NCINGA resolved security issues in an apparel manufacturer's outdated SLES system, eliminating vulnerabilities, improving performance, and empowering future scalability with proactive maintenance.
Industry: Manufacturing
Location: APAC

A leading apparel manufacturer with factories in several countries. The manufacturer’s product and services portfolio is expansive, ranging from fabric production to dyeing. The customer portfolio, too, is equally diverse and includes global fashion brands. Innovation and sustainability are core priorities for this manufacturer as it continues to expand its operations.

The manufacturer has implemented a SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) operating system. This system is susceptible to several vulnerabilities:

Security patches require regular updates. However, legacy systems lose access to updates due to version mismatches. This was one such instance.

The outdated system thus posed a major security risk, with the potential to disrupt operations across production lines.

Furthermore, the Cloud provider had ceased support for legacy systems, adding more complexity to existing challenges.

The manufacturer required a secure, reliable SUSE system that resolves update failures and drives operational efficiency and business expansion.

Based on our research, we encountered the following:

Failed communication with SUSE servers, where outdated systems are incompatible with updated SUSE infrastructure. Communication failures can also result from network or firewall restrictions, expired security certificates, misconfigured system clocks, and misconfigured proxy settings.

Post-update boot failure (SLES 15 SP3) where a specific security package crashes after an unsuccessful or incomplete update.

To resolve communication failures, we first reset the system configurations and re-registered it with SUSE Servers. To ensure there are no connectivity issues, we fixed time clock issues and verified network access. Finally, we manually created a fresh instance in the cloud platform from an updated version of the same instance that was causing the problem.

We solved the boot failure by first locking the problematic package as a preventive measure against further failures. Then, we migrated to an updated Service Pack (SP6), unlocked the package, and updated it so that it is compatible with the new environment.

For a more detailed, step-by-step description of how we solved this problem, read this blog.

NCINGA’s customised solution has solved a key security concern of the apparel manufacturer.

The system has the latest security updates, with the ability to maintain these updates every 6 months. Even the updates that both the cloud provider and system had marked ‘end-of-life’ are now updated, strengthening security.

System performance and reliability have improved as a result, with the apparel manufacturer in a better position to support daily operations and future scalability.

The apparel manufacturer has adopted a structured, proactive troubleshooting approach with NCINGA’s guidance to address emerging issues.

“The NCINGA team didn’t simply fix a major technical issue - they addressed a significant business risk for us. The solution is both efficient and tailored to our specific needs, demonstrating comprehensive understanding of technical challenges and business impact.” - Spokesperson for the apparel manufacturer