SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications (SLES for SAP) is the edition of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server that SUSE sells for running SAP software. Like other SUSE products, its code is open source and what the customer buys is a time-bound Subscription for support, updates and upgrades, counted in the Units of Measure that the SUSE Product Appendices set for each offering.[1][2] SLES for SAP shares Appendix A with plain SLES, but several rules apply only to it: what a SLES for SAP Subscription may run, a dedicated rule for SAP workloads on KVM, and Extended Service Pack Overlap Support (ESPOS) bundled into the Subscription.[1] The general Subscription model is described in SUSE Linux Enterprise and Rancher Prime subscriptions and the contract in SUSE licensing.
Editions
The Matrix of SUSE Products lists these SLES for SAP offerings, all Stackable and all under Appendix A:[1]
| Offering (Matrix name) | Unit of Measure |
|---|---|
| SLES for SAP Applications with Live Patching, 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines (x86-64 or ppc64) | 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines |
| SLES for SAP Applications, x86-64, 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines | per 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines per Physical Server |
| SLES for SAP Applications, POWER, 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines | 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines per Physical Server |
Appendix A also describes a SLES for SAP Subscription “with 1-2 Sockets or 1-2 VMs”.[1] Since 2021-07-01 the Live Patching variants have replaced the plain 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines Subscriptions for SLES for SAP on x86-64 and Power, without affecting Subscriptions bought before that date.[1] From 2025-11-01, Live Patching is built into newly introduced SLES and SLES for SAP part numbers, and entitlement is decided by the part number bought: legacy part numbers do not gain Live Patching “regardless of the purchase date”.[1] SLES for SAP Subscriptions that begin on or after 2025-11-01 also entitle the customer to Subscription Benefits for SUSE Multi-Linux Manager Lifecycle Management+.[1]
Metrics
SLES for SAP uses the two socket-based SLES Units: 1-2 Sockets or 1-2 Virtual Machines and 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines.[1] Every Physical Server, Virtualization Host or Virtualization Environment on which the product is deployed, installed, used or executed must have a Subscription, and except for Arm Subscriptions, Units do not distinguish single-core, multi-core or multi-threaded Processors.[1] The “1 Virtual Machine” Unit available for SLES “cannot be used for the deployment of SAP workloads”.[1] Catalog: 1 Virtual Machine.
Counting / floors
What a SLES for SAP Subscription may run
A SLES for SAP Subscription is wider than a SLES Subscription:[1]
| Subscription | May run |
|---|---|
| SLES for SAP, 1-2 Sockets or 1-2 VMs | Any combination of SLES for SAP, SLES, or SLES with the High Availability Extension, on a Physical Server or as guest VM |
| SLES for SAP, Unlimited Virtual Machines | As host OS: SLES for SAP, SLES, SLES with the High Availability Extension or SUSE Linux Micro, or a third-party VM host. As guests: any combination of the same four |
| SLES, Unlimited Virtual Machines (for comparison) | As host OS: SLES or SUSE Linux Micro, or a third-party VM host. As guests: SLES or SUSE Linux Micro |
The reverse does not hold. “A SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Subscription must not be used as Subscription for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications.”[1] The Subscription Terms repeat this as a no-mixing rule: Subscription Benefits for SLES may not be applied to SLES for SAP.[2] Because SLES with the High Availability Extension is among the products a SLES for SAP Subscription may run, while the list for a plain SLES Subscription does not include it, the SAP Subscription is the one that reaches High Availability cluster nodes.[1]
One product for coverage
The coverage requirement treats every product with “SUSE Linux Enterprise” or “SLE” in its name as one SUSE Product. A customer with a SLES Subscription “must also maintain Subscriptions for all of your installations or deployments of SLES for SAP, and vice versa”.[2] An organization cannot leave its SAP hosts unsubscribed on the grounds that its general Linux estate is covered, or the other way round. Where deployed Units exceed paid Units, the customer must report the excess and order Subscriptions within 30 days of first deployment.[2]
Changing deployment type
When the deployment type changes during a Subscription period, the customer must hold the highest-valued Subscription that matches its deployment types. An Unlimited Virtual Machines Subscription may be used for a smaller 1-2 Sockets or 1-2 VMs deployment, but a 1-2 Sockets or 1-2 VMs Subscription may not be used for a deployment that needs the Unlimited form.[1] A Physical Server may not mix 1-2 Virtual Machine and Unlimited Virtual Machine Subscriptions; all Subscriptions on it must be of the same type.[2]
Virtualization & partitioning
SAP workloads on KVM
Appendix A sets a specific rule for SAP workloads on KVM-based Virtualization Hosts in a customer-owned environment, or in a single-tenant environment that a managed service provider runs exclusively for the customer:[1]
- All Virtualization Hosts running SAP workloads must have a current SLES for SAP Applications, 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines Subscription. Plain SLES, or any other Subscription that is not SLES for SAP, “is not permitted” for SAP workloads on KVM.
- The Subscription allows unlimited VMs per 1-2 Sockets on each subscribed host, Stackable on hosts with more than two Sockets, and must be bought for every Virtualization Host capable of deploying SUSE Products in the Virtualization Environment.
The rule reaches hosts “capable of” deploying SUSE Products, not only those running them at a given moment. A KVM cluster in which SAP guests can migrate between hosts needs every host covered.[1]
IBM Power sub-capacity
On IBM Power, sub-capacity pricing is available for Subscriptions based on a 1-2 Socket charge metric, and Appendix A names SLES for SAP Applications for Power among them. Sub-capacity uses PowerVM methods such as dedicated LPARs, dynamic LPARs and shared processor pools.[1] The count is the Socket Pair Equivalent: the whole Processor Cores available to the Subscription divided by the Cores per physical Socket Pair of that Physical Server, with fractions rounded up. Appendix A’s example is an eight-Socket server with ten Cores per Socket and 40 Cores assigned to SLES for SAP on Power: 40 divided by 20 gives two Subscriptions.[1] The calculation must be made for each Subscription on each Physical Server, because Cores per Socket vary between Power servers from 8 to 12.[1]
Cloud / BYOL
The Subscription Terms let customers use SUSE Products in Public Clouds certified by SUSE and transfer on-premises Subscriptions to them (Bring Your Own Subscription), after registering the Subscription in the SUSE Customer Center. The customer consents to the cloud vendor reporting its SUSE usage to SUSE.[2] A 1-2 Sockets with Unlimited Virtual Machines Subscription may be deployed with a Cloud Services provider authorized by SUSE under BYOS, but only as 1 or 2 Virtual Machines, not with unlimited Virtual Machines, and not at the same time as on a Virtualization Host.[1] The unlimited-VM benefit of a SLES for SAP host Subscription therefore does not carry over to a public cloud.
SUSE’s lifecycle page shows separate image timelines for SLES for SAP pay-as-you-go (PAYG) images in the public cloud. Images pass through Active, Inactive and Deprecated states before deletion, and new workloads should not be deployed from inactive images.[3]
Programs
ESPOS and LTSS
The SLES for SAP Subscription (x86-64, ppc64le) includes ESPOS, which extends the Subscription benefit period for a Service Pack on the same conditions as LTSS.[1] SUSE’s lifecycle policy gives SLES for SAP 12 and later 4.5 years per Service Pack: 1.5 years of General Support plus 3 years of ESPOS. LTSS is therefore needed only for the final Service Pack of a release.[3] For SLES for SAP, an LTSS Subscription extends the benefit period after ESPOS expires, and needs a matching Current SLES for SAP Subscription and registration in the SUSE Customer Center.[1] During ESPOS and LTSS, SUSE’s table of LTSS flavours shows no support for new deployments and no enhancement requests.[3]
SUSE Rancher for SAP Applications
SUSE Rancher for SAP Applications is counted like SUSE Rancher Prime, by Cores and vCPUs for virtualized deployments and by Sockets and Cores on bare metal.[1] A Rancher Prime Subscription may not be used for Rancher for SAP Applications, but a Rancher for SAP Applications Subscription may be used for Rancher Prime.[1]
Internal use and verification
Each Subscription is for internal use and benefit only, on infrastructure owned, leased or managed by or for the customer, unless partner usage rights are acquired.[2] Customers must keep records of use during the Agreement and for two years afterwards, the Verification Period.[2]
Out of scope
- SLES for SAP list prices and any SAP-resold SUSE entitlements, which are set in the Transaction Document.
- SLES for SAP on Arm and z Systems, for which the Matrix lists no SLES for SAP offering.
- High Availability Extension pricing for plain SLES nodes.
- Technical content of SLES for SAP, such as SAP HANA tuning and cluster configuration.