# Introducing CentOS Stream 9
The CentOS Project is delighted to announce the availability of CentOS Stream 9, the latest major release of the CentOS Stream distribution.

## What's Great About Stream

### Stream is Continuous
CentOS Stream is a continuous-delivery distribution providing each point-release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Before a package is formally introduced to CentOS Stream, it undergoes a battery of tests and checks—both automated and manual—to ensure it meets the stringent standards for inclusion in RHEL. Updates posted to Stream are identical to those posted to the unreleased minor version of RHEL. The aim? For CentOS Stream to be as fundamentally stable as RHEL itself.

To achieve this stability, each major release of Stream starts from a stable release of Fedora Linux—In CentOS Stream 9, this begins with Fedora 34, which is the same code base from which RHEL 9 is built. As updated packages pass testing and meet standards for stability, they are pushed into CentOS Stream as well as the nightly build of RHEL. What CentOS Stream looks like now is what RHEL will look like in the near future.


### Stream is Community
CentOS Stream is developed through collaboration between the CentOS community and the RHEL engineering team. Although many CentOS Stream contributions derive from Red Hat employees, CentOS Stream thrives on community support. CentOS Stream is a stable, reliable platform for open source communities to expand upon, allowing people from all areas and backgrounds to collaborate in an open environment.

Because CentOS Stream ultimately becomes RHEL, contributors also have an opportunity for their work to influence future builds of RHEL; this makes CentOS Stream an ideal environment for creativity and forward-thinking.

## Getting CentOS Stream
CentOS Stream can be downloaded as [an ISO](https://www.centos.org/centos-stream/) from our mirrors and is compatible with 64-bit x86 (x86_64 v2+), 64-bit ARM (AArch64), IBM Z (s390x Z14+), and IBM POWER (ppc64le POWER9+) architectures.

## Contribute to Stream
Community is at the heart of the CentOS Project, and there are many ways you can contribute. A list of areas where you can contribute is available [on the CentOS Wiki](https://wiki.centos.org/Contribute).

Because CentOS Stream is upstream of RHEL, it offers an ideal environment for applications which are designed be deployed in RHEL. We welcome and encourage contributors from all backgrounds—especially those developing for the post-RHEL production stream—to use CentOS Stream to build, test, and deploy the applications that are special to you and to the greater Linux community.

You can also contribute by joining (or creating) a Special Interest Group (SIG) in an area of your interest. Visit the [CentOS Wiki](https://wiki.centos.org/SpecialInterestGroup/) to learn more.

## Learn More
CentOS Stream is made for you to make it what you want it to be. To learn more about CentOS Stream 9, visit the CentOS Website: [centos.org/stream9](https://centos.org/stream9)

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