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Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Red Hat Enterprise Linux
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Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10.0, showing its default desktop environment (GNOME 47)
DeveloperRed Hat, Inc.
OS familyLinux (Unix-like)
Working stateCurrent
Source modelOpen source
Initial releaseFebruary 22, 2000; 25 years ago (2000-02-22)[1]
Latest release
10:10.1 / November 12, 2025; 3 months ago (2025-11-12)[2]
9:9.7 / November 12, 2025; 3 months ago (2025-11-12)
8:8.10 / May 22, 2024; 20 months ago (2024-05-22)
7:7.9 / September 29, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-09-29)
Latest preview10 Beta / November 14, 2024; 14 months ago (2024-11-14)[3]
Marketing targetCommercial market (servers, mainframes, supercomputers, workstations)
Available inMultilingual
Update methodDNF
Package managerRPM
Supported platformsx86-64 (x86-64-v3 for latest); ARM64; IBM Z; IBM Power Systems[4]
Kernel typeMonolithic (Linux)
UserlandGNU
Default
user interface		GNOME Shell, Bash
LicenseVarious free software licenses, plus proprietary binary blobs[5]
Preceded byRed Hat Linux
Official websiteredhat.com/rhel/

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a commercial Linux distribution developed by Red Hat. Red Hat Enterprise Linux is released in server versions for x86-64, Power ISA, ARM64, and IBM Z and a desktop version for x86-64. Fedora Linux and CentOS Stream serve as its upstream sources. All of Red Hat's official support and training, together with the Red Hat Certification Program, focuses on the Red Hat Enterprise Linux platform.

The first version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux to bear the name originally came onto the market as "Red Hat Linux Advanced Server". In 2003, Red Hat rebranded Red Hat Linux Advanced Server to "Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS"[6] and added two more variants, Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES and Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS.[7]

As Red Hat Enterprise Linux is heavily based on open-source software and its source code is available to the public, it is used as the basis for several third-party derivatives, including the commercial Oracle Linux and the community-supported Rocky Linux and AlmaLinux. Prior to June 2023, Red Hat published a sub-set of Red Hat Enterprise Linux's source code to the public in the form of modified build artifacts. Today, the complete source code for the major-version branch is available in the form of the CentOS Stream repositories.[8] Source code for other release branches remains available to customers in the form of unmodified build artifacts.

Variants

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server subscription is available at no cost for development purposes.[9] Developers need to register for the Red Hat Developer Program and agree to its license terms. The free developer subscription was announced on March 31, 2016, and updated in January 2021 with less restrictive terms.[10]

There are also "Academic" editions of the Desktop and Server variants.[11] They are offered to schools and students, are less expensive, and are provided with Red Hat technical support as an optional extra. Web support based on the number of customer contacts can be purchased separately.

It is often assumed the branding ES, AS, and WS stand for "Entry-level Server",[12][13] "Advanced Server" and "Work Station", respectively.

In Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 there are new editions that substitute former Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS/ES/WS/Desktop:[14][15]

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Advanced Platform (former AS)
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux (former ES) (limited to two CPUs)
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop with Workstation and Multi-OS option
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop with Workstation option (former WS)
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop with Multi-OS option
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop (former Desktop)

Red Hat had also announced its Red Hat Global Desktop Linux edition "for emerging markets".[16]

RHEL 4, 3, and prior releases had four variants:

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS for mission-critical/enterprise computer systems.
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES for supported network servers
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS for technical power user enterprise desktops for high-performance computing
  • Red Hat Desktop for multiple deployments of single-user desktops for enterprises.

Relationship with Fedora Linux

[edit]

The Fedora Project provides the following explanation:[17]

Fedora is a free distribution and community project and upstream for Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Fedora is a general purpose system that gives Red Hat and the rest of its contributor community the chance to innovate rapidly with new technologies. Red Hat Enterprise Linux is a commercial enterprise operating system and has its own set of test phases including alpha and beta releases which are separate and distinct from Fedora development.

Originally, Red Hat sold boxed versions of Red Hat Linux directly to consumers and business through phone support. The Fedora Project began in 2002 as a set of community supported packages for Red Hat Linux. However, the six month release cycle of Red Hat Linux was too disruptive for business users and Red Hat wanted a more reliable revenue stream. In 2002 Red Hat began releasing Red Hat Enterprise Linux based on Red Hat Linux, but with a much more conservative release cycle and a subscription based support program. A year later, Red Hat discontinued the Red Hat Linux product line, merging it with the Fedora community packages and releasing the resulting Fedora distribution for free.[18]

Fedora serves as the primary upstream for future major releases of RHEL: RHEL source code repositories are forked off the Fedora repository, and released after a substantial stabilization and quality assurance effort.[19] The major-version stable release branch is built and released by the CentOS project under the name CentOS Stream. Each minor version of RHEL is a branch of CentOS Stream that gets ongoing bug fixes and security updates.

For example, CentOS Stream 9 was forked from Fedora in March, 2021 (shortly before the Fedora 34 release) and available on public mirrors in September, 2021. RHEL 9.0 was released in May, 2022.

The Fedora Project lists the following lineages for older Red Hat Enterprise releases:[19]

  • Red Hat Linux 6.2/7 to Red Hat Linux Enterprise Edition 6.2E
  • Red Hat Linux 7.2, 7.2A to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 2.1
  • Red Hat Linux 9 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3
  • Fedora Core 3 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4
  • Fedora Core 6 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
  • Fedora 12, 13 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
  • Fedora 19, 20 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
  • Fedora 28 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8[20]
  • Fedora 34 to CentOS Stream 9 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9[21]
  • Fedora 40 to CentOS Stream 10 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10[22]

In addition, the Fedora project publishes a set of packages for RHEL called the Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux (EPEL). EPEL packages can be expected to work in RHEL, but it is up to willing community members to maintain the packages and back port any upstream changes. As such, packages "may come and go" during the ten-year lifespan of the RHEL release and Red Hat support plans do not include resolving issues caused by EPEL packages.[23]

Derivatives

[edit]
Main article: Red Hat Enterprise Linux derivatives

Red Hat Enterprise Linux is derived from free and open source software. Until 2015, Red Hat made the source code to its enterprise distribution publicly available through its FTP website, though the inclusion of Red Hat trademarks prevented direct redistribution of the software. In 2015, Red Hat began publishing de-branded source code via git repositories on git.centos.org.[24] Several groups used the source code to compile their own derivatives, typically with changes including the removal of any references to Red Hat's trademarks and pointing the update systems to non-Red Hat servers. Groups which have undertaken this include AlmaLinux, CentOS, MIRACLE LINUX, Oracle Linux, CloudLinux OS, Rocky Linux, Scientific Linux, StartCom Enterprise Linux, Pie Box Enterprise Linux, X/OS, Lineox, and Bull's XBAS for high-performance computing.[25][additional citation(s) needed]

In 2023, Red Hat replaced the process that published code to git.centos.org in favor of the CentOS Stream git repositories. As required by its open-source licenses, the code for branched releases remains available to customers and developers, but the customer contract allows Red Hat to drop any customer who provides third-parties with access to subscription services, discouraging them from publishing source code artifacts.[26][27] This led to AlmaLinux, one of the RHEL derivative Linux distributions, moving away from "1:1 bug for bug" compatibility to "application binary interface (ABI) compatible", while Oracle, SUSE, and CIQ (the company behind Rocky Linux) collaborated to form the Open Enterprise Linux Association (OpenELA) in order to provide "open and free Enterprise Linux (EL) source code".[28][29]

Derivatives of Red Hat Enterprise Linux are free but do not get any commercial support or consulting services from Red Hat and lack software, hardware or security certifications from Red Hat. They also do not get access to Red Hat services like Red Hat Network.

Unusually, Red Hat took steps to obfuscate their changes to the Linux kernel for RHEL 6.0 by not publicly providing the patch files for their changes in the source tarball, and only releasing the finished product in source form. Speculation suggested that the move was made to affect Oracle's competing rebuild and support services, which further modifies the distribution. This practice however, still complies with the GNU GPL since source code is defined as "[the] preferred form of the work for making modifications to it", and the distribution still complies with this definition.[30] Red Hat's CTO Brian Stevens later confirmed the change, stating that certain information (such as patch information) would now only be provided to paying customers to make the Red Hat product more competitive against the growing number of companies offering support for products based on RHEL. CentOS developers had no objections to the change since they do not make any changes to the kernel beyond what is provided by Red Hat.[31] Their competitor Oracle announced in November 2012 that they were releasing a RedPatch service, which allows public view of the RHEL kernel changes, broken down by patch.[32][33]

[edit]
See also: Commercial products based on Red Hat Enterprise Linux

A number of commercial vendors use Red Hat Enterprise Linux as a base for the operating system in their products. Two of the best known are the Console Operating System in VMware ESX Server and Oracle Linux.

Version history and timeline

[edit]

Source:[34]

Naming convention

[edit]

Each release is given a codename which is selected by a vote of the developers. The codenames don't have a specific pattern (unlike Ubuntu or Debian).

RHEL 10

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 beta was made available in December 2024.[35]

RHEL 10 was officially announced on May 20, 2025; 8 months ago (2025-05-20), at the Red Hat Summit,[36] and uses Linux kernel 6.12.0-55.9.1.el10_0. This release has the codename Coughlan.

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10.0, May 20, 2025; 8 months ago (2025-05-20)[37], uses Linux kernel 6.12.0-55.9.1.el10_0
    • 10.1, November 12, 2025; 3 months ago (2025-11-12)
      • kernel 6.12.0-124.8.1.el10_1

RHEL 9

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 was announced at Red Hat Summit on May 10, 2022, and was officially released on May 17, 2022 (2022-05-17).[38] In this version of the system introduced a Linux Kernel 5.14.0 and Gnome 40.

RHEL 9 was the first to be based on CentOS Stream, itself based on Fedora Linux, while historically RHEL was based directly on Fedora Linux.[39]

The first beta for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 (Plow), based on Fedora Linux 34, was released on November 3, 2021.[40]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 (Plow) was released on May 18, 2022.[41] The name Plow was the Appalachian Trail nickname for Tim Burke, one of the founders of RHEL and retired leader of RHEL engineering.[42]

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.0, May 17, 2022; 3 years ago (2022-05-17), uses Linux kernel 5.14.0-70.13.1.el9_0
    • 9.1, November 15, 2022; 3 years ago (2022-11-15)
      • kernel 5.14.0-162.6.1.el9_1
    • 9.2, May 10, 2023; 2 years ago (2023-05-10)
      • kernel 5.14.0-284.11.1.el9_2
    • 9.3, November 7, 2023; 2 years ago (2023-11-07)
      • kernel 5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3
    • 9.4, April 30, 2024; 21 months ago (2024-04-30)
      • kernel 5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4
    • 9.5, November 13, 2024; 15 months ago (2024-11-13)
      • kernel 5.14.0-503.11.1.el9_5
    • 9.6, May 20, 2025; 8 months ago (2025-05-20)
      • kernel 5.14.0-570.17.1.0.1.el9_6
    • 9.7, November 12, 2025; 3 months ago (2025-11-12)
      • kernel 5.14.0-611.5.1.el9_7

RHEL 8

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 (Ootpa) is based on Fedora 28, upstream Linux kernel 4.18, GCC 8.2, glibc 2.28, systemd 239, GNOME 3.28, and the switch to Wayland. The first beta was announced on November 14, 2018.[43] Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 was officially released on May 7, 2019 (2019-05-07).[44]

With Release 8 of Red Hat Enterprise Linux, IBM has completed transition of POWER8 and POWER9 servers to little-endian mode.[45][46][47]

The name Ootpa was a tribute to Larry Troan. His son, Eric Troan was Red Hat's first head engineer and his username was ewt, so his father was given the name ewt's pa, pronounced Ootpa.[42]

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.0, May 7, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-05-07), uses Linux kernel 4.18.0-80[44]
    • 8.1, November 5, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-11-05), uses Linux kernel 4.18.0-147[48]
      • GNOME rebased to 3.32
    • 8.2, April 28, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-04-28)
      • kernel 4.18.0-193
    • 8.3, November 3, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-11-03)
      • kernel 4.18.0-240
    • 8.4, May 18, 2021; 4 years ago (2021-05-18)[49]
      • kernel 4.18.0-305
    • 8.5, November 9, 2021; 4 years ago (2021-11-09)
      • kernel 4.18.0-348
    • 8.6, May 10, 2022; 3 years ago (2022-05-10)
      • kernel 4.18.0-372.9.1
    • 8.7, November 9, 2022; 3 years ago (2022-11-09)
      • kernel 4.18.0-425.3.1
    • 8.8, May 16, 2023; 2 years ago (2023-05-16)
      • kernel 4.18.0-477.10.1.el8_8
    • 8.9, November 14, 2023; 2 years ago (2023-11-14)
      • kernel 4.18.0-513.5.1.el8_9
    • 8.10, May 22, 2024; 20 months ago (2024-05-22)
      • kernel 4.18.0-553.el8_10

RHEL 7

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 (Maipo) is based on Fedora 18 and Fedora 19, upstream Linux kernel 3.10, systemd 208 (updated to 219 in RHEL 7.2), and GNOME 3.8 (rebased to GNOME 3.28 in RHEL 7.6) The first beta was announced on 11 December 2013,[50][51] and a release candidate was made available on 15 April 2014.[52] On June 10, 2014 (2014-06-10) Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 was officially released.[53]

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.0 (Maipo), June 9, 2014; 11 years ago (2014-06-09), uses Linux kernel 3.10.0-123
    • 7.1, March 5, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-03-05)[54]
      • kernel 3.10.0-229
    • 7.2, November 19, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-11-19)[55]
      • kernel 3.10.0-327
      • systemd updated to 219
      • Fedora rebased to 21
      • GNOME rebased to 3.14
    • 7.3, November 3, 2016; 9 years ago (2016-11-03)[56]
      • kernel 3.10.0-514
    • 7.4, July 18, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-07-18)[57]
      • kernel 3.10.0-693
      • Fedora rebased to 25
      • GNOME rebased to 3.22
    • 7.5, April 10, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-04-10)[58]
      • kernel 3.10.0-862
      • Fedora rebased to 27
      • GNOME rebased to 3.26[59]
    • 7.6, October 30, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-10-30)[60]
      • kernel 3.10.0-957
      • Fedora rebased to 28
      • GNOME rebased to 3.28
    • 7.7, August 6, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-08-06)[61]
      • kernel 3.10.0-1062
      • GNOME remains as 3.28
    • 7.8, March 31, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-03-31)[62]
      • kernel 3.10.0-1127
      • GNOME remains as 3.28
    • 7.9, September 29, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-09-29)[63]
      • kernel 3.10.0-1160
    • 7, Extended Life-cycle Support (ELS) Start Date July 1, 2024; 19 months ago (2024-07-01)
      • aka added ELS entitlement until ELS end Date June 30, 2028; 2 years' time (2028-06-30)[64]

RHEL 6

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 was forked from Fedora 10 and contains many backported features from Fedora 11 and Fedora 12.

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 (Santiago), November 9, 2010; 15 years ago (2010-11-09), uses Linux kernel 2.6.32-71[65]
    • 6.1, May 19, 2011; 14 years ago (2011-05-19) (kernel 2.6.32-131.0.15)
    • 6.2, December 6, 2011; 14 years ago (2011-12-06) (kernel 2.6.32-220)
    • 6.3, June 20, 2012; 13 years ago (2012-06-20) (kernel 2.6.32-279)
    • 6.4, February 21, 2013; 12 years ago (2013-02-21) (kernel 2.6.32-358)
    • 6.5, November 21, 2013; 12 years ago (2013-11-21) (kernel 2.6.32-431)
    • 6.6, October 14, 2014; 11 years ago (2014-10-14) (kernel 2.6.32-504)
    • 6.7, July 22, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-07-22) (kernel 2.6.32-573)
    • 6.8, May 10, 2016; 9 years ago (2016-05-10) (kernel 2.6.32-642)
    • 6.9, March 21, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-03-21) (kernel 2.6.32-696)
    • 6.10, June 19, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-06-19) (kernel 2.6.32-754)
    • 6 ELS +, Extended Life-cycle Support (ELS) Start Date November 30, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-11-30)
      • aka added ELS entitlement until ELS end Date June 30, 2024; 19 months ago (2024-06-30)

RHEL 5

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 has forked with Fedora Core 6.

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 (Tikanga), March 15, 2007; 18 years ago (2007-03-15), uses Linux kernel 2.6.18-8
    • 5.1, November 7, 2007; 18 years ago (2007-11-07) (kernel 2.6.18-53)
    • 5.2, May 21, 2008; 17 years ago (2008-05-21) (kernel 2.6.18-92)
    • 5.3, January 20, 2009; 17 years ago (2009-01-20) (kernel 2.6.18-128)
    • 5.4, September 2, 2009; 16 years ago (2009-09-02) (kernel 2.6.18-164)
    • 5.5, March 30, 2010; 15 years ago (2010-03-30) (kernel 2.6.18-194)
    • 5.6, January 13, 2011; 15 years ago (2011-01-13) (kernel 2.6.18-238)
    • 5.7, July 21, 2011; 14 years ago (2011-07-21) (kernel 2.6.18-274)
    • 5.8, February 20, 2012; 13 years ago (2012-02-20) (kernel 2.6.18-308)
    • 5.9, January 7, 2013; 13 years ago (2013-01-07) (kernel 2.6.18-348)
    • 5.10, October 1, 2013; 12 years ago (2013-10-01) (kernel 2.6.18-371)
    • 5.11, September 16, 2014; 11 years ago (2014-09-16) (kernel 2.6.18-398)
    • 5.11+, Extended Life-cycle Support (ELS) Start Date March 31, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-03-31)
      • aka added ELS entitlement until ELS end Date November 30, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-11-30)

RHEL 4

[edit]

RHEL 4 introduced Linux kernel 2.6 versions and extended attributes on ext2 and ext3 file systems.[66]

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 (Nahant), February 15, 2005; 20 years ago (2005-02-15), uses Linux kernel 2.6.9-5
    • Update 1, June 8, 2005; 20 years ago (2005-06-08) (kernel 2.6.9-11)
    • Update 2, October 5, 2005; 20 years ago (2005-10-05) (kernel 2.6.9-22)
    • Update 3, March 12, 2006; 19 years ago (2006-03-12) (kernel 2.6.9-34)
    • Update 4, August 10, 2006; 19 years ago (2006-08-10) (kernel 2.6.9-42)
    • Update 5, May 1, 2007; 18 years ago (2007-05-01) (kernel 2.6.9-55)
    • Update 6, November 15, 2007; 18 years ago (2007-11-15) (kernel 2.6.9-67)
    • Update 7, July 29, 2008; 17 years ago (2008-07-29) (kernel 2.6.9-78)
    • Update 8, May 19, 2009; 16 years ago (2009-05-19) (kernel 2.6.9-89)
    • Update 9, February 16, 2011; 14 years ago (2011-02-16) (kernel 2.6.9-100)

RHEL 3

[edit]
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 (Taroon), October 22, 2003; 22 years ago (2003-10-22), uses Linux kernel 2.4.21-4
    • Update 1, January 16, 2004; 22 years ago (2004-01-16) (kernel 2.4.21-9)
    • Update 2, May 12, 2004; 21 years ago (2004-05-12) (kernel 2.4.21-15)
    • Update 3, September 3, 2004; 21 years ago (2004-09-03) (kernel 2.4.21-20)
    • Update 4, December 12, 2004; 21 years ago (2004-12-12) (kernel 2.4.21-27)
    • Update 5, May 18, 2005; 20 years ago (2005-05-18) (kernel 2.4.21-32)
    • Update 6, September 28, 2005; 20 years ago (2005-09-28) (kernel 2.4.21-37)
    • Update 7, March 17, 2006; 19 years ago (2006-03-17) (kernel 2.4.21-40)
    • Update 8, July 20, 2006; 19 years ago (2006-07-20) (kernel 2.4.21-47)
    • Update 9, June 20, 2007; 18 years ago (2007-06-20) (kernel 2.4.21-50)

RHEL 2.1

[edit]
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 2.1 AS (Pensacola), March 23, 2002; 23 years ago (2002-03-23), uses Linux kernel 2.4.9-e.3
    • Update 1, February 14, 2003; 22 years ago (2003-02-14) (kernel 2.4.9-e.12)
    • Update 2, March 29, 2003; 22 years ago (2003-03-29) (kernel 2.4.9-e.24)
    • Update 3, December 19, 2003; 22 years ago (2003-12-19) (kernel 2.4.9-e.34)
    • Update 4, April 21, 2004; 21 years ago (2004-04-21) (kernel 2.4.9-e.40)
    • Update 5, August 18, 2004; 21 years ago (2004-08-18) (kernel 2.4.9-e.49)
    • Update 6, December 13, 2004; 21 years ago (2004-12-13) (kernel 2.4.9-e.57)
    • Update 7, April 28, 2005; 20 years ago (2005-04-28)[67]
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 2.1 ES (Panama), May 2003[citation needed]

Product life cycle

[edit]

The life cycle of Red Hat Enterprise Linux is at least seven years for versions 3 and 4, and spans at least 10 years for versions 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. The life cycle comprises several phases of varying length with different degrees of support. During the first phase ("Production 1"), Red Hat provides full support and updates software and hardware drivers. In later phases ("Production 2" and "Production 3"), only security and other important fixes are provided and support for new hardware is gradually reduced.[68]

In the last years of the support lifecycle (after seven years for version 4 and earlier, and after 10 years for version 5 and later), critical and security-related fixes are only provided to customers who pay an additional subscription ("Extended Lifecycle Support Add-On"), which is available until the End of Extended Lifecycle Support date for each version as shown in the table below. This covers a limited number of packages.[69] Red Hat only supports major version upgrades from version n to version n+1.[70]

RHEL
version		 Last minor
release		 Release date End of Full Support End of Maintenance
Support 1 (RHEL 5, 6, 7)		 End of
Maintenance Support (RHEL 8, 9, 10),
Maintenance Support 2 (RHEL 5, 6, 7)
(product retirement)		 End of Extended
Lifecycle Support
Unsupported: 2.1 U-7 26 March 2002 (AS)
1 May 2003 (ES) 		30 November 2004 31 May 2005 31 May 2009[71] N/a
Unsupported: 3 U-9 23 October 2003 20 July 2006 30 June 2007 31 October 2010[72] 30 January 2014
Unsupported: 4 U-9 14 February 2005 31 March 2009 16 February 2011 29 February 2012 31 March 2017
Unsupported: 5 5.11 15 March 2007 8 January 2013 31 January 2014 31 March 2017 30 November 2020
Unsupported: 6 6.10 10 November 2010 10 May 2016 10 May 2017 30 November 2020 30 June 2024
Supported: 7 7.9 10 June 2014[73] 6 August 2019 6 August 2020 30 June 2024 31 May 2029[74]
Supported: 8 8.10 7 May 2019 May 2024 N/a May 2029 31 May 2031[75]
Supported: 9 9.7 08 Nov 2022 May 2027 N/a May 2032 31 May 2034[75]
Latest version: 10 10.1 13 May 2025 May 2030 N/a May 2035 31 May 2037[75]
Legend:
Unsupported
Supported
Latest version
Preview version

Kernel backporting

[edit]

To maintain a stable application binary interface (ABI), Red Hat does not update the kernel version, but instead backports new features to the same kernel version with which a particular version of RHEL has been released. New features are backported throughout the Production 1 phase of the RHEL lifecycle.[76] Consequently, RHEL may use a Linux kernel with a dated version number, yet the kernel is up-to-date regarding not only security fixes, but also certain features.[77] One specific example is the SO_REUSEPORT socket option which was added to Linux kernel 3.9, and was subsequently backported and became available since RHEL 6.5, which uses version 2.6.32 of the Linux kernel.[78][79][80]

Extended Update Support (EUS) / Z Tree

[edit]

The Extended Update Support (EUS) allows an organization / company to choose when they change to a new minor version. For the first 6 months of the EUS channel / yum repo, features may be added, but then the channel is locked down so that only bug and security fixes are patched. The organization / company then has 24 months to move to a new EUS branch. EUS allows the organization / company to stay on a minor version if required by a third-party application which is only tested with a particular minor version of RHEL, such as Oracle Database, IBM Db2, IBM Cloud Orchestrator, Hortonworks. There may also be extra costs associated with using the EUS repos/channels depending on the agreement the organization / company has with Red Hat.[81] For more information on what is Included/Excluded from the EUS see.[81]

Note

[edit]
  • The EUS update mechanism for using older minor version branches is not available to CentOS, Oracle Linux and Scientific Linux, as Red Hat do not publish source packages for rebuilding.[82] As such, projects clearly state to ensure users run on the latest available minor version within a supported major release.

Updates

[edit]

In general one can move from z streams to the next version of the z stream.

  • The 7.4.z EUS channel after the release of 7.4.
  • The 7.5.z EUS channel after the release of 7.5.

Any 7.y.z EUS channel where y is greater than 1. The standard base channel for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, which is the most recent minor release aka rhel 7Y where y is the latest greatest.

One can not go back in time, aka 7.5.z to 7.4.z and will NOT be supported.[81]

RHEL 6

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 was forked from Fedora 12 and contains many backported features from Fedora 13 and 14.

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 (Santiago), 10 November 2010, uses Linux kernel 2.6.32-71[34]
    • 6.7, also termed Update 7, July 22, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-07-22) (kernel 2.6.32-573)
      • 1st Day of EUS Window July 22, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-07-22)
      • Last Day of EUS Window July 31, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-07-31)
    • Note: There were no more EUS for Rhel6 after 6.7

RHEL 7

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 (Maipo) is based on Fedora 19, upstream Linux kernel 3.10, 10 June 2014, uses Linux kernel 3.10.0-123[34]

  • 7.1, also termed Update 1, March 5, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-03-05) (kernel 3.10.0-229)[54]
    • 1st Day of EUS Window March 5, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-03-05)
    • Last Day of EUS Window March 31, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-03-31)
  • 7.2, also termed Update 2, November 19, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-11-19) (kernel 3.10.0-327)[55]
    • 1st Day of EUS Window November 19, 2015; 10 years ago (2015-11-19)
    • Last Day of EUS Window November 30, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-11-30)
  • 7.3, also termed Update 3, November 3, 2016; 9 years ago (2016-11-03) (kernel 3.10.0-514)[56]
    • 1st Day of EUS Window November 3, 2016; 9 years ago (2016-11-03)
    • Last Day of EUS Window November 30, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-11-30)
    • Features may be updated[83]
  • 7.4, also termed Update 4, August 1, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-08-01) (kernel 3.10.0-693)[57]
    • 1st Day of EUS Window August 1, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-08-01)
    • Last Day of EUS Window August 31, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-08-31)
  • 7.5, also termed Update 5, April 10, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-04-10) (kernel 3.10.0-862)[58]
    • 1st Day of EUS Window April 10, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-04-10)
    • Last Day of EUS Window April 30, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-04-30)
  • 7.6, also termed Update 6, October 30, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-10-30) (kernel 3.10.0-957)[60][84]
    • 1st Day of EUS Window October 30, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-10-30)
    • Last Day of EUS Window May 31, 2021; 4 years ago (2021-05-31)
  • 7.7, also termed Update 7, August 6, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-08-06) (kernel 3.10.0-1062)[61][84]
    • 1st Day of EUS Window August 6, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-08-06)
    • Last Day of EUS Window August 30, 2021; 4 years ago (2021-08-30)
  • 7.8, also termed Update 8[85]
    • Released on March 31, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-03-31)
  • 7.9, also termed Update 9 is the final RHEL 7 release[84][86]
    • Released on September 30, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-09-30)

RHEL 8

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 (Ootpa) is based on Fedora 28, upstream Linux kernel 4.18, systemd 239, and GNOME 3.28. The first beta was announced on November 14, 2018.[43] Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 was officially released on May 7, 2019.[44]

For RHEL 8, the update schedule is approximately:[87]

  • 8.0 - 6 Month Minor Release (kernel 4.18.0-80)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window May 7, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-05-07)[88]
  • 8.1 - 6 Month Minor Release with Extended Support and Update Services for SAP Solutions (kernel 4.18.0-147)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window November 5, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-11-05)[88]
  • 8.2 - 6 Month Minor Release with Extended Support and Update Services for SAP Solutions (kernel 4.18.0-193)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window April 28, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-04-28)[88]
  • 8.3 - 6 Month Minor Release (kernel 4.18.0-240)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window November 3, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-11-03)[88]
  • 8.4 - 6 Month Minor Release with Extended Support and Update Services for SAP Solutions (kernel 4.18.0-305)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window May 18, 2021; 4 years ago (2021-05-18)[88]
  • 8.5 - 6 Month Minor Release (kernel 4.18.0-348)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window November 9, 2021; 4 years ago (2021-11-09)[88]
  • 8.6 - 6 Month Minor Release with Extended Support and Update Services for SAP Solutions (kernel 4.18.0-372.9.1)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window May 10, 2022; 3 years ago (2022-05-10)[88]
  • 8.7 - 6 Month Minor Release (kernel 4.18.0-425.3.1)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window November 9, 2022; 3 years ago (2022-11-09)[88]
  • 8.8 - 6 Month Minor Release with Extended Support and Update Services for SAP Solutions (kernel 4.18.0-477.10.1.el8_8)[88]
    • 1st Day of Support Window May 16, 2023; 2 years ago (2023-05-16)[88]

RHEL 8 application streams

[edit]

In addition to normal OS updates, RHEL 8 also maintains application streams to allow for certain applications to be supported and updated independent of the base OS and to match the maintenance stream of the application vendor.[89] Each application stream will be supported from two to five years with new versions only available during the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Full Support Phase.[90] These apps should be expected to be updated frequently with shorter lifecycles than the base OS packages.

Packages currently offered as streams[90]

  • authd 1.4.4 (through May 2021)
  • container-tools 1 (through May 2021)
  • dotnet 2.1 (through Aug 2021)
  • git 2.18 (through May 2021)
  • httpd 2.4 (through May 2024)
  • Identity Management DL1 (through May 2024)
  • mariadb 10.3 (through May 2023)
  • maven 3.5 (through May 2022)
  • mercurial 4.8 (through May 2022)
  • mysql 8 (through Apr 2023)
  • nginx 1.14 (through May 2021)
  • nodejs 10 (through Apr 2021)
  • openjdk 1.8.0 (through Jun 2023)
  • openjdk 11 (through Oct 2024)
  • perl 5.24 (through May 2021)
  • php 7.2 (through May 2021)
  • postgresql 10 (through May 2024)
  • postgresql 9.6 (through Nov 2021)
  • python 2.7 (through Jun 2024)
  • redis 5 (through May 2022)
  • ruby 2.5 (through Feb 2021)
  • scala 2.1 (through May 2022)
  • swig 3 (through May 2022)
  • varnish 6 (through May 2022)

RHEL 9

[edit]

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 (RHEL 9) is a commercial open-source operating system developed by Red Hat for enterprise environments. It is built from the open-source Fedora distribution and aims to provide a stable, secure, and enterprise-grade platform. RHEL 9, released in May 2022, introduces several new features and improvements, especially tailored for cloud-native development, security, automation, and performance enhancements.

Key features

[edit]
  1. Kernel and Performance RHEL 9 is based on the Linux kernel 5.14, offering improved performance and hardware support. It also features enhanced performance tuning tools for administrators to optimize workloads on modern architectures.
  2. Security Enhancements RHEL 9 includes advanced security measures such as the Integrity Measurement Architecture (IMA), which ensures system integrity. It also incorporates OpenSSL 3.0 for updated cryptography and enhanced security policies. By default, SSH root password login is disabled to encourage the use of key-based authentication. SELinux continues to play a crucial role in enforcing strict security policies.
  3. Automation and Management The integration with Ansible allows for more streamlined automation and configuration management across systems. The Cockpit web console has also been improved, offering new features for managing containers, networking, and storage.
  4. Cloud and Container Support RHEL 9 is designed for cloud-native environments, with strong support for containers and hybrid cloud infrastructures. It is optimized to work seamlessly with Red Hat OpenShift, a Kubernetes-based platform, and supports containerization through tools like Podman. It also includes AppStreams, which provide curated packages for developers, ensuring access to the latest runtimes and frameworks.
  5. Networking and Storage Enhanced NetworkManager features and support for NVMe over Fabrics improve performance and scalability for modern networking and storage configurations.

Use cases

[edit]

RHEL 9 is suitable for a wide range of enterprise applications across industries such as financial services, healthcare, and government. It is used in both on-premises and cloud environments, with strong support for multi-cloud and hybrid cloud deployments

Support lifecycle

[edit]

RHEL 9 follows Red Hat's 10-year support lifecycle, which includes full support for the first five years, followed by maintenance support for the remaining five years.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]

Further reading

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Red Hat Enterprise Linux

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a commercial developed and maintained by , Inc., offering a stable, secure, and high-performance operating system optimized for enterprise workloads, including support for hybrid cloud deployments, containers, and AI applications. RHEL traces its origins to the early 2000s, evolving from , a community-driven distribution launched in 1994, and derived from the upstream . The first RHEL release, version 2.1, arrived on March 23, 2002, based on 7.2, and emphasized stability, hardware compatibility, and a multi-year support lifecycle to meet enterprise needs. Subsequent releases built on this foundation: RHEL 3 (2003) improved performance for database workloads and expanded to 64-bit architectures; RHEL 4 (2005) integrated SELinux for mandatory access controls; RHEL 5 (2007) introduced ; RHEL 6 (2010) added public cloud support; RHEL 7 (2014) focused on containers and integration; RHEL 8 (2019) enhanced hybrid cloud consistency with tools like Red Hat Insights; and RHEL 9 (2022) advanced security, networking, and development tools such as Python 3.9 and GCC 11. Key features of RHEL include a standardized 10-year lifecycle with phases for full support, maintenance, and extended life, ensuring long-term reliability for critical systems. It supports diverse architectures like , ARM64, IBM Power, and , and incorporates enterprise-grade security such as SELinux, FIPS compliance, and in recent versions. Built-in tools, container technologies like Image Mode, and AI-powered assistants like RHEL Lightspeed enable efficient deployment and operations across on-premises, , and edge environments. Certifications with hundreds of clouds and thousands of vendors ensure broad compatibility. As of November 2025, RHEL 10, released on May 20, 2025, represents the current flagship version, introducing AI readiness, enhanced cloud optimizations, and advanced security for modern workloads. Versions 9 and 8 remain actively supported, with RHEL 7 in extended life phase until 2029. RHEL powers a leading share (approximately 43%) of enterprise Linux deployments as of 2025, serving as the core of Red Hat's ecosystem and supporting industries from to .

Overview and History

Origins and Development

Red Hat, Inc. was founded on March 26, 1993, by Bob Young and Marc Ewing, with the initial goal of commercializing Linux through value-added services and distributions. The company released its first public version of Red Hat Linux, version 0.9 known as the "Halloween Release," on October 31, 1994, as a community-driven distribution aimed at making Linux more accessible for users and developers. These early releases focused on providing a stable, user-friendly Linux environment through open-source collaboration, distributing software via floppy disks and later CDs to a growing community of enthusiasts. In 2002, amid the aftermath of the dot-com bust, Red Hat shifted its focus from consumer-oriented community distributions to an enterprise model with the launch of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 2.1 on March 23, based on the codebase of Red Hat Linux 7.2. This transition was motivated by the need for long-term stability, reliable hardware support, and commercial backing to meet enterprise demands for dependable server deployments, addressing the limitations of frequent updates in community versions that proved unsuitable for mission-critical workloads. RHEL emphasized a subscription-based support model, enabling customers to receive security updates and technical assistance over extended lifecycles, which helped solidify Linux's role in enterprise computing. Key milestones in RHEL's evolution include IBM's acquisition of on July 9, 2019, for $34 billion, which accelerated the company's open-source strategy by integrating RHEL into hybrid cloud ecosystems and fostering broader contributions. Another significant change occurred in December 2020, when announced the transition of to serve as the primary upstream development branch for RHEL, with Linux 8 support ending on December 31, 2021, to streamline the development and incorporate feedback earlier in the process. This shift, completed by mid-2021, positioned as a rolling-release testing ground ahead of stable RHEL releases. The announcement was controversial in the open-source , leading to the creation of alternative RHEL-compatible distributions such as and to maintain stable, free builds. RHEL's development process is inherently collaborative, involving thousands of open-source contributors worldwide, with Red Hat employees actively participating by submitting code, testing features, and refining upstream projects to ensure enterprise-grade quality. The serves as the primary upstream community distribution for RHEL, providing a platform for innovation and validation before integration into stable releases. This model leverages community-driven enhancements in areas like kernel stability and , sponsored by to align with commercial needs while maintaining open accessibility.

Release and Support Model

Red Hat Enterprise Linux follows a structured release cycle designed to balance innovation with stability for enterprise environments. Major versions are released approximately every three years, providing significant updates to the core operating system while maintaining backward compatibility. Minor releases occur every six months during the full support phase, incorporating bug fixes, security updates, and select enhancements without requiring major system overhauls. Each release undergoes beta testing phases to allow early validation by partners and customers, followed by general availability after extensive quality assurance processes that include rigorous testing for stability and performance. Access to Red Hat Enterprise Linux and its ongoing maintenance relies on a subscription-based model, which is mandatory for obtaining software updates, security errata, and . Subscriptions provide entitlements to download certified software, access to the Customer Portal for errata and documentation, and 24x7 support options depending on the tier selected. For individual developers, Red Hat offers a no-cost Individual Developer Subscription that allows registration of up to 240 systems for self-supported use, including limited production workloads, to facilitate testing and development without commercial licensing. Red Hat maintains a comprehensive certification program to ensure compatibility and reliability across diverse environments. This includes validations for hardware systems from thousands of vendors, software applications certified to run seamlessly on the platform, and integrations with major cloud providers such as AWS, , and Google Cloud. As of 2025, over 2,000 applications have achieved , enabling enterprises to deploy RHEL with confidence in mixed workloads involving , , and custom software. Central to the release model is Red Hat's backporting philosophy, which selectively integrates features, enhancements, and fixes from upstream open-source projects into stable RHEL versions to avoid disruptive changes like frequent kernel upgrades. This approach prioritizes long-term stability by applying upstream innovations—such as improvements or performance optimizations—without rebasing to the latest upstream releases, ensuring minimal risk to production systems. Each major release supports a 10-year lifecycle divided into full support, maintenance, and extended life phases, allowing organizations to plan upgrades on their timelines.

Variants and Supported Platforms

Core Editions

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) offers core editions designed to address diverse enterprise needs, from traditional server environments to specialized workloads, all built on a common stable foundation with . These editions share the same kernel and core components but differ in default packaging, included tools, and targeted use cases to optimize and . The flagship editions include RHEL Server and RHEL , while specialized variants extend capabilities for , SAP integrations, and edge deployments. RHEL Server serves as the primary edition for enterprise infrastructure, powering data centers, environments, and platforms. It provides a robust, headless operating system optimized for stability, security, and scalability, supporting deployments on physical servers, hypervisors, and public . A key feature is its subscription model, which allows unlimited virtual guests per physical host, enabling cost-effective scaling for virtualized workloads without additional licensing fees per guest. This edition emphasizes server-side tools for , , and management, making it ideal for mission-critical production environments. In contrast, RHEL Workstation targets developers, designers, and desktop users requiring a graphical interface for productivity and development tasks. It includes the GNOME desktop environment by default, along with graphical tools for high-performance applications such as animation, scientific computing, and CAD software, while focusing primarily on x86-64 architecture. Unlike the server edition, it supports direct user interaction via keyboard and display, with built-in features like encrypted disks and SELinux for security in personal or team settings. Packaging differences highlight this focus: the workstation edition omits server-specific repositories for products like Red Hat Satellite or High Availability add-ons, prioritizing instead developer tools and GPU-accelerated workflows. Specialized editions build on the core platform to meet niche requirements. RHEL for (HPC) delivers optimized libraries and container tools like Podman and Buildah for scalable scientific simulations, AI, and workloads across datacenters and clouds. It supports advanced hardware ecosystems and has been selected as the OS foundation for exascale supercomputers, ensuring and compliance in demanding computational environments. RHEL for SAP Solutions integrates deeply with and S/4HANA, offering certified repositories, performance tunings, and high-availability features to support ERP migrations and database operations by 2027. This edition ensures consistent stability for environments, with enhancements for persistent memory on and Power architectures. RHEL for Edge extends the platform to IoT, embedded, and distributed scenarios, supporting headless operation on resource-constrained devices with zero-touch provisioning and delta updates for low-bandwidth efficiency. It leverages technologies and Image Builder for custom images, enabling management of vast node networks in remote locations like industrial sites or ATMs.

Hardware Architectures and Certifications

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) supports multiple hardware architectures to enable deployment across a wide range of enterprise environments, from traditional data centers to cloud-native infrastructures. The core architectures include the platform from and processors, which serves as the foundation for most general-purpose computing workloads. Additionally, RHEL extends compatibility to the 64-bit architecture (ARMv8), exemplified by processors like for efficient cloud-based applications. For high-performance and mission-critical systems, it includes support for in little-endian mode (starting with ) and the 64-bit architecture for mainframe environments. Emerging support for , introduced as a developer preview in RHEL 10, allows early experimentation with this open on platforms like the SiFive Premier P550. The Certified Hardware program plays a crucial role in ensuring reliability and by rigorously testing and validating hardware configurations against RHEL. This initiative certifies systems from leading vendors such as , (HPE), and , covering servers, storage, and networking components optimized for RHEL workloads. The program's automated test suite verifies compatibility across architectures, helping enterprises select proven hardware that minimizes deployment risks and support issues. As of 2025, the certification catalog includes thousands of components and configurations, enabling seamless integration in hybrid environments. RHEL's architecture support extends to cloud and virtualization ecosystems, providing native hypervisor capabilities through (KVM) for hosting virtual machines on supported hardware. It also maintains compatibility with third-party platforms like and for flexible virtualization strategies. In public cloud settings, RHEL integrates directly with providers including (AWS), , and , offering certified images and optimized instances that leverage architecture-specific features for performance and scalability. Performance optimizations in RHEL are achieved through architecture-tailored kernel variants that incorporate hardware-specific enhancements. For instance, the s390x kernel for systems utilizes advanced features from z14 and subsequent processors, such as improved vector processing and secure execution capabilities, to deliver superior throughput in mainframe applications. Similarly, ARM64 kernels include optimizations for big.LITTLE configurations, while builds support advanced instruction sets like for compute-intensive tasks. These customizations ensure efficient resource utilization without compromising the stability of the upstream foundation.

Ecosystem Relationships

Upstream Sources

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) draws primarily from as its upstream source, a community-driven distribution that serves as a testing ground for new technologies and features before they are integrated into RHEL's stable releases. , sponsored by , operates on a bleeding-edge model with biannual releases, allowing for rapid iteration on open-source components such as the , desktop environment, and system tools. For example, RHEL 10 is built upon elements from Fedora 40, where packages undergo extensive community validation and stabilization prior to enterprise certification. This flow ensures that RHEL benefits from Fedora's innovative advancements while applying rigorous . CentOS Stream complements by functioning as a rolling-release platform, introduced in December 2020 and fully replacing the point-release CentOS Linux by June 2024. Positioned between and RHEL, it provides early access to RHEL's source code, enabling engineers and community contributors to test enterprise patches, bug fixes, and enhancements in a public repository before their upstream integration into RHEL minor releases. This model fosters collaborative development, shortening feedback loops and allowing proposed changes to be evaluated for inclusion in future RHEL versions. Red Hat's contribution model emphasizes an upstream-first approach, where its engineers lead much of Fedora's development efforts, including maintenance of core components like the kernel and desktop technologies, while prioritizing contributions to open-source projects over downstream modifications. As the primary sponsor, Red Hat provides resources and hosting, with its developers among the top contributors to Fedora's , ensuring innovations flow openly to benefit all users. The benefits of this upstream structure include accelerated innovation testing in 's biannual release schedule, with each version supported for approximately 13 months, contrasted with RHEL's extended 10-year support lifecycle, which delivers enterprise-grade stability and security updates. This division allows to experiment with while RHEL focuses on reliability for production environments, ultimately enhancing the overall ecosystem's robustness.

Downstream Derivatives

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) serves as the foundation for several downstream distributions, which are rebuilt from RHEL's publicly available to provide compatible alternatives for enterprise use. These derivatives aim to offer binary or bug-for-bug compatibility with RHEL, enabling users to run RHEL-certified applications without modification, while often providing community-driven or vendor-supported options outside of Red Hat's subscription model. AlmaLinux is a community-driven enterprise that maintains 1:1 binary compatibility with RHEL, ensuring identical package versions and functionality. Founded in early 2021 by the team at CloudLinux Inc. as a direct alternative to Linux following Red Hat's shift toward , AlmaLinux is stewarded by the independent AlmaLinux OS Foundation, a 501(c)(6) non-profit organization established in March 2021 to govern its development and ensure long-term stability. The project receives ongoing support from CloudLinux and emphasizes rapid release cycles aligned with RHEL updates, targeting servers, cloud environments, and . Rocky Linux is an independent, community-led distribution designed for bug-for-bug compatibility with RHEL, prioritizing enterprise stability and reproducibility. Launched in by Gregory Kurtzer, the original founder of , Rocky Linux was created in response to the discontinuation of CentOS Linux's traditional stable rebuild model, with the goal of providing a reliable, no-cost RHEL clone for production workloads. Governed by the Rocky Enterprise Software Foundation, it focuses on matching RHEL's lifecycle and is widely adopted in data centers and cloud infrastructures for its commitment to upstream alignment without proprietary modifications. Oracle Linux is a free, enterprise-grade rebuild of RHEL provided by Oracle Corporation, offering 100% application binary compatibility to allow seamless migration of RHEL-certified software. Released since 2006, it includes a default RHEL-compatible kernel alongside an optional Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK), which incorporates Oracle-specific optimizations for performance in Oracle environments like databases and virtualization. Oracle Linux supports RHEL's package ecosystem through compatibility modes and is distributed without subscription fees for the base OS, though premium support is available, making it popular for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure and hybrid deployments. Other notable derivatives include SUSE Liberty Linux, a premium support service from SUSE that extends maintenance and security updates for RHEL versions 6 through 9 and 7, allowing organizations to maintain mixed environments without . EuroLinux, developed by the Polish company EuroLinux Sp. z o.o., is an enterprise-class RHEL-compatible distribution built directly from RHEL , offering binary compatibility for servers and including specialized variants like EuroLinux Desktop for workstation use. Historically, Linux served as the primary RHEL rebuild from 2004 until its end-of-life on June 30, 2024, for version 7, after which the project shifted focus to as a rolling upstream development platform rather than a stable clone. Legally, releases RHEL source code under open-source licenses like the GPL, permitting third parties to rebuild and redistribute compatible distributions as long as they comply with license terms. However, enforces trademark restrictions prohibiting the use of the "RHEL" branding on derivatives and, since 2023, has limited free public access to RHEL source RPMs by removing mirrors from git.centos.org, requiring a subscription or partner agreement for direct access to prevent unauthorized commercial repackaging without added value. This policy supports rebuilds through alternative channels like but emphasizes 's focus on sustaining open-source development for paying s.

Complementary Products

Management and Automation Add-ons

Red Hat provides on-premise lifecycle management capabilities for Enterprise Linux environments, enabling organizations to deploy, configure, patch, provision, and maintain thousands of physical, virtual, and cloud-based systems from a centralized interface. It includes tools for to synchronize and distribute software updates, errata, and custom packages; provisioning for automated OS installation and configuration; and compliance reporting to assess systems against policies and regulatory standards. Designed for large-scale hybrid infrastructures, integrates with subscriptions to enforce entitlement tracking and automate remediation workflows, reducing operational overhead in enterprise settings. The Ansible Automation Platform serves as an agentless solution for IT automation, allowing , application deployment, , and multi-tiered workflow execution across RHEL deployments without requiring software agents on managed hosts. Built on the open-source Ansible engine, the platform includes ansible-core, which is packaged directly in RHEL for seamless integration and execution of playbooks via YAML-based automation scripts. It supports role-based access, execution environments for consistent reproducibility, and analytics for monitoring automation outcomes, facilitating practices in server editions. Red Hat Lightspeed, formerly known as Red Hat Insights, offers cloud-based analytics to predict and mitigate issues in RHEL systems through proactive and . As a SaaS service included with standard RHEL subscriptions, it collects data to detect configuration drifts, bottlenecks, and exposures, providing actionable recommendations and automated remediation playbooks. This enables IT teams to prioritize high-impact interventions, such as patching critical vulnerabilities before exploitation, enhancing system reliability across hybrid environments. These and automation add-ons require separate entitlements beyond the base RHEL subscription, with options scaled by environment size and features; for instance, Red Hat supports unlimited virtual guests under premium-tier entitlements for advanced provisioning and reporting. Automation Platform operates under its own tiered subscriptions for managed nodes and executions, while Lightspeed leverages the existing RHEL entitlement for core analytics.

Security and Clustering Add-ons

The High Availability Add-on for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) enables the creation of clustered systems that deliver reliability, scalability, and availability for critical production services by eliminating single points of failure and supporting automated failover. It utilizes Pacemaker as the cluster resource manager to monitor and manage resources, ensuring high availability through failover mechanisms, and Corosync for cluster membership, messaging, and quorum coordination. The add-on supports active-passive configurations, such as those using HA-LVM for exclusive storage access by one node at a time, and load balancing via HAProxy for TCP and HTTP/HTTPS traffic distribution across nodes. In RHEL 8.1 and later, it supports clusters of up to 32 nodes. This add-on requires a separate subscription beyond the standard RHEL entitlement. The Resilient Storage Add-on complements high availability clustering by providing concurrent access to shared storage across multiple nodes in a cluster, allowing servers to read and write to the same storage device over a network. It integrates with the High Availability Add-on, leveraging Pacemaker for resource management and the Global File System 2 (GFS2) as a POSIX-compliant clustered file system that supports journaling for rapid recovery and cluster-wide locking to prevent data corruption. GFS2 enables shared storage configurations up to 16 nodes and 100 TB in size, with support for clustered Samba/CIFS to facilitate access in mixed Windows environments. Hardware fencing ensures clean node isolation during failures, maintaining data integrity without single points of failure. Like the High Availability Add-on, it is available via a dedicated subscription and is supported in physical, virtualized, and cloud deployments for RHEL 7 through 9; support for the Resilient Storage Add-on is not available in RHEL 10 or later. RHEL incorporates integrated security features such as SELinux, which enforces (MAC) by assigning security labels to processes and resources to prevent unauthorized access and mitigate risks. OpenSCAP complements this by offering tools for system scanning, , and compliance enforcement against standards like SCAP, using the oscap utility to generate reports and apply remediation profiles. For centralized authentication and identity management, the Identity Management (IdM) solution serves as an add-on capability, providing a unified framework to manage user identities, policies, Kerberos authentication, and authorization across Linux domains. IdM supports integration with for cross-realm trusts and enables secure in enterprise environments. These security enhancements are included in standard RHEL subscriptions, with options like the Security Select Add-on extending support for low- and moderate-severity CVEs beyond standard patches. Together, these add-ons integrate seamlessly with RHEL's core editions to bolster security postures and clustering resilience, such as combining SELinux enforcement with Pacemaker-managed failover to protect clustered services from both access violations and hardware failures.

Version Timeline

Naming and Release Patterns

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) employs a sequential for its major versions, starting from RHEL 2.1 in 2002 and progressing to RHEL 10 released in 2025, providing a clear, predictable progression for enterprise users. Each major version introduces a significant rebase of core components, such as the and key packages, while maintaining within the family. Minor releases within a major version are denoted by decimal increments, such as RHEL 9.0, 9.1, and so on, and are issued approximately every six months to deliver cumulative updates, including security patches, bug fixes, and stability improvements. These point releases consolidate changes from ongoing development streams, allowing users to upgrade incrementally without major disruptions. Unlike upstream distributions like , which use thematic codenames (e.g., animal-inspired names), RHEL prioritizes version numbers for naming to emphasize stability and predictability in enterprise environments, avoiding whimsical identifiers that could complicate long-term . The timeline for major RHEL releases has evolved to an approximately 3-5 year cycle since RHEL 7, with examples including RHEL 7 in 2014, RHEL 8 in 2019, RHEL 9 in 2022, and RHEL 10 in 2025, enabling regular infusions of modern technologies while aligning with extended support commitments of up to 10 years per major version. Within each minor release branch, updates follow a z-stream model for non-disruptive enhancements, such as targeted bug resolutions and security fixes that do not alter the base package versions, ensuring minimal impact on deployed systems. This approach contrasts with y-stream updates in point releases, which incorporate broader cumulative changes.

RHEL 10

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 10 reached general availability on May 20, 2025. It is derived from Fedora 40 and incorporates contributions from CentOS Stream, featuring the Linux kernel 6.12.0 as its foundational component. This release emphasizes advancements in AI integration, security hardening, and support for emerging architectures to address hybrid cloud and edge computing demands. A standout innovation in RHEL 10 is Lightspeed, an AI-powered command-line assistant that leverages generative AI to provide interactive guidance for troubleshooting, implementing features, and optimizing system management. Lightspeed draws on Red Hat's extensive RHEL expertise to offer context-aware recommendations, enabling administrators to resolve issues more efficiently and reducing the learning curve for new users. On the security front, enhancements include improved capabilities in Image Builder, which now supports pre-hardened image creation with OpenSCAP integration for compliance standards, and Podman 5.0, which advances container security through better runtime isolation and migration to crun as the default OCI runtime. RHEL 10 strengthens its cloud and edge orientation with a developer preview for architecture, enabling deployment on platforms like the Premier P550 for testing and innovation in open hardware ecosystems. It also deepens hybrid cloud integration with Red Hat OpenShift, facilitating seamless container orchestration and application development across environments. Notably, support for 32-bit x86 (i686) packages has been fully deprecated and removed, aligning with a shift toward modern 64-bit architectures like x86-64-v3. The initial minor release, RHEL 10.1, was released on November 12, 2025, prioritizing stability improvements, bug fixes, and hardware enablement updates.

RHEL 9

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 (RHEL 9) was released on May 17, 2022, featuring Linux kernel 5.14.0 and incorporating technologies from Fedora releases 34 through 36 via CentOS Stream 9. This version emphasizes stability for enterprise workloads while advancing containerization, security, and hardware compatibility. It supports x86_64, IBM Power (including POWER10 processors), IBM Z, and 64-bit ARM architectures, with enhanced ARM64 optimizations for cloud environments like Azure. Key advancements in RHEL 9 include improved tools, with Podman 4.0 providing daemonless management and enhanced networking via the Netavark stack, alongside Buildah for building OCI-compliant images without a runtime dependency. RHEL Image Mode, introduced in minor release 9.4, enables treating the entire operating system as an immutable image using bootc, facilitating and deployments that integrate with features like SEV-SNP for protected memory enclaves. Hardware support extends to for and improved ARM64 scalability, enabling broader deployment on diverse server ecosystems. Application Streams in RHEL 9 deliver modular content for development languages and runtimes, such as (starting with version 16 in 9.0, upgradable to 18 and later) and Python (3.9 initially, updated to 3.12 in 9.4), allowing multiple parallel versions to coexist without conflicts via RPM modules. This modularity supports flexible application development and deployment, with streams receiving updates aligned to upstream releases while maintaining enterprise stability. As of November 2025, RHEL 9 has seen minor releases up to 9.7 (November 2025), with 9.6 (May 2025) introducing new packages for post-quantum such as ML-KEM, and 9.7 enhancing post-quantum TLS support. Earlier releases like 9.4 (May 2024) introduced security enhancements including updated for improved cryptographic agility and improvements for advanced networking scenarios, including support for 5G edge deployments via SR-IOV and teaming. Extended Update Support (EUS) is available for select even-numbered minors to extend maintenance phases.

RHEL 8

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 (RHEL 8) was released on May 7, 2019, marking a transition from RHEL 7 by emphasizing hybrid cloud capabilities and modular software delivery. It ships with version 4.18 and draws from versions 28 through 30 for its upstream components. A major innovation in RHEL 8 is the introduction of Application Streams, which enable the delivery of multiple versions of application packages through a modular system in the repository, allowing users to select specific streams like 10 or 10 without disrupting the base system. Additionally, it incorporates CoreOS Ignition as a configuration tool compatible with cloud-init for provisioning in cloud environments, particularly for containerized workloads. RHEL 8 also sets Secure Boot as the default for installations on supported hardware, enhancing boot-time integrity. On the security front, RHEL 8 improves compliance by integrating system-wide cryptographic policies that enforce approved algorithms by default, such as TLS 1.2/1.3 and updated to version 7.8p1, which removes support for deprecated ciphers like and Blowfish. It also bolsters container security through native integration with , providing tools like Podman for rootless container management and enhanced SELinux policies for environments. RHEL 8 has received multiple minor updates, culminating in version 8.10 released on May 21, 2024, which is the final minor release as of 2025. These updates include support for NVMe/TCP offload in the kernel for high-performance storage networking, with in-kernel multipathing available but disabled by default for configuration flexibility. Real-time kernel options via the kernel-rt package have been refined across releases, offering low-latency patches for deterministic workloads like .

RHEL 7

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 (RHEL 7), codenamed Maipo, was released on June 10, 2014, marking a significant evolution in enterprise distributions with a focus on modern system administration, cloud integration, and performance enhancements. It is based primarily on 19, incorporating technologies from Fedora 20 and 21, and ships with 3.10, which provides improved stability and hardware support for enterprise workloads. RHEL 7 introduced as the default init system, replacing the older Upstart, to enable faster boot times, better dependency management, and parallel service startup, fundamentally changing how services are controlled and monitored in Linux environments. A key aspect of RHEL 7's design is its enhanced support for cloud and virtualization environments, including integration with through Red Hat Enterprise Linux Platform 7, which allows organizations to deploy private clouds using certified components on RHEL 7 hosts. File system improvements were also central, with becoming the default file system for Anaconda installations, offering superior scalability for large volumes, metadata journaling for quicker crash recovery, and better performance under high I/O loads compared to the previous default. These features positioned RHEL 7 as a robust platform for data centers, emphasizing reliability and efficiency for mission-critical applications. RHEL 7 underwent nine minor releases, from 7.0 in June 2014 to 7.9 in September 2020, each delivering cumulative updates for , bug fixes, and performance optimizations while maintaining . Extended Update Support (EUS) was available for select minor releases, allowing users to stabilize on versions like 7.7 and 7.9 for up to 24 months to support long-term production environments. Following the end of Maintenance Support 2 on June 30, 2024, RHEL 7 entered the Extended Life Phase, with Extended Life Cycle Support (ELS) providing patches through May 31, 2029, extending its total lifecycle to approximately 15 years from initial release. This prolonged support underscores RHEL 7's enduring role in legacy enterprise deployments.

RHEL 6 and Earlier

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) versions prior to 7 represent the foundational stages of Red Hat's enterprise-focused , transitioning from community-driven to a commercially supported platform optimized for stability and long-term deployment in business environments. These releases emphasized compatibility with legacy hardware, security enhancements, and virtualization capabilities that catered to early enterprise adoption, often serving as bridges for migrations from Unix systems. Each version provided extended support periods, typically around 7-10 years, to ensure reliability in production settings. RHEL 2.1, released on March 23, 2002, marked the initial enterprise release and signified a pivotal shift from the community-oriented distributions to a subscription-based model with dedicated support. It shipped with version 2.4.9-e.3 and focused on broad hardware compatibility to support data centers transitioning to open-source solutions. Full support for RHEL 2.1 concluded in 2007, after which it entered extended maintenance until its end-of-life in 2009. RHEL 3, generally available on October 22, 2003, introduced (SELinux) as its key security innovation, providing to enhance protection against unauthorized access and in enterprise settings. Built on kernel 2.4.21-4, it improved scalability for multi-user environments and supported architectures like x86 and Power, aiding Unix-to-Linux migrations. Support for RHEL 3 ended in 2010, reflecting its role in establishing RHEL as a secure alternative for critical workloads. Released on February 15, 2005, RHEL 4 advanced kernel capabilities with version 2.6.9-5, incorporating features like improved scheduler and support for 64-bit architectures to handle growing enterprise demands. It included the Ada compiler for high-integrity applications, enabling development of safety-critical software in sectors like and . RHEL 4's lifecycle concluded in 2012, underscoring its stability for legacy systems still in use today. RHEL 5, launched on March 15, 2007, integrated support for paravirtualization, allowing efficient resource sharing across virtual machines and facilitating server consolidation in data centers. Powered by kernel 2.6.18-8, it emphasized enterprise migration from Unix platforms through certifications and tools for compatibility testing. The version received 10 years of support, with maintenance ending in 2017 and extended life cycle support concluding on November 30, 2020. RHEL 6, made available on November 10, 2010, shifted virtualization focus by introducing full support for (KVM), offering hardware-assisted acceleration for better performance and scalability compared to prior paravirtualization approaches. It utilized kernel 2.6.32-71, renowned for its long-term stability in legacy environments handling mixed workloads. RHEL 6 provided a 10-year support window, with full maintenance ending in November 2020 and extended life cycle support terminating on June 30, 2024. These early versions laid the groundwork for subsequent innovations in RHEL 7, such as integration.

Lifecycle Management

Support Phases and Duration

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) provides a structured lifecycle with defined support phases to ensure stability and for enterprise deployments. For major versions 8 and later, the support model consists of three primary phases: Full Support, Maintenance Support, and an optional Extended Life Phase. Full Support lasts five years from general availability and includes comprehensive updates such as new features, bug fixes, hardware enablement, and errata. Maintenance Support follows for an additional five years, focusing on errata, critical bug fixes, and urgent reliability issues, without proactive feature enhancements or new hardware certifications. The Extended Life Phase offers limited errata for existing installations via an optional Extended Life Support (ELS) add-on, typically extending coverage for up to three years beyond Maintenance Support, though entitlements require a separate subscription. Earlier versions, such as RHEL 5, 6, and 7, follow a slightly different totaling ten years of support across Full Support, Maintenance Support 1, and Maintenance Support 2 phases. Full Support for these versions also spans approximately five years with the same broad update entitlements as in newer releases. Maintenance Support 1 provides one year of and critical fixes, while Maintenance Support 2 extends for four more years with similar limited updates. For example, RHEL 7's Full Support phase concluded in 2019, with Maintenance Support ending on June 30, 2024. All major RHEL versions receive at least ten years of combined support from general availability. Support entitlements are tied to subscription levels, which determine access to updates and technical assistance during these phases. Standard subscriptions provide 9x5 business-hours support via phone, online, and knowledgebase resources, suitable for most production environments. Premium subscriptions offer 24x7 support with faster response times and dedicated assistance, ideal for mission-critical systems. Both levels grant access to errata during active phases, but Extended Life Phase support is restricted to Standard and Premium entitlements without additional add-ons. Additionally, a no-cost Individual Developer Subscription allows free access to RHEL for non-production use on up to 240 systems per user (as of 2023), with self-support through community channels but no paid technical assistance. Version-specific durations align with the ten-year minimum; for instance, RHEL 10's Maintenance Support extends until May 31, 2035. Extended Update Support (EUS) can briefly extend minor release coverage within phases but is not part of the core lifecycle durations.
PhaseDuration (RHEL 8+)Key EntitlementsDuration (RHEL 5-7)Key Entitlements
Full Support5 yearsNew features, bug fixes, hardware enablement, security~5 yearsNew features, bug fixes, hardware enablement, security
Maintenance Support5 yearsSecurity errata, critical bugs5 years (1 year MS1 + 4 years MS2)Security errata, critical bugs
Extended LifeOptional ~3 years (ELS add-on)Security only for existing installsOptional (ELS add-on)Security only for existing installs

Kernel and Package Policies

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) employs a kernel backporting strategy to integrate selected features, bug fixes, and security enhancements from newer upstream versions into its stable kernel series without incrementing the major version number, thereby preserving (ABI) compatibility and minimizing disruptions for users. For instance, RHEL 9 utilizes kernel version 5.14.0 as its base, yet incorporates backports from upstream kernels such as version 6.6, including enhancements and driver updates, to deliver modern functionality while maintaining the established ABI. This approach ensures long-term stability, as kernel version bumps could introduce ABI changes requiring recompilation of kernel modules and drivers. RHEL organizes packages into distinct repositories to balance stability and flexibility: the BaseOS repository provides a stable core of system components, while the repository delivers multiple versions of user-space applications and development tools as modular streams, allowing users to select specific versions without affecting the base system. For example, AppStreams enable the coexistence of multiple GCC compiler versions, such as GCC 8, 10, or 11, each as a separate stream that can be enabled independently via tools like DNF modules. Enhancements and fixes within these streams are delivered through z-stream updates, which are asynchronous errata releases between minor versions (y-streams) focused on critical bugs, security issues, and targeted improvements without introducing major changes. The update policy in RHEL prioritizes security errata (RHSA), which address vulnerabilities and are released as needed or aggregated in minor releases, followed by bug fixes (RHBA) and enhancements, ensuring systems remain secure without forcing frequent overhauls. Automatic upgrades to the next major version are not performed; instead, major upgrades require explicit user action, such as using the Leapp tool, to maintain control over production environments. Access to all repositories and errata requires an active subscription, which authenticates systems via the Subscription Manager for downloading updates. Deprecations in RHEL emphasize long-term compatibility by phasing out outdated components in favor of modern alternatives, as seen with the removal of Python 2 support; in RHEL 8, Python 2.7 was provided as an optional module but reached end-of-life in June 2024, directing users to Python 3 for ongoing and feature updates. This policy avoids perpetuating end-of-life software in the ecosystem, promoting sustained compatibility through backported support for critical legacy needs during transition periods.

Extended Update Support

Extended Update Support (EUS) is an optional feature for Red Hat Enterprise Linux subscribers that extends the availability of and stability updates for specific minor releases, typically even-numbered ones such as .2 or .4, by providing backported Critical and Important errata along with selected urgent bug fixes. This allows organizations to maintain a environment on a chosen minor release without needing to upgrade to subsequent disruptive minors, supporting long-term deployment strategies for mission-critical applications. EUS are available for 24 months from the general availability of the qualifying minor release, during which the first 6 months include general errata while the remaining 18 months focus on and urgent fixes only. An enhanced variant, Enhanced Extended Update Support, extends this period to 48 months for select minor releases, offering the same types of backported updates over the longer duration to further minimize upgrade cycles. For RHEL 8 and 9, EUS is included with Premium subscriptions and available as an add-on for Standard subscriptions (excluding self-support options), while EUS serves as an add-on for both Premium and Standard Server subscriptions but is not available for or self-support. As of November 2025, EUS has become available for RHEL 10 minor releases, including 10.0, following its rollout in Q3 2025, with similar subscription structures applying; EUS is also supported for RHEL 10, such as for 10.0 extending to May 31, 2029. To activate EUS, subscribers use the Red Hat Subscription Manager tool, such as the command subscription-manager release --set=9.2 to lock to a specific minor release, followed by enabling the corresponding EUS repositories (e.g., rhel-9-for-x86_64-baseos-eus-rpms) via subscription-manager repos --enable. This process is particularly valuable for environments with rigorous application testing and certification cycles, as it ensures consistent package versions without the need for frequent revalidation. No specific CLI command or tool directly matching the exact phrases "add to subscription", "username", and "password" in command line context exists for managing or adding to subscriptions in Red Hat Enterprise Linux, based on available documentation. Subscription management uses the subscription-manager tool with different commands (e.g., for release locking and repository enabling as described). The primary benefits of EUS include reduced operational overhead from fewer upgrades, enhanced stability for certified workloads, and prolonged support for legacy applications that may not yet be compatible with newer minors. For instance, subscribers can remain on RHEL 9.2 with EUS until May 31, 2025, avoiding interim updates while receiving essential security patches, which is ideal for sectors like or healthcare with strict compliance requirements. This ties briefly into broader maintenance phases by extending the window for Critical fixes beyond standard support.

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