensure our infrastructure is stable and ready for daily use.
What is most valuable?
The best features I have seen in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) include its scalability, enterprise-grade security, and stability. It incorporates features such as SELinux, kernel live patching, and RBAC systems, making it very reliable for production environment workloads, allowing for automated cycle processes akin to Kubernetes, which can manage itself over long-term stability, demonstrating good, consistent performance along with integrated Linux support via Ansible and OpenShift. Thus, RHEL is a trustworthy platform.
Compared to other operating systems, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is specifically designed for production environments. It integrates tightly with OpenShift, Ansible, and other tools that others cannot deeply support. RHEL seamlessly works in hybrid cloud and container platforms, and in comparison to Windows, RHEL provides greater flexibility for containerization and DevOps-related tools, making it a more reliable option.
In Societe Generale, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has helped us maintain a secure environment across our container platforms through SELinux and kernel patching, which has directly lowered the risk of downtime and improved trust in the system. Notably, the ability to automate server patching and manage cluster upgrades has eliminated the need for manual intervention, significantly reducing errors and saving several hours of work. As a result, our team can focus on more innovative topics rather than repetitive tasks, leading to improved deployment times and increased reliability by around 20 to 25%. Overall, RHEL has made scaling applications in hybrid cloud environments much smoother, positively impacting my organization by providing a stable and secure platform.
By using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), our team saves approximately 10 hours per week on routine patching and monitoring housekeeping tasks, which allows us to focus more on innovation topics. The time saved has led to improved knowledge among the team on how to create pipelines and better support application teams, thereby positively influencing delivery timelines and productivity.
What needs improvement?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is stable and secure, but I think one area for improvement is that licensing should be automatically updated, particularly in multiple environments. Additionally, a faster GUI experience would save time, which would enhance usability.
From the suggestions for improvements, I would advocate for simplifying license management and providing a more efficient web console that can run RHEL faster. Furthermore, built-in tools for monitoring and automation should be made easier to grasp, as we create many dashboards using Grafana, which are much needed.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working in my current field for more than four years.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have only used Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and did not evaluate other options, as RHEL is very stable and designed according to its lifecycle. My consistent experience with RHEL underpins its foundation for OpenShift and Kubernetes clusters, supporting critical applications without unexpected failures, especially with Ansible handling our patching, which contributes to better stability.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
From an organizational perspective, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) pricing is justified for entry-level support, especially given the long lifecycle of kernel patching. Once deployed, RHEL demonstrates smooth operations that considerably reduce long-term operational costs. Utilizing RHEL with automation saves both time and money by preventing manual patching and minimizing downtime, allowing users to focus on more valuable tasks. Despite the initial setup effort, once implemented, RHEL significantly delivers savings in both money and time through automation, resulting in smoother daily operations.
What other advice do I have?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) exhibits high scalability, as adding more CPU, memory, and storage to a single system is seamless within my organization, enabling applications to scale easily across on-premises clusters. I could rate its scalability between 8 to 10 on a scale, as it provides enterprise-grade stability and flexibility for workload scaling in various environments, whether they consist of a few servers or thousands. The primary area needing improvement is the speed of scaling operations.
My advice for others considering Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is to take full advantage of its automation capabilities and how the system is set up. Utilizing tools such as Ansible can save considerable time across patching, upgrades, and other administrative tasks. I recommend focusing on RHEL's scaling capabilities compared to other operating systems and highlighting the efficiency of the monitoring tools available, such as Prometheus and Grafana. Thus, I believe RHEL is an excellent choice for facilitating organizational growth and enabling smooth scaling without issues. I rate this solution 9 out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Other
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Updated: September 2026
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