# Upgrade to CloudLinux 8.5 (for rsync.cloudlinux.com users)

Starting with version 8.5, CloudLinux OS is rebased to AlmaLinux OS, which is an open-source Linux distribution and 1:1 binary compatible fork of RHEL. This document contains some information about the features, differences in the repositories, and instructions on how to switch. The stable 8.5 release is in gradual rollout until December 13th and is already available on rsync.cloudlinux.com.

What are the benefits for CloudLinux to be rebased?

* Optimal work with mirrors. AlmaLinux has 150+ active public mirrors worldwide;
* Better quality as AlmaLinux is a popular distribution tested by thousands of users;
* Easy and clean migration from AlmaLinux OS;
* Release of CloudLinux major versions in just 7-10 days after RHEL.

What changed with the repositories?

| Repository | CloudLinux 8.4 | CloudLinux 8.5 |
| --- | --- | ---|
| BaseOS | Contains RHEL-derived and CloudLinux-specific packages. <br><br> yum repo id: `cloudlinux-BaseOS` | AlmaLinux OS repo with RHEL-derived packages only <br><br> yum repo id: `baseos` |
| AppStream | Contains RHEL-derived and CloudLinux-specific packages. <br><br> yum repo id: `cloudlinux-AppStream` | AlmaLinux OS repo with RHEL-derived packages only. <br><br> yum repo id: `appstream` |
| PowerTools | Contains RHEL-derived and CloudLinux-specific packages. <br><br> yum repo id: `cloudlinux-PowerTools` | AlmaLinux OS repo with RHEL-derived packages only. <br><br> yum repo id: `powertools` |
| cloudlinux-x86_64-server-8 | CLN channel. <br><br> Empty for CloudLinux before 8.5 | CLN channel. Now contains all CloudLinux-specific packages. <br><br> yum repo id: `cloudlinux-x86_64-server-8` |

**rsync.cloudlinux.com** server provides only **cloudlinux-x86_64-server-8** repo for version 8.5. AlmaLinux repos can be used directly from AlmaLinux mirrors (by default) or mirrored using the following guide: https://wiki.almalinux.org/Mirrors.html. YUM repo configurations on systems that use local repos synced from **rsync.cloudlinux.com** shall be updated to include a new repo layout.

::: info
*cloudlinux.repo.example* file is located in 8.5 directory
:::

## How to upgrade

There is no automatic upgrade to 8.5 for rsync.cloudlinux.com users because of the new repo layout.
Please, follow these steps to upgrade CloudLinux 8.4 to 8.5:

1. Install the updated cloudlinux-release package (you can also install it from your mirror).

# dnf install -y https://repo.cloudlinux.com/cloudlinux/8.5/cloudlinux-release-latest-8.rpm

2. Review CloudLinux and AlmaLinux repo configuration files in /etc/yum.repos.d/. Update them if necessary to use your mirror as a source. Check *cloudlinux.repo.example* file located in the 8.5 directory for more information.

3. Import AlmaLinux GPG key (or accept it later during the `dnf update` step)

# rpm --import /etc/pki/rpm-gpg/RPM-GPG-KEY-AlmaLinux

4. Clean dnf cache

# dnf clean all

5. Now, your system is ready for the update.

# dnf update

Review dnf output and accept the update.
::: warning
CloudLinux 8.5 repos have fewer packages than previous CloudLinux 8.x releases because the 8.5 version is rebased to AlmaLinux, which is 1:1 RHEL or CentOS and doesn't provide several devel and static packages. These packages are in the `devel` repo now that is disabled by default. If needed, you can enable the `devel` repo while installing packages, though it is not recommended to update from it or enable it permanently.
Here is an example:

# dnf --enablerepo=devel install bash-devel

:::