Linux topics and virtual customer events

Naturally, SAP and Suse were eager to see how the established global customer events Sapphire Now and Susecon would be received by the SAP community as purely virtual events this year due to the Corona crisis.

In general, it can be said in retrospect that the events were a success: It was worthwhile to use a virtual format with an admittedly limited event program and to cancel the events altogether instead. Even if here and there the technology did not play along one hundred percent.

Suse was able to record a multiple of registrations for Susecon and thousands took part and are still taking part. At SAP, an estimated mid-five-figure number of people registered for the Sapphire Now Converge virtual event and left their contact information.

Projects remain

For the community, and especially for SAP users, it is clear: Covid-19 has stopped IT projects in many places. However, not completely. And: Planned projects may have been postponed, but not cancelled.

Innovations, realignments, future investments or progress remain; because, after all, the technologies exist as a basis for SAP IT operational optimization or for increases in business efficiency and can be used to the advantage of companies. If not now, then certainly later.

It's a fact: customers, partners or interested parties from the SAP community are keen to know what's going on; in which direction the strategies and solutions are going; or: which existing concrete partner solutions are already being used beneficially by which customers, and how or to what extent. SAP is at the heart of many system landscapes, and customers need up-to-date and helpful information, as well as demonstrations, to keep their critical systems running smoothly. Even a global crisis does not change this, making virtual education work more indispensable.

Call off on demand

There were a total of 31 SAP-related sessions at Susecon Digital, most of which can be accessed on-demand (at virtually any time).

Several sessions address or deal with the use or deployment of the leading and recommended operating system Suse Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) for SAP Applications for Hana and Hana-based solutions such as the business suite technology successor S/4 Hana.

For example, within an online presentation of a time-reduced migration with low downtime at the well-known dm drugstore chain in the direction of Hana or S/4 and from IBM AIX (and Power) to Suse SLES for SAP as the Hana operating system platform.

Or using S/4 with SLES in conjunction with Nutanix HCI. Or - without Hana reference - also building and using a NetWeaver-based SAP Classic solution in the AWS cloud with SLES for SAP for SAP customers who want to use the new extended 2027-2030 SAP Classic support.

Incidentally, the use of SLES for SAP in a hybrid operating environment with on-premises and the use of a public cloud can be found on SAP's Sapphire Now Converge pages, specifically in the SAP Business Technology Platform Channel.

Here Suse participated as a sponsor. Among other things, this took the form of a video interview with a French SAP user named Engie, who profitably uses SLES for SAP Applications for Hana and S/4 projects on both the on-prem and public cloud sides and from whose success other customers can learn.