openSUSE Gains New Hardware

The openSUSE Project added an enormous amount of compute power for its projects this past year thanks to SUSE, which is the project’s main sponsor. The added hardware will help with open-source development.

The project now uses around a thousand build workers for x86, which will help with creating and distributing software for major Linux distributions in the Open Build Service.

Multiple other architectures were added to OBS; a few months ago, the project added five new POWER9 machines, which are valued at roughly $80,000 per machine. The additional machines will put PowerPC back to a level consistent with the build power of OBS’ arm machines. PowerPC wasn’t the only IBM addition to OBS. In August, the project added an additional mainframe; an IBM LinuxONE System was added as loaner hardware. Matched with a z13 mainframe computer, this gives OBS  extensive build power for s390. A new IBM LinuxONE System without storage starts at about $135,000, so IBM is also investing a lot in the utility of openSUSE and community based open-source development. One thing for sure is that users of the Open Build Service will experience some high-performance building after receiving compute assets benefiting open-source development.

In addition, SUSE sponsored two new arm servers that are the first of its specific hardware type in Germany. SUSE also contributed an additional x86-System for rsync.opensuse.org, which was deployed in the fall. The enhancement of the rsync.opensuse.org system with its 42T direct-attached storage makes it possible to host a copy of all download.opensuse.org content; this immediately helped openSUSE Tumbleweed users across the globe since mirrors replicate package updates to end-point users of the rolling release. Thanks to another sponsor, IP-Exchange, rsync.opensuse.org is running in an external CoLocation Datacenter near Nuremberg.

The generosity to openSUSE extended not only from companies, but through individuals as well. Coly Li, who is working on bcache in the kernel,  donated two 8TB SSDs for rsync.opensuse.org; bcache is a block cache that allows people to use an SSD as a fast read/write cache for another block device. A big thank you to Li and all the companies who are for investing in the openSUSE Project.