CentOS 8.0 Now Available, Includes What's New in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.0

A few moments ago, CentOS Development Team was pleased to announce the CentOS 8.0 release. It is the latest version of a Red Hat Enterprise Linux-based system rebuilt for general use and comes with many of the highlights of RHEL 8, the latest version from Red Hat. The main difference between both operating systems is that CentOS is a free version of the operating system on which it is based.

CentOS 8.0 has been in development for several months now and is here as the only free Red Hat alternative, since the project of Scientific Linux was discontinued in April after 14 years of activity. The announcement of the new version has not come alone, or rather they have announced two versions in one: the CentOS 8.0 which will be what we have known so far and a new option that they have called CentOS Stream.

CentOS 8.0 arrives with the CentOS Stream version for developers

As we read on the centos.org download page, we now have two ways to consume the CentOS platform: Centos Linux and CentOS Stream. The first is a "rebuilt" version of the free Red Hat Enterprise Linux source code, while the second is "a distribution intermediate that provides a clear path to participate in the creation of the next version of RHEL«. You have all the information about CentOS Stream on the project wiki which we can access from here.

They have not detailed all the differences between both versions, but they do mention that the kernel will be different, using the Stream version one more updated than a normal version that will use Linux 4.18. In fact, CentOS Stream will be what is known as "Rolling Release", a version of the operating system that is installed once and receives lifetime updates.

Among the packages that have been updated in CentOS 8.0, we have the following:

• abrt
• anaconda
• apache-commons-net
• base system
• cloud-init
• cockpit
• glibc-compat
• dhcp
• firefox
• fwupdate
• grub2
• httpd
• initial-setup
• ipa
• kabi-yum-plugins
• kernel
• kde-settings
• libreport
• oscap-anaconda-addon
• package kit
• pcs
• plymouth
• redhat-lsb
• redhat-rpm-config
• scap-security-guide
• shim
• shim-signed
• sos
• subscription-manager
• system-config-date
• system-config-kdump
• thunderbird
• xulrunner
• yum

Those interested in installing this free version of RHEL 8, can download the new images from here.