Schedule a meeting, or participate in a Platform Roadmap Workshop to determine which platform is right for your applications.
Kubernetes: Design, Migration, and Management
SUE designs, builds, migrates, and manages Kubernetes platforms for mission-critical applications. On Amazon EKS, Azure AKS, or Google GKE; with Red Hat OpenShift, SUSE Rancher, or Talos Linux; on-premises; at the edge; or in a sovereign European cloud. Our engineers combine Kubernetes expertise with Linux and infrastructure experience dating back to 1997. Clusters remain on a supported version, and your teams roll out updates themselves via a platform that is fully defined as code.
Where Kubernetes Runs Into Problems
Kubernetes automatically deploys, scales, and recovers containerized applications in the event of a failure, on any infrastructure. It's worth it if you have multiple applications that change frequently and need to scale independently.
The installation is rarely the problem. Things go wrong in management: upgrades that get put off, clusters that grow apart, and security that no one oversees. That’s why SUE codifies the entire platform, with a fixed upgrade process from day one.
OpenShift, Rancher, and Talos Linux side by side—and when a container is a better fit than a VM—you can read about it in our guide to Kubernetes.
When should you activate SUE?
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You've chosen a Kubernetes platform and want independent advice tailored to your applications, your compliance requirements, and your team.
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You want to move away from VMware and consolidate virtual machines and containers onto a single platform.
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Your clusters are getting out of hand: different versions, overdue upgrades, and no overview of costs and security.
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Your development teams want to roll out updates faster and more securely and need an internal platform.
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You have applications that need to run in containers, but you don't have the knowledge or time to set this up.
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You don't have enough platform engineers to manage production clusters 24/7.
What does SUE do with Kubernetes?
From platform selection to 24/7 management, in the cloud, on-premises, and at the edge. Learn more about Managed Kubernetes, Platform Engineering, and Talos Linux in the Kubernetes guide.
How does SUE approach a Kubernetes project?
We work according to the principle “Show. Do together. Do yourself.”: Your team learns along the way and stays in control.
01
Platform Roadmap Workshop
Within a week, we'll assess your applications, requirements, and team. You'll receive a platform recommendation, a target architecture, and a roadmap with costs.
02
Design and Layout
We build the platform as code (Infrastructure as Code): clusters, networking, security, observability, and GitOps. Every environment is reproducible. On-premises and at the edge, this also applies to the nodes’ operating systems: with Talos Linux, each node’s configuration is stored in Git, and no one makes manual changes to a server.
03
Migration
Applications are deployed to the platform in waves, starting with the simplest ones. Virtual machines that do not yet fit into a container can run as VMs on the same platform.
04
Management and Further Development
With Managed Kubernetes, we handle upgrades, monitoring, security, and incidents 24/7. For Talos clusters, we upgrade the operating system and Kubernetes in a single step, and that step can be rolled back. Or your own team can take over, with knowledge transfer from SUE.
Which Kubernetes platforms does SUE work with?
| Platform | Goes well with |
|---|---|
| Amazon EKS, Azure AKS, Google GKE | Organizations that primarily operate in a single public cloud |
| Red Hat OpenShift | Regulated and hybrid environments, VMware exit |
| SUSE Rancher Prime with RKE2 | Centrally Manage Multiple Clusters, On-Premises and Multicloud |
| Talos Linux with Omni | Immutable, minimal Kubernetes nodes on-premises or at the edge |
| k3s | Edge locations and small clusters |
| VMware vSphere Kubernetes Service | Organizations that will remain on VMware Cloud Foundation (for the time being) |
| Sovereign European Cloud | Requirements Regarding Data Sovereignty |
| Multistax | Software teams that want to build in a cloud-agnostic way without their own platform expertise |
Since we work with multiple providers, we’ll recommend the platform that’s right for you. The pros and cons of each platform are listed in the Kubernetes guide.
Customer Results
01
From on-premises to Kubernetes on AWS. 99.99% uptime, a 25% greater focus on product innovation, and significant expected cost savings over five years.
Read more
02
A Cloud Application Platform on Kubernetes. SUE provided the Kubernetes expertise for Nexaa, the platform product of the Dutch cloud provider Tilaa: a highly available Kubernetes foundation with fully automated deployments.
Read more
03
Scalable software without the need for in-house platform expertise. Two applications migrated to Kubernetes on AWS, managed via Multistax, with managed databases and automatic scaling.
Read moreManage Kubernetes yourself or outsource it?
| Manage It Yourself | Managed Kubernetes at SUE | |
|---|---|---|
| Required Knowledge | At least 2–3 experienced platform engineers; more for 24/7 operations | Invested with SUE |
| Upgrades | About three Kubernetes releases per year, each supported for approximately 14 months | Included, tested per environment |
| Security and Compliance | Set up, monitor, and verify on your own | Policies, scanning, logging, and reporting included |
| 24/7 Monitoring and Incidents | Need an in-house on-call service | Included, with fixed response times |
| Costs | Salaries, tooling, training, and the risk of absenteeism | Fixed monthly fee, depending on the number of clusters and the service level |
For details on what's included in SUE's 24/7 management service, see the Managed Kubernetes page.
Related articles about Kubernetes
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About SUE
Modernize the code. Optimize the cloud. Run the platform.
SUE Cloud Native Solutions is a Dutch cloud-native solutions partner that modernizes mission-critical applications, reduces cloud costs, and manages your platform. Specialists in Linux, Kubernetes, and the cloud.
29+
Years Experience
150+
Engineers and consultants
1.150+
Certifications
500+
Projects
75+
Research papersFrequently asked questions
All frequently asked questionsAmazon EKS, Azure AKS, Google GKE, Red Hat OpenShift, SUSE Rancher (RKE2), Talos Linux, and Multistax—in the public cloud, on-premises, at the edge, or in a sovereign environment.
Especially for Kubernetes in your own data center, at the edge, or with a sovereign European provider. Talos has no SSH, no shell, and no package manager: every node is identical, and the attack surface is small. We upgrade the operating system and Kubernetes in a single step, and that step is reversible. If you primarily run your environment in a single public cloud, the managed service offered by that cloud (EKS, AKS, or GKE) is usually simpler.
Yes. With OpenShift Virtualization or SUSE Virtualization, you can run virtual machines and containers on the same platform. This allows you to transition from VMware in phases, without having to move everything to containers right away. SUSE guides the migration and can manage the platform afterward.
Yes. Kubernetes runs on any infrastructure, including in your own data center or with a European cloud provider. We manage those environments the same way we do in the public cloud.
Setting up Kubernetes is one thing, but 'Day 2 operations' (upgrades, security patching, storage management, and monitoring) require scarce and expensive specialized knowledge. With Managed Kubernetes from SUE, our 24/7 team completely takes the operational complexity off your hands. This allows your developers to focus 100% on building software instead of keeping the infrastructure running.
Discuss your Kubernetes plans with an expert
Discuss your Kubernetes plans with an expert
Schedule a meeting, or participate in a Platform Roadmap Workshop to determine which platform is right for your applications.
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