This document covers frequently asked questions around support, migration andlicenses when running SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) on Compute Engine.

General FAQs

This section answers general questions about SLES on Compute Engine.

What is SLES on Compute Engine?

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) on Compute Engine are any SLES images that are optimized to run onGoogle Cloud. You can use these SLES images to migrate and modernize yourSLES workloads on Google Cloud by taking advantage of the scalability,security, and performance of Compute Engine. For more informationabout Compute Engine, see theCompute Engine overview.

What versions of SLES are available on Compute Engine?

For a full list of the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) versions that areavailable on Google Compute Engine, seeoperating system details.

Is SLES for SAP Applications with high availability (HA) available on Compute Engine?

Yes, SLES for SAP Application with HA is available on Compute Engine. For a fulllist of the SLES versions that are available on Compute Engine, seeoperating system details.

What's the difference between SLES and SLES for SAP Applications?

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) is a highly scalable, secure and enterprise class performant enterpriseoperating system for general Linux workloads.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) for SAP Applications is a Linux platform that is uniquely optimized for SAP Netweaver, SAP HANA andSAP S/4 HANA solutions with high availability, HANA replication, automation andmonitoring components included.

How are the public SLES images made available on Compute Engine?

SUSE, in partnership with Google, builds and maintains the SLES images thatare available on Compute Engine.For images that are in SUSE's "General and Extended support" phase, SUSEpublishes image updates such as CVE-security, packages, and other service packupdates.

• For more information about image updates, see theSLES: automatic updatessection on the operating system details page.
• For detailed information about support phases, see theSUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) Life Cycle.
• For more information about the image lifecycle on Compute Engine, seeOperating system lifecycle and support policy.

Are there any differences between SLES on Google Cloud and other versions that I run in my data center?

Fundamentally, no. SUSE maintains the versions of SLES and SLES for SAPApplications that are available on Compute Engine, and the base OS isidentical to the version of SLES available for installations on physicalhardware. The versions available on Compute Engine include additionaltooling and metadata that is needed to run and manage SLES VMs on theGoogle Cloud Platform.

How does billing work for SLES VMs on Compute Engine?

There are two cost components for SLES VMs running on Compute Engine:

• Infrastructure costs for running your SLES VMs on Compute Engine. Formore information, seeVM instances pricing.

• Licensing costs for SLES or SLES for SAP. The following licensing optionsare available:

  • Pay-As-You-Go model (PAYG) on Compute Engine. For this option, you payGoogle directly.
  • Committed Use Discounts. For this option, you purchase a commitment foryour SLES or SLES for SAP licenses in return for discounted prices. Learnmore aboutCommitted Use Discountsandhow to purchase a commitment for your licenses.
  • Bring your own subscription (BYOS) using. For this option, you use asubscription you have purchased directly from SUSE.

For more information about licensing options on Compute Engine, seePicking the right licensing model for your VMs.

What is the SUSE BYOS (Bring Your Own Subscription) program?

Use the SUSE BYOS program to bring eligible SUSE product subscriptions toGoogle Cloud. With this option, you pay SUSE directly for license subscriptionsand pay Google Cloud only for infrastructure costs incurred. For moreinformation on how to buy, seeSUSE.

Are there any additional cost optimizations available for running SUSE on Compute Engine?

In addition to the pay-as-you-go (PAYG) license model that lets you pay foronly what you use, your infrastructure costs can be further reduced by takingadvantage ofcommitted use discounts.

Machine type recommendationsalso reduce your costs by helping you optimize resource usage.

You can also use thepricing calculator to estimate yourcosts of running VMs on Compute Engine.

Do your prices include tax?

No, the prices listed are exclusive of applicable taxes and duties, includingapplicable VAT, and applicable sales tax.

Can I create SLES VMs in my Google Cloud Free Trial account?

Yes, you can create SLES VMs in yourFree Trial Cloud Billing account.

You will incur charges for any Cloud Marketplace products and premiumoperating system licenses that you use, even if your Compute Engine use iscovered by Always Free. For more information, seeGoogle Cloud Marketplace products and Premium OS licenses.

How can my SLES VMs connect to the SUSE SMT servers without a proxy or an external IP address?

SLES VMs on Compute Engine does not support non-transparent andMan in the Middle (MitM) proxies.

You canconfigure a NAT gatewayin your private network to route traffic between the internet and theinternal SLES VMs if you configure theMinimum ports per VM instance to at least256. For more information, seeSUSE Support.

If you use SUSE BYOS and if you have eligible product subscriptions, you canset up your own SMT server in your private network to update or install software.

Support FAQs

This section answers questions about the support that you get for SLES onCompute Engine.

How is support offered for Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) SLES licenses on Compute Engine?

When you are running PAYG SUSE images on Compute Engine, support for issueswith the images is included inGoogle Cloud Support packages whenthe image isGA. If the image isEOL, Google Cloud supportdoesn't support the image.

If you have issues with GA images, contact Google Cloud Support. You don'tneed to contact SUSE separately. Google works with SUSE to resolve issuesneeding escalation. If you have issues with images that are related to LTSS, youmust contact SUSE directly.

How is support offered for Bring Your Own Subscription (BYOS) licenses on Compute Engine?

If you bring your own SUSE subscription to Google Cloud, you will receivesupport directly from SUSE.To access support, file issues directly to SUSE by logging into yourSUSECustomer Center. For access andmore details, see theSUSE Technical Support Documentation.

How can I be notified when security updates are available for SLES?

To be notified when security updates are made available by SUSE, subscribe toSUSE Security Announcements.

All SLES VMs running on Compute Engine receive updates shortly after theseupdates are made available from SUSE Public Cloud update infrastructure. You canthen install these updates by using standard SLES packaging tools likeZypperorYaST.These patches and updates are made available for the SUSE images on a regularschedule as outlined in theOperating system lifecycle and support policy.

Are there any restrictions on the machine types supported for SUSE on Compute Engine?

SLES offerings are supported for all machine types in all regions. For moreinformation about machine types, seeMachine types.In addition to the different machine configurations, SLES offerings can also berun on multi tenant nodes orSole-tenant nodes.

What are the SAP certified machine types on Compute Engine?

SAP and Google Cloud certify both major and minor releases of SLES on themachine types that are available on Compute Engine.

For SAP HANA, SAP publishes the Compute Engine machine typesand SLES versions that are certified for Google Cloudin theSAP HANA Hardware Directory.

Google Cloud also publishes the SAP HANA certifications inCertifications for SAP HANA on Google Cloud.

For SAP NetWeaver, the certified machine types and operating systems arelisted inSAP Note 2456432.To access this information, you need an SAP user account.

Google Cloud also publishes the SAP NetWeaver list inCertifications for SAP applications on Google Cloud.

Does SUSE provide Long Term or Extended Service Pack Overlay Support for SLES versions?

Yes, but support varies for SLES and SLES for SAP.

• SLES: SUSE providesLong-Term Service Pack Support (LTSS) through the Google Cloud Marketplacefor SLES versions that have reached their end of general support date. Formore details, review theSUSE Product Support Lifecycle.

• SLES for SAP: SUSE provides Extended Service Pack Overlap Support (ESPOS)for SLES for SAP versions that have reached their end of general support date.ESPOS is included in the base pay-as-you-go (PAYG) license for all SLES forSAP versions except for the last SP version before the next major versionrelease.

  Extended Service Pack Overlap Support (ESPOS) provides an additional 3 yearssupport for a specific SP version. During this period, you receive support andall relevant maintenance updates under the terms of Long-Term Service PackSupport (LTSS) - without needing to get the additional LTSS add-on. For moredetails, review theSUSE Product Support Lifecycle.

  ESPOS isn't offered for the last SP version before the next major versionrelease. For example, the last SP version of SLES 12 for SAP is SP5, thusESPOS isn't available for this version. If you require extended support forthese images, you must purchaseLong-Term Service Pack Support (LTSS) through the Google Cloud Marketplace.

How to purchase and enable LTSS?

To purchase LTSS for your SLES and SLES for SAP instances, go to theLong-Term Service Pack Support Google Cloud Marketplace listingand fill out the form.

A SUSE representative will contact you to complete the purchase. After thepurchase is finalized, enable LTSS by following the instructions inSUSE's documentation.

To learn more about the enablement process, seeLong Term Service Pack Support for PAYG Instances Simplified.

License FAQs

This section answers questions about SLES licenses.

How does pay-as-you-go (PAYG) licenses work for SLES on Compute Engine?

With PAYG, you pay for only what you use. With this model you can take advantageof Google Cloud's partnership with SUSE for PAYG licenses that scales with yourelastic workloads. With this option you pay for exactly what you need when yourworkloads spike, rather than paying a predetermined amount through fixedagreements.SUSE licenses associated with these images are charged in one-second increments,with a one minute minimum. To see additional pricing details, see thepremium images pricing documentation.

Image options for PAYG:

• Use Google Cloud's premium SLES and SLES for SAP with HA images that havePAYG licenses already attached.
• Bring your own image into Google Cloud by using eitherImage import orMigrate for Compute Engineand attach a PAYG license to it.

All PAYG billing is handled through Google; there is no need for a separateagreement with SUSE.

If I create a VM using a PAYG SLES image and prepare a custom image from that VM, will new VMs created from that custom image be PAYG?

Yes, the VMs deployed using a custom image created from a PAYG SLES VM are alsoPAYG SLES VMs.

If I create multiple VMs from a snapshot of a PAYG SLES image, will the new VMs also have PAYG licensing for SUSE?

Yes, the new VMs created from the snapshot of an original PAYG SUSE LinuxEnterprise Server VM's boot disk are also SUSE PAYG VMs.

How does the Bring Your Own Subscription (BYOS) license model work for SLES on Compute Engine?

You will need an activeSUSE subscription to specify your own license on SLES images on Compute Engine.

To check whether your subscriptions are eligible for the SUSE BYOS toGoogle Cloud, contactgoogle [at] suse.com. You will pay Google only forcompute infrastructure costs and will have a separate license agreement withSUSE.

Can I switch from PAYG to BYOS or BYOS to PAYG?

Yes, switching between these two licensing options is supported onCompute Engine. For more information, seeSwitch between PAYG and BYOS.

If I perform an in-place major OS upgrade on my SLES instance (for example, from SLES 12 to SLES 15), will the license attached to the Compute Engine VM automatically update?

No, the license attached to the Compute Engine VM's root disk doesn'tautomatically update when you perform an in-place operating system major versionupgrade, such as from SLES 12 to SLES 15.

However, Google Cloud lets you manually update the license indicator after theoperating system upgrade is complete, provided you remain within the sameproduct and licensing, such as PAYG to PAYG or BYOS to BYOS.

To update the license after the OS upgrade, use thegcloud compute disks updatecommand with the--replace-license flag. This command updates the license URIon the disk to match the new SLES version. For example, if you upgraded a PAYGinstance from SLES 12 to SLES 15, you update the license from.../sles-12 to.../sles-15. For more information on updating the license, seeSwitch between PAYG and BYOS licenses.

Can I use Google provided SLES images and specify a BYOS license?

Yes, you can use BYOS with Google Cloud provided SLES images. To do this,contact your Google Cloud account representative.

Migration FAQs

This section answers questions about migrating to Compute Engine with a SLESimage.

Can I use my own SLES images on Compute Engine?

Yes, you can add VM instances, custom images, or disks that are available in anexisting environment (such as on-premise or on other cloud providers) toCompute Engine. Multiple solutions are available to import your SLES images toGoogle Cloud. For more information, seeChoose a migration path.

You can also take advantage of your existing agreement with SUSE and specifyyour own license while importing your images into Compute Engine. For thisoption, you need an eligibleSUSE subscription to specify your own license on Compute Engine.

How do I get started with a SLES VM on Compute Engine?

To create a new SUSE SLES VM instance on Compute Engine, see thequickstart guide guide. Whencreating the VM, on the public images tab, choose a SLES version.

To migrate an instance running SLES on-premise or on other clouds toGoogle Cloud, seeChoose a migration path.

I plan to migrate SLES VMs from AWS or Azure to Compute Engine. What is the recommended toolset or method to do so?

You can add VM instances, custom images, or disks that are available in anexisting environment, such as on-premise or on other cloud providers, toCompute Engine.

To migrate a VM running SLES on-premise or on other clouds to Google Cloud,seeChoose a migration path.

Is it possible to migrate SLES on-demand VM instance to SLES for SAP on-demand images?

No. The public guide available forSUSE is valid for BYOsubscriptions and are not applicable for Compute Engine PAYG images.

What's next

• Learn more about theoperating system imagesthat Compute Engine provides.

• If you encountered any problems with registration of your SUSE products, readaboutTroubleshooting SLES PAYG registration.