Linux or Windows for SAP?

May 5, 2016 | All Blogs, Systems

When you are faced with trying to decide between the competitive platform operating systems Linux and Windows for your SAP ERP deployment, it can be difficult to compare the two. In an attempt to find clear and concise comparisons, it is common to find artificial benchmarks and projected results, which may or may not apply to real-world implementations.

In a recent report run by Solitaire Interglobal Ltd., 5,304 different organizations and projects were analyzed to understand the key differentiators between IBM’s PowerLinux and Windows for SAP ERP deployments. In this analysis all customers reported data on availability, costs, staffing, problems and other important factors. All implementations that were included in the study have operated on fully certified SAP deployment platforms, and all customers have maintained a current or -1 level compliance to changes and updates from all vendor components, including but not limited to SAP, hardware and OS components. In other words, these are real-world SAP ERP implementations, by real users and the results are as trustworthy as possible.

The report described several significant characteristics that surfaced from the general analysis of comparing PowerLinux SAP systems to Windows SAP systems, including:

  • Reliability or availability
  • Throughput
  • Resiliency
  • Overall system efficiency

Summary of findings

Availability

The average PowerLinux deployment has 43.2% less downtime than that reported by Windows deployments. This includes both planned and unplanned downtime, which provides a more comprehensive metric than either of the downtime metrics alone.

powerlinux-downtime

Throughput

In the PowerLinux deployments examined within this analysis, throughput averaged 24.1% faster than the Windows projects. This workload is inclusive of actions such as:

  • Network transactions
  • Database services
  • Gateway and portal services
  • File and print

Resiliency

The PowerLinux systems are more than 4 times capable of handling unexpected workload than the corresponding Windows system. Since SAP ERP systems are known for monthly and seasonal spikes in workload, the extra resiliency means that the base platform architecture can be smaller and less expensive than the less resilient system.

powerlinux-resiliancy

Efficiency

The customer production levels of efficiency averaged more than 2 times higher for the PowerLinux systems than for the Windows systems. This appears to stem partially from the resiliency of the platform, which allows a more flexible resource routing and transient workload spike handling, as well as the strong virtualization mechanisms for PowerLinux. Effectively, the PowerLinux platforms can be pushed to a higher level of usage than the Windows platforms, without loss of reliability.

powerlinux-efficiency

Other findings

PowerLinux systems are a favorite for organizations growing by more than 9.2% a year in transaction workload or module installation, or where complexity factors, such as worldwide deployment or user bases that exceed 180 exist.

PowerLinux deployments seem to match well for organizations that have 350-9,000 employees, have 150-720 SAP users, and are running a mixture of workloads and modules. Those systems that are smaller than those user ranges and are coupled with less complex and dynamic environments are well suited for the Windows deployments, rather than the cost of the PowerLinux systems.

Flagship Solutions Group has the expertise to answer any questions you might have relating to Linux and the benefits that can be achieved with IBM Power Systems.  Schedule a consultation today for assistance.

If you liked this blog, you might also like: Get ready. Get set. Linux on POWER is now a real option… Go!

logo-ibmStay connected online:

Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn | Instagram

IBM Power Servers

Why Power Systems To draw insights and make better decisions, businesses rely on the secure, flexible and open platform of IBM Power Systems. Built with the first processor designed for big data workloads, the design of Power Systems combines the computing power, memory bandwidth and I/O in ways that are easier to consume and manage, building on strong resiliency, availability and security.

  • IBM Power Systems Enterprise Pools: Greater flexibility, availability and control for your business

  • IBM’s Enterprise Pools technology – exclusively on IBM Power Systems – enable you to move virtual processor and memory resources easily and conveniently, for virtually continuous server availability and simplified maintenance and system upgrades. See http://www.ibm.com/power/hardware/systempools/

  • Analyst Paper: Optimizing the Hybrid Cloud With Ibm Power Systems

  • Hybrid cloud is fast becoming a reality for enterprises that want speed, predictability and flexibility to support workloads. There are many reasons why companies are looking at a combination of different deployment models. Companies are delivering services to customers through a new generation of applications. To be nimble and proactive, this hybrid cloud model has to be designed to use a combination of deployment models in the right way to create predictability. The hybrid cloud must have a combination of maximum agility and cost-effective deployment. If implemented correctly, the hybrid cloud becomes a business game changer.

  • Infographic: Linux On Power

  • See how Linux on IBM Power Systems™ can help your company control costs, work efficiently and meet service-level agreements.

  • POWER8 Scale-Out: Speedy and Scalable Cache

  • Follow Power Systems on YouTube to see how POWER8 puts the power in YOUR hands and read the blog on CAPI here: http://ibm.co/1AE8OtQ The result of breakthrough innovation, the POWER8 cache introduces a distinct divide-and-conquer design, which drives efficiency by allowing each core to carve out specific cache segments, while contributing to a more efficient, less costly infrastructure.

  • Infographic: Ready to Embrace Your Digital Transformation?

  • Ready to Embrace Your Digital Transformation?

  • Can a chip make the world safer?

  • Take a few seconds and see the waitless way Zato, using the enormous crunching power of POWER8, helped combat global terrorism, scanning terabytes of security data in milliseconds. Find out more at ibm.com/power/waitless

  • Infographic IBM Power Analytics On Power Systems

  • More Power to Transform Business

  • What can Big Data do for you? The momentum of IBM Power Systems continues with breakthrough announcements that put data to work across the enterprise. New IBM Power Systems Solution Editions for SAP HANA make deploying SAP HANA fast and easy with configurations to meet your business needs. The new IBM Power Systems E850 is the most agile 4-socket system in the marketplace with unique capabilities like capacity on-demand. Get ideal linear scalability for in-memory databases, like IBM DB2 with BLU Acceleration, with new IBM Power Systems E870 and E880. And the new IBM PurePower System delivers the most secure converged infrastructure for Cloud with open choice. Find out how IBM Power Systems are built for the Waitless World.

  • IBM® Power Systems™ let you capitalize on customer insight and expand your business

  • Growing data volumes and sources provide unlimited opportunities to increase customer engagement and revenue. Create new revenue sources with IBM Power Systems by analyzing multiple data sources in real time with open and secure cloud technology.Stay in Touch:Subscribe to our YouTube channel: http://youtube.com/ibmpowersystemsFollow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ibmpowersystems

  • POWER8 Scale-Out: CAPI & Hardware Acceleration

  • Follow Power Systems on YouTube to see how POWER8 puts the power in YOUR hands and read the blog on CAPI here: http://ibm.co/1BRB6s6 POWER8 is expanding to new levels of partnership by opening up the CAPI architecture to innovation and customization. Tens of thousands of developers from around the world are now able to work on the platform and build solutions that we could never have imagined.

  • POWER8 Scale-Out: Amazing and Accessible

  • Follow Power Systems on YouTube to see how POWER8 puts the power in YOUR hands and read the blog on POWER8 Cache here: https://ibm.biz/BdEjFv POWER8 clearly stands as the best scale-out system for a business’s rapidly evolving needs. In addition to delivering at least two times the performance of the closest competitor, the overall acquisition costs are 58 percent lower. Inherent efficiencies, made possible by a wide range of sophisticated design breakthroughs allow for a 66 percent reduction in infrastructure overhead.

  • Unleash the Power of Mobile

  • Mobile on IBM Power Systems – http://www.ibm.com/systems/power/solutions/mobile/index.html – offers customers a robust, secure, and agile infrastructure to leverage mobile applications and workloads for their enterprise. When a single Tweet can cause a surge of traffic, make sure your systems never go down. Power Systems helps make sure customers have a seamless mobile experience – providing integration, security and scale.

  • Whitepaper Power Systems And The Mobile Landscape