The Past and Present of CentOS and Its Alternatives

Linux has a rich ecosystem of over three hundred distributions, with the most popular ones including Fedora, Debian, Ubuntu, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), SUSE, and CentOS. Distributions are generally classified as either commercially maintained (e.g., RHEL) or community maintained (e.g., Debian), and CentOS historically occupied the downstream position in the chain: Fedora → RHEL → CentOS .

CentOS was built from RHEL source code after removing trademarked components, offering the same features as RHEL for free. In 2019, Red Hat introduced a new model, moving the CentOS community upstream to create CentOS Stream , which now sits between Fedora and RHEL: Fedora → CentOS Stream → RHEL .

The original CentOS Linux 8 stopped receiving updates at the end of 2021, and CentOS Linux 7 will reach end‑of‑support on June 30, 2024. Going forward, no new CentOS Linux releases will be produced; only CentOS Stream will continue to evolve.

Red Hat advises existing CentOS users to migrate early, offering several paths: switch to other free community distributions such as Rocky Linux or Ubuntu; adopt commercial or cloud‑focused releases like SUSE or Amazon Linux 2; move to Red Hat‑led offerings such as CentOS Stream or RHEL; or consider domestic Chinese distributions.

Common alternatives include:

Ubuntu/Debian – suited for internet‑scale workloads and AI, compilation, big‑data environments; Ubuntu releases LTS versions every two years with nine‑month support for standard releases.

Oracle Linux – a RHEL clone providing early security updates for traditional production environments.

OpenSUSE – an established distro with three package managers (ZYpp, YaST, RPM) and a release cadence similar to Ubuntu.

Rocky Linux – created by a CentOS co‑founder to be 100 % compatible with RHEL, targeting users seeking a stable downstream replacement.

For enterprise customers, Red Hat Enterprise Linux remains the safest drop‑in replacement due to hardware compatibility, while internet‑focused companies often prefer Ubuntu for its rapid feature cycle. Using CentOS Stream is also viable, as its release process mirrors Red Hat’s rigorous testing.

Domestic Chinese operating systems are gaining traction, offering compatibility with CentOS and additional optimizations:

OpenEuler – optimized for core kernel functions, container, virtualization, confidential computing, and includes its own JDK.

Anolis OS – fully open, cloud‑oriented, 100 % compatible with CentOS 8, with dedicated migration solutions.

Alibaba Cloud Linux 3 – customized for Alibaba Cloud infrastructure.

TencentOS Server Kernel (Tlinux) – designed for cloud scenarios with performance and security enhancements.

KylinOS – targets enterprise workloads, supporting multiple domestic CPU architectures and cloud‑big‑data use cases.

Red Flag Linux – supports a wide range of architectures and offers container cloud management platforms.

Overall, the Linux ecosystem continues to evolve toward greater openness and self‑reliance, with both international and domestic distributions providing viable migration paths for organizations seeking stability, performance, or innovation.