For more than a decade, CentOS was the default free enterprise Linux. It was a rebuild of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), so it behaved like RHEL without the subscription. In 2020 Red Hat shifted focus to CentOS Stream, and CentOS Linux 7, the last widely used release, reached end of life on 30 June 2024. Many servers still run it.
The successors
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL): the original, with vendor support, certifications and a paid subscription. Often required by enterprise software vendors.
- AlmaLinux: a community, foundation-backed distribution that is binary-compatible with RHEL. Free.
- Rocky Linux: another free, community distribution built to be compatible with RHEL, started by one of CentOS's original founders.
- CentOS Stream: now sits just ahead of RHEL in development. Good for testing what is coming; less suited to servers that need a fixed, slow-moving base.
- Oracle Linux: RHEL-compatible, free to use, with optional paid support.
How to choose
- If a software vendor requires RHEL for support, use RHEL.
- If you want a free drop-in replacement for CentOS with long support, AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux are both solid. Choose by your team's preference and tooling.
- If you need cPanel or similar control panels, check their list of supported operating systems; AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux and CloudLinux are common choices.
Moving off CentOS 7
There is no supported in-place path from CentOS 7 to version 9 or 10 of any of these. The realistic routes are migration tools that convert to version 8 followed by further upgrades, or, usually better, building a new server on version 9 and moving the applications. Treat it as a migration project, with testing and a rollback plan.
How IDX helps
When you order an IDX dedicated server or Egypt Server, you can choose AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux, CentOS Stream, Oracle Linux, CloudLinux or Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Our migration team regularly moves workloads off end-of-life systems and can plan yours.
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