Wiki - Rocky Linux

Introduction

Rocky Linux is a community-developed enterprise Linux distribution, designed to be 100% compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Founded by Gregory Kurtzer (original co-founder of CentOS), it was created in response to the change in direction of CentOS in 2020. Rocky Linux positions itself as a stable, robust, and predictable operating system, ideal for production environments and enterprise servers.

Installation

To install Rocky Linux:
1. Download the ISO from the official website (rockylinux.org)
2. Create installation media (USB drive or DVD)
3. Boot from the media and launch the Anaconda graphical installer
4. Select your language and keyboard configuration
5. Configure partitioning (automatic or manual)
6. Set the hostname, time zone, and users
7. Select the base packages (minimal server or with desktop environment)
8. Start the installation and reboot

Configuration

After installation:
- Update with sudo dnf update
- Configure the network via NetworkManager or files in /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/
- Install EPEL: sudo dnf install epel-release
- Enable the CRB repositories: sudo dnf config-manager --set-enabled crb
- Configure SELinux (by default in enforcing mode)
- Install cockpit for web administration: sudo dnf install cockpit
- Configure the firewalld firewall according to your needs

Features

Main features:
- Binary compatibility with RHEL (same packages and APIs)
- Predictable release cycle (major versions every 3-5 years)
- Long-term support (10 years per version)
- DNF package manager with stable repositories
- Enhanced security with SELinux, firewalld, and SCAP
- Support for x86_64, aarch64, ppc64le, and s390x architectures
- Integration with enterprise tools (Ansible, Podman, Kubernetes)
- Active community and transparent governance via the RESF (Rocky Enterprise Software Foundation)