How to migrate from CentOS 8 to AlmaLinux

Why migrate from CentOS 8 to AlmaLinux

There are a few reasons why you might want to migrate from CentOS to AlmaLinux:

Improved support: AlmaLinux provides long-term support for its releases, with security updates and bug fixes being provided for up to 10 years. This can provide a more stable and secure platform for your applications.
Enhanced features: AlmaLinux includes a number of enhancements and additional features compared to CentOS, including updated versions of system libraries and utilities, additional desktop environments, and support for the latest hardware.
Community-driven development: AlmaLinux is developed and maintained by a community of volunteers and contributors, rather than being controlled by a single corporation. This can make it more responsive to the needs of its users and allow for a more transparent and collaborative development process.

That being said, it is important to carefully consider the implications of switching to a new operating system, as it can involve a significant time and effort to migrate and get everything set up again. You should make sure that AlmaLinux meets your specific needs and requirements before deciding to migrate.

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How to Migrate from CentOS 8 to AlmaLinux

AlmaLinux is a community-sponsored open source OS built from the upstream source code of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 8 and is designed for RHEL users who are looking to transition away from this platform. In this article, we will discuss the process of migration from CentOS 8 to AlmaLinux.

Configure Yum Repository

Start by downloading and configuring the AlmaLinux repository on your CentOS 8 system. To do this, you need to create a file in the /etc/yum.repos.d/ directory.

Download AlmaLinux repository on your CentOS system

Run the following command to download the AlmaLinux repository on your system

$ curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/tkjdev/almalinux-yum/master/almalinux.repo | tee /etc/yum.repos.d/almalinux.repo

Next, modify the repository by setting the ‘enabled’ value to ‘1’ in the repository configuration file.

Upgrade Packages

After you have configured the Almalinux repository, you can upgrade the existing packages on your system to the latest version.

$ sudo yum update -y

Reinstall Packages

Since the packages may have a different version between AlmaLinux and CentOS 8, it is recommended to reinstall them. Run the following command to reinstall the packages:

$ sudo yum reinstall -y rpm -qa

Activate AlmaLinux

Now that you have upgraded and reinstalled the packages, you need to run the almalinux-activate script to activate AlmaLinux on your system. The command to run the script is as follows:

$ sudo almalinux-activate

Update Bootloader

Finally, you need to update the bootloader of your system to use the new AlmaLinux kernel.
Run the following command to update the bootloader:

$ sudo grub2-mkconfig -o /boot/efi/EFI/almalinux/grub.cfg

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Once you have finished these steps, you should be able to successfully migrate from CentOS 8 to AlmaLinux.