The Almalinux distribution has unveiled its latest release, version 8.8, which is fully binary compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.8. Users can use this as a direct replacement for centos 8 with changes that rebrand and remove packets specific to RHEL. Assemblies are available for x86_64, ARM64, S390X, and PPC64le in boot, minimal, and complete image formats. Although Almalinux has yet to form a live assembly, which includes GNOME, KDE, XFCE, and MATE, along with raspberry pi boards, WSL, containers, and cloud platforms.
The Almalinux project was formed in response to the end of support for CentOS 8 Red Hat, which was stopped early, leaving users without expected updates in 2021 instead of 2029. As a result, the Almalinux OS Foundation was created to develop a neutral platform using a management model similar to that of the Fedora project. The foundation is a separate non-profit organization that involves the community in its development and offers a free distribution for all users.
Aside from Almalinux, there are other alternatives to CentOS 8 Red Hat, such as Rocky Linux, which was created by the Community under the leadership of the founder of CentOS with the support of a specially created CTRL IQ. Vzlinux is another alternative, provided by Virtuozzo, while Oracle Linux, SUSE LIBERTY LINX, and EURO are additional alternative options. Furthermore, Red Hat has also made RHEL available for free use by organizations developing open software and individual developers with 16 virtual or physical systems.