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!

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