SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6
Release Notes #
Abstract#
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension is an enterprise-quality Linux desktop with market-leading usability and interoperability. This document provides a high-level overview of features, capabilities, and limitations of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 and highlights important product updates.
These release notes are updated periodically. The latest version of these release notes is always available at https://www.suse.com/releasenotes. General documentation can be found at https://documentation.suse.com/sled/15-SP4.
- 1 About the release notes
- 2 SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension
- 3 Modules, Extensions, and Related Products
- 4 Changes affecting all architectures
- 5 Installation and Upgrade
- 6 General Features & Fixes
- 7 Known Issues & Workarounds
- 8 Removed and Deprecated Features and Packages
- 9 Obtaining source code
- 10 Legal notices
- A Changelog for 15 SP6
1 About the release notes #
These Release Notes are identical across all architectures, and the most recent version is always available online at https://www.suse.com/releasenotes.
Entries are only listed once but they can be referenced in several places if they are important and belong to more than one section.
Release notes usually only list changes that happened between two subsequent releases. Certain important entries from the release notes of previous product versions are repeated. To make these entries easier to identify, they contain a note to that effect.
However, repeated entries are provided as a courtesy only. Therefore, if you are skipping one or more service packs, check the release notes of the skipped service packs as well. If you are only reading the release notes of the current release, you could miss important changes.
2 SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension #
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension is the market’s only enterprise-quality Linux desktop ready for routine business use. Developed and backed by SUSE, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension provides market-leading usability, seamless interoperability with existing IT systems, and dozens of essential applications—all at a fraction of the price of proprietary operating systems.
2.1 Interoperability and Hardware Support #
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 comes bundled with the latest versions of leading applications such as LibreOffice office productivity suite, Mozilla Firefox Web browser, and Evolution e-mail and calendar suite. In addition, it integrates with Microsoft SharePoint for group collaboration and supports a wide range of multimedia file formats, wireless and networking standards, and plug-and-play devices.
Through the latest enhancements in power management and security, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 also provides an environmentally friendly IT experience (Green IT) and an error-proof desktop. Finally, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension offers unparalleled flexibility. You can deploy it on a wide range of thick client devices (including desktops, notebooks, netbooks, and workstations), on thin client devices, or as a virtual desktop. By leveraging the power of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension, your business can dramatically reduce costs, improve end user security and increase workforce productivity.
2.2 What Is New? #
2.2.1 General Changes in SLE 15 #
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 introduces many innovative changes compared to SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 12. The most important changes are listed below.
- Migration from openSUSE Leap to SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension
Starting with SLE 15, we support migrating from openSUSE Leap 15 to SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15. Even if you decide to start out with the free community distribution you can later easily upgrade to a distribution with enterprise-class support.
- Extended Package Search
Use the new Zypper command
zypper search-packagesto search across all SUSE repositories available for your product even if they are not yet enabled. This functionality makes it easier for administrators and system architects to find the software packages needed. To do so, it leverages the SUSE Customer Center.- Software Development Kit
With SLE 15, the Software Development Kit is now integrated into the products. Development packages are packaged alongside regular packages. In addition, the Development Tools module contains tools for development.
- RMT Replaces SMT
SMT (Subscription Management Tool) has been removed. Instead, RMT (Repository Mirroring Tool) now allows mirroring SUSE repositories and custom repositories. You can then register systems directly with RMT. In environments with tightened security, RMT can also proxy other RMT servers.
2.2.2 Changes in 15 SP6 #
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 introduces changes compared to SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension SP5. The most important changes are listed below.
- Media Changes
The Unified Installer and Packages DVDs known from SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP1 are deprecated and have been replaced by the following media:
Online Installation Media: All SUSE Linux Enterprise 15 products can be installed with this stand alone media, after entering a registration key. The necessary packages are fetched from online repositories only. For information about available modules, see Section 3.1, “Modules in the SLE 15 SP6 Product Line”.
Full Installation Media: All SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 products can be installed without network connection with this media, for offline installation scenarios. The media contains all necessary packages. It consists of directories with module repositories which need to be added manually as needed. RMT (Repository Mirroring Tool) and SUSE Manager provide additional options for disconnected or managed installation.
- Kernel
SLE 15 SP6 includes the Linux 5.3 kernel. This new kernel release includes upstream features such as 16 million additionally usable IPv4 addresses, utilization clamping support in the task scheduler, power-efficient userspace waiting with the umwait x86 instructions and many more.
2.2.3 Package and module changes in 15 SP6 #
The full list of changed packages and modules compared to 15 SP5 can be seen at these two URLs:
2.3 Important Sections of This Document #
If you are upgrading from a previous SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension release, you should review at least the following sections:
2.4 Documentation and other information #
2.4.1 Available on the product media #
Read the READMEs on the media.
Get the detailed change log information about a particular package from the RPM (where
FILENAME.rpmis the name of the RPM):rpm --changelog -qp FILENAME.rpm
Check the
ChangeLogfile in the top level of the installation medium for a chronological log of all changes made to the updated packages.Find more information in the
docudirectory of the installation medium of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6. This directory includes PDF versions of the SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 Installation Quick Start Guide.
2.4.2 Online documentation #
For the most up-to-date version of the documentation for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6, see https://documentation.suse.com/sled/15-SP4.
Find a collection of White Papers in the SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension Resource Library at https://www.suse.com/products/server#resources.
2.5 Support and life cycle #
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension is backed by award-winning support from SUSE, an established technology leader with a proven history of delivering enterprise-quality support services.
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 has a 10-year life cycle, with 10 years of General Support. The current version (SP6) will be fully maintained and supported until 6 months after the release of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP7.
For more information, check our Support Policy page https://www.suse.com/support/policy.html.
2.6 Support statement for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension #
To receive support, you need an appropriate subscription with SUSE. For more information, see https://www.suse.com/support/programs/subscriptions/?id=SUSE_Linux_Enterprise_Desktop.
The following definitions apply:
- L1
Problem determination, which means technical support designed to provide compatibility information, usage support, ongoing maintenance, information gathering and basic troubleshooting using available documentation.
- L2
Problem isolation, which means technical support designed to analyze data, reproduce customer problems, isolate problem area and provide a resolution for problems not resolved by Level 1 or prepare for Level 3.
- L3
Problem resolution, which means technical support designed to resolve problems by engaging engineering to resolve product defects which have been identified by Level 2 Support.
For contracted customers and partners, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension is delivered with L3 support for all packages, except for the following:
Technology Previews, see Section 2.7, “Technology Previews”
Sound, graphics, fonts and artwork
Packages that require an additional customer contract, see Section 2.6.2, “Software requiring specific contracts”
Some packages shipped as part of the module Workstation Extension are L2-supported only
Packages with names ending in
-devel(containing header files and similar developer resources) will only be supported together with their main packages.
SUSE will only support the usage of original packages. That is, packages that are unchanged and not recompiled.
2.6.1 General support #
To learn about supported features and limitations, refer to the following sections in this document:
For supported file systems and virtualization options, see the Release Notes of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP6 at https://www.suse.com/releasenotes/x86_64/SUSE-SLES/15-SP2.
2.6.2 Software requiring specific contracts #
Support for specific packages may require a support contract with a third party.
2.7 Technology Previews #
Technology previews are packages, stacks, or features delivered by SUSE to provide glimpses into upcoming innovations. Technology previews are included for your convenience to give you a chance to test new technologies within your environment. We would appreciate your feedback! If you test a technology preview, contact your SUSE representative and let them know about your experience and use cases. Your input is helpful for future development.
Technology previews come with the following limitations:
Technology previews are still in development. Therefore, they may be functionally incomplete, unstable, or in other ways not suitable for production use.
Technology previews are not supported.
Technology previews may only be available for specific hardware architectures. Details and functionality of technology previews are subject to change. As a result, upgrading to subsequent releases of a technology preview may be impossible and require a fresh installation.
Technology previews can be removed from a product at any time. This may be the case, for example, if SUSE discovers that a preview does not meet the customer or market needs, or does not comply with enterprise standards.
3 Modules, Extensions, and Related Products #
This section comprises information about modules and extensions for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6. Modules and extensions add functionality to the system.
Note: Package changes in 15 SP6
For more information about all package changes since the last version, see Section 2.2.3, “Package and module changes in 15 SP6”.
3.1 Modules in the SLE 15 SP6 Product Line #
The SLE 15 SP6 product line is made up of modules that contain software packages. Each module has a clearly defined scope. Modules differ in their life cycles and update timelines.
The modules available within the product line based on SUSE Linux Enterprise 15 SP6 at the release of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 are listed in the Modules and Extensions Quick Start at https://documentation.suse.com/sles/15-SP4/html/SLES-all/article-modules.html.
Not all SLE modules are available with a subscription for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 itself (see the column Available for).
For information about the availability of individual packages within modules, see https://scc.suse.com/packages.
3.2 Available Extensions #
The following extension which is not covered by SUSE support agreements, available at no additional cost and without an extra registration key:
SUSE Package Hub: https://packagehub.suse.com/
4 Changes affecting all architectures #
Information in this section applies to all architectures supported by SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6.
5 Installation and Upgrade #
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension can be deployed in several ways:
Physical machine
Virtual host
Virtual machine
System containers
Application containers
5.1 Installation #
This section includes information related to the initial installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6.
Important: Installation Documentation
The following release notes contain additional notes regarding the installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension. However, they do not document the installation procedure itself.
For installation documentation, see the Deployment Guide at https://documentation.suse.com/sled/15-SP4/html/SLED-all/book-deployment.html.
5.2 SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension now supported in WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) #
During the initial setup of the SLES app in the Microsoft store, it is now possible to choose between registering the image as either SUSE Linux Enterprise Server or SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop.
5.3 Upgrade-Related Notes #
This section includes upgrade-related information for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6.
Important: Upgrade Documentation
The following release notes contain additional notes regarding the upgrade of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension. However, they do not document the upgrade procedure itself.
For upgrade documentation, see the Upgrade Guide at https://documentation.suse.com/sled/15-SP4/html/SLED-all/book-upgrade.html.
5.3.1 Migration failure due to insserv-compat #
If insserv-compat is not installed prior to migration and other software has already created the /etc/rc.d/ directory, the migration fails.
As a workaround, remove the /etc/rc.d/ directory and continue with migration.
5.4 For More Information #
For more information, see Section 6, “General Features & Fixes” and the sections relating to your respective hardware architecture.
6 General Features & Fixes #
6.1 Desktop #
6.1.1 Evolution confirmation when moving folder #
By default, the user is asked to confirm before a folder is moved to another place. If this is not the case, refer to https://www.suse.com/support/kb/doc/?id=000020878 to reset the settings.
6.1.2 FTP support stopped #
For security reasons Mozilla has removed the default support for clicking on FTP links in Firefox.
You can enable this support by adding network.gio.supported-protocols=ftp: via the about:config settings.
This will enable desktop support via the GNOME Virtual File System (GVFS). See the GVFS documentation for all supported protocols.
6.2 Miscellaneous #
6.2.1 Enriched system visibility in the SUSE Customer Center (SCC) #
SUSE is committed to helping provide better insights into the consumption of SUSE subscriptions regardless of where they are running or how they are managed; physical or virtual, on-prem or in the cloud, connected to SCC or Repository Mirroring Tool (RMT), or managed by SUSE Manager. To help you identify or filter out systems in SCC that are no longer running or decommissioned, SUSEConnect now features a daily “ping”, which will update system information automatically.
For more details see the documentation at https://documentation.suse.com/subscription/suseconnect/single-html/SLE-suseconnect-visibility/.
7 Known Issues & Workarounds #
This is a list of known issues for this release.
7.1 Enabling GNOME Session Restore Does Not Work #
You can have GNOME restore your previous desktop session when logging in.
In the past, this could be achieved by enabling the dconf entry /org/gnome/gnome-session/auto-save-session.
In GNOME 3.34, the upstream GNOME project disabled this functionality because it caused issues under newer versions of systemd.
As SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension uses GNOME 3.34, the functionality cannot be used in SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 anymore.
8 Removed and Deprecated Features and Packages #
This section lists features and packages that were removed from SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension or will be removed in upcoming versions.
Note: Package changes in 15 SP6
For more information about all package changes since the last version, see Section 2.2.3, “Package and module changes in 15 SP6”.
8.1 Removed Features and Packages #
The following features and packages were removed from SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6.
The
intel-gpu-toolspackage has been moved to SUSE Package Hub.The
imgenpackage, containing Mellanox firmware generator, has been removed in SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6.
8.2 Deprecated Features and Packages #
The following features and packages are deprecated and will be removed with a future service pack of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop/SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension.
gnome-documentshas been deprecated and will be removed from the media in the next release
9 Obtaining source code #
This SUSE product includes materials licensed to SUSE under the GNU General Public License (GPL). The GPL requires SUSE to provide the source code that corresponds to the GPL-licensed material. The source code is available for download at https://www.suse.com/download/sled/ on Medium 2. For up to three years after distribution of the SUSE product, upon request, SUSE will mail a copy of the source code. Send requests by e-mail to sle_source_request@suse.com. SUSE may charge a reasonable fee to recover distribution costs.
10 Legal notices #
SUSE makes no representations or warranties with regard to the contents or use of this documentation, and specifically disclaims any express or implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose. Further, SUSE reserves the right to revise this publication and to make changes to its content, at any time, without the obligation to notify any person or entity of such revisions or changes.
Further, SUSE makes no representations or warranties with regard to any software, and specifically disclaims any express or implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose. Further, SUSE reserves the right to make changes to any and all parts of SUSE software, at any time, without any obligation to notify any person or entity of such changes.
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