SLES Updates and unsubscribed version

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server SLES Updates
1

Hello,
I have a cluster running under SLES 11 SP3, and i need to send jobs to it with a VPS. So I need to run a SLES 11SP3 or a compatible OS on this server but sadly i cannot afford the subscription to SLES (The answer would be easy other way :slight_smile: ).
The idea would be to compile/install programs and dependencies on a shared filesystem (between the cluster and the VPS) from the VPS and run them on the cluster.

So I would have some questions :

On the suse FAQ i can read :

[QUOTE=https://www.suse.com/products/server/frequently-asked-questions/]
How much does SUSE Linux Enterprise Server cost?

There is no license cost for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, and you can download the operating system for free from http://download.suse.com. SUSE charges a small fee, however, for support and maintenance.[COLOR="#FF0000"] A paid subscription to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server comes with major benefits—immediate delivery of upgrades, patches and security fixes;[/COLOR] access to award-winning SUSE technical support; IP indemnification; and much more. For our current pricing and more information about our Basic, Standard and Priority subscriptions, please visit http://www.suse.com/products/server/how-to-buy/.[/QUOTE]

When i read what i colored in red, I understand that there is a “non immediate” way to get updates even with a non subscribed version of SLES, is it the case? And if yes, how?

My second question is, if it is not possible to legally update a non subscribed SLES version at all, can i try to setup my installation with an OpenSUSE OS on the VPS (the closest version to the SLES 11 SP3 version i can find)? Basicly, would binaries compiled on OpenSUSE XX.X be able to run on SLES 11 SP3?

If yes, is there somewhere i can find all the specs of each SLES/OpenSUSE versions so i can take the closest one?

Thank’s in advance!

2

Hi
You can use the Open Build Service to build rpms…
https://build.opensuse.org/

Or you can create you own local instance of OBS and build in a closed
environment.
http://openbuildservice.org/

Or with an OBS account you can build locally via the command line
utility called osc and pull the required SLE 11 SP3 packages down to
build your binaries.

Now, these are not built against any updates, only what’s on the SLE 11
SP3 DVD and SLE 11 SP3 SDK.

The openSUSE builds are close, but not close enough to be compatible in
most instances, so I would not recommend trying to use openSUSE rpms.

So you could build an openSUSE 13.2 instance and install the osc and
build your SLES 11 SP3 binaries with out too many issues. In saying
that the updates provide many security fixes, so for example building
something that requires SSL would be suspect if not built against the
latest version etc…

–
Cheers Malcolm °¿° LFCS, SUSE Knowledge Partner (Linux Counter #276890)
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 12 GNOME 3.10.1 Kernel 3.12.32-33-default
If you find this post helpful and are logged into the web interface,
please show your appreciation and click on the star below… Thanks!

3

On 01/28/2015 07:24 AM, loic bourg wrote:[color=blue]

Hello,
I have a cluster running under SLES 11 SP3, and i need to send jobs to
it with a VPS. So I need to run a SLES 11SP3 or a compatible OS on this[/color]

It may be helpful to define what you mean by VPS as, to me, it means
Virtual Private System, which means a container like those implemented by
LXC/Docker/OpenVZ. Also defining what cluster software you are using may
be helpful as most here use the SLES HAE stuff, which also requires a
subscription for updates.
[color=blue]

server but sadly i cannot afford the subscription to SLES (The answer
would be easy other way :slight_smile: ).
The idea would be to compile/install programs and dependencies on a
shared filesystem (between the cluster and the VPS) from the VPS and run
them on the cluster.

So I would have some questions :

On the suse FAQ i can read :
https://www.suse.com/products/server/frequently-asked-questions/ Wrote:[color=green]

How much does SUSE Linux Enterprise Server cost?

There is no license cost for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, and you can
download the operating system for free from http://download.suse.com.
SUSE charges a small fee, however, for support and maintenance. A paid
subscription to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server comes with major
benefits—immediate delivery of upgrades, patches and security
fixes; access to award-winning SUSE technical support; IP
indemnification; and much more. For our current pricing and more
information about our Basic, Standard and Priority subscriptions, please
visit http://www.suse.com/products/server/how-to-buy/.[/color][/color]

Patches are available from https://download.suse.com/patch/finder assuming
you can get to them with your login. Whether or not you can MAY depend on
subscriptions, or may not. Whether or not doing so indefinitely is legal
or not is something you should ask your lawyer as I have no idea.
[color=blue]

When i read what i colored in red, I understand that there is a “non
immediate” way to get updates even with a non subscribed version of
SLES, is it the case? And if yes, how?

My second question is, if it is not possible to legally update a non
subscribed SLES version at all, can i try to setup my installation with
an OpenSUSE OS on the VPS (the closest version to the SLES 11 SP3
version i can find)? Basicly, would binaries compiled on OpenSUSE XX.X
be able to run on SLES 11 SP3?[/color]

Maybe, but it depends on a lot more than just versions of openSUSE or
SLES. Different versions of critical packages like glibc, libstdc++, etc.
often get in the way. With that in mind, a lot of packages are compiled
for both, such as those in the Open Build Service (OBS) which you can
easily search at https://software.opensuse.org/ and which will show you
all applicable distros for the relevant packages you enter.
[color=blue]

If yes, is there somewhere i can find all the specs of each
SLES/OpenSUSE versions so i can take the closest one?[/color]

Your best bet for matching SLES and openSUSE is to use SLES 12 and
openSuSE 13.2, I believe.

–
Good luck.

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show your appreciation and click on the star below…

4

Thank’s malcolm i did not know about OBS :)!

ab, by VPS i meant Virtual Private Server, and i think i was not very clear about my setup.
I have access to a cluster, that I found out running under SLES 11 SP3.
This cluster is managed with SLURM, and I can only send jobs on it through ssh by command line (I dont have root access on it).
I dont know much more about how is ran this cluster.
Now, the VPS is at the moment under Ubuntu 12.04, and have a shared filesystem with the cluster (and i have root access on it).
The thing is, I need to run a webbased platform on the VPS that will send jobs to the cluster using scripts and data that are on the shared filesystem. The scripts can be in globally any language.
As you can imagine, the dependencies are different on both systems, which at the moment is leading to obviously, trouble.
So I would like to be able to install dependencies and programs on the shared filesystem and running them on the cluster, while not being able to afford a SLES version for the VPS.
I was thinking of trying with an openSuse12.3 version that I could modify, but i am not sure that it is a good idea.
Also, do you know if i can modify this critical libraries/packages that you were talking about so they match?
Any idea would be really welcome here, as I am really struggling with that right now :/.

Also, apparently you need a subscription to access the patches. So by “immediate” i guess they only refere to the annual service packs?