How to Setup SUSE 15 SP1 for SAP

Updated June 2026 — commands and versions refreshed for current releases. This guide targets SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP1; if you are starting fresh today, the same install flow applies to the latest 15 SPx service pack — only the ISO and registration code differ.

This is the third article in a series that ends with a proper install of SAP B1 10 on SAP HANA 2.0. The first article covered setting up a new dedicated Hetzner server as a base; the second covered installing Proxmox on the Hetzner server. Here we install SUSE 15 SP1 on a VM that will serve as the base for both SAP B1 version 10 and SAP HANA version 2.0.

VM requirements

SAP HANA is a high-performance in-memory database that speeds data-driven, real-time decisions and actions. As such it has fairly heavy system requirements. For this article we use a VM with the following specs:

• RAM: 128GB
• HDD: 1TB
• CPU Cores: 10

VM creation process

• Create a new VM in Proxmox.
• Under General, give the VM a proper name so it is easy to locate if you end up with many VMs on the server.
• Under OS, choose the right ISO — in this case SLE-15-SP1.
• Under System, all the default settings are fine.
• Under Hard Disk, assign at least 900GB to the VM; in this case we assign 1000GB.
• Under CPU, assign 10 CPU cores and, most importantly, set CPU Type to Host. This allows the VM to use all the available CPU extensions on the host CPU. This is required, otherwise you will not be able to install SAP HANA on the VM.
• Under Memory, assign 128GB RAM and 64GB as minimum RAM.
• Under Network, no changes are required; all default values are fine.

After a minute or so your new VM is created and visible under Datacenter -> proxmox -> 100 (saphana2). Right-click 100 (saphana2) and choose Start, then right-click again and choose Console to open the UI from which you will install SUSE.

SUSE install process

• Start the install by choosing Installation from the boot menu.
• Select SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP1.
• Accept the License Terms.

You are now shown the network settings. This is a very important screen, because if the network is not set up properly then the install of SUSE and the SAP software will not proceed. Follow the next few steps to set up the network properly (assuming you are using a Hetzner bare-metal server as described in articles 1 and 2). If you are using a different cloud or bare-metal provider, your network may already be configured for DHCP and you may not need these changes.

Press Next to start the network configuration process.

In the Network Card Setup, on the Address tab, ensure that:

• Configuration Name is eth0
• Statically Assigned IP Address is selected
• IP: enter one of the free IP addresses from your additional IP subnet, in this case 100.100.100.33
• Subnet Mask: set to 255.255.255.255
• Hostname: the full FQDN to be assigned as hostname (saphana.example.com shown here). Without this, SAP will not get installed.

Press Next to save. Confirm the settings are reflected in the Network Settings screen.

Important: press the Hostname/DNS tab, not the Next button. In this tab, enter:

• Hostname: the first part of the FQDN entered on the last screen — here saphana2 is shown, but it should match (e.g. saphana)
• Make sure Set Hostname via DHCP is set to no
• Enter Name Server 1 & 2. Google DNS (8.8.8.8, 8.8.4.4) is recommended, but you can also use another option such as Hetzner DNS (213.133.98.98, 213.133.99.99, 213.133.100.100)

Important: press the Routing tab, not the Next button. In Routing settings:

• Set the Default IPv4 Gateway to your main IP address, in this case 11.11.11.11
• Device: set to eth0
• Ensure Enable IPv4 Forwarding is checked

Click Add, and in the routing table popup add your main IP address 11.11.11.11 as the Destination, making sure eth0 is selected as the Device. After adding the entry, press Next.

At this point, enter the Registration Code and associated email ID of your SUSE license. If you do not have a license, create an account on the SUSE site and request a trial code, then use it on this screen.

Choose Yes to continue.

The next screen is very important: here you choose all the software required for a proper SAP install. Make sure to select the following:

1. SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension
2. SUSE Package Hub
3. Basesystem Module
4. Desktop Applications Module
5. Development Tools Module
6. Legacy Module
7. Python 2 Module
8. SAP Applications Module
9. Server Applications Module
10. Web and Scripting Module

Select Next to continue. The installer contacts the SUSE server and registers the install. Select Trust to accept the GnuPG key and proceed. On the next screen, press Next to continue.

Make sure SLES for SAP Applications is selected and press Next. On the following screen, deselect Launch SAP product installation wizard…, since we will install SAP from the install files downloaded manually from the SAP site. If you have SAP install media, you can leave this option checked.

Partitioning

Partitioning is another critical part of the install. SAP recommends the following partitions for SAP to work properly:

• /hana/shared — SAP installation path — 1 × system RAM — 128GB
• /hana/data — SAP data volume — 3 × system RAM — 384GB
• /hana/log — SAP log volume — 1 × system RAM — 128GB
• /usr/sap — SAP system instance — minimum 50GB — remaining space

Select Expert Partitioner -> Start with Current Proposal. You need to create 4 partitions based on the SAP recommendations. To create a partition, click Hard Disks, then Partitions -> Add Partition.

• Choose Custom Size and enter the required size, 128GiB in this case.
• Choose Data and ISV Applications.
• Add the mount location under Mount Point, in this case /hana/shared.
• Repeat for all the partitions SAP requires.
• For /usr/sap, allocate whatever disk space is left, in this case 277.99GiB.

Confirm all partitions are defined as required by SAP and press Next.

Choose your timezone by clicking the map and press Next. Set a secure password for the root user and press Next. Enable ssh under Security, as it will be disabled by default. Verify all settings are correct before pressing Next to start the install.

Installing SUSE takes about 5–10 minutes, depending on your server speed. After the install, you can log in to the server and start the SAP install process.