How to Upgrade to AlmaLinux 8.5

AlmaLinux 8.5 is finally here and is codenamed Arctic Sphynx. The new version of the incoming AlmaLinux 8.5 is filled with many improvements such as Nginx 1.20, Node.js 16, Ruby 3.0, PHP 7.4.19, and many more new module streams and enhancements. Also included are an enhanced Cockpit web console and support for the recently released OpenJDK 17.

In the following tutorial, you will get a step-by-step walkthrough of how to upgrade an existing AlmaLinux 8.4 system to 8.5.

Prerequisites

• Recommended OS: AlmaLinux 8.
• User account: A user account with sudo privilages or root access (su command).

Update Operating System

Update your AlmaLinux operating system to make sure all existing packages are up to date:

sudo dnf upgrade --refresh -y

The tutorial will be using the sudo command and assuming you have sudo status.

To verify sudo status on your account:

sudo whoami

Example output showing sudo status:

[joshua@almalinux ~]$ sudo whoami
root

To set up an existing or new sudo account, visit our tutorial on How to Add a User to Sudoers on AlmaLinux.

To use the root account, use the following command with the root password to log in.

su

Import the Latest 8.5 Repository

First, open your terminal and clean any obsolete packages before importing the new repository to install 8.5-1.el8.

sudo dnf clean all

Example output:

26 files removed

Note, your output will be different.

Next, import the latest 8.5 repositories.

For x86_64 users:

sudo dnf install https://repo.almalinux.org/almalinux/almalinux-release-latest-8.x86_64.rpm

For aarch64 users:

sudo dnf install https://repo.almalinux.org/almalinux/almalinux-release-latest-8.aarch64.rpm

Example output:

Type Y, then press the ENTER KEY to proceed with importing the repository.

Upgrade to AlmaLinux 8.5

With the repository now added, begin the process of upgrading to 8.5-1.el8.

In your terminal, execute the following.

sudo dnf upgrade --refresh

Example output:

As above, you can see a comprehensive list of packages that will be upgraded, installed, and removed.

Type Y, then press the ENTER KEY to proceed with importing the repository.

Depending on your hardware, resources, and an internet connection, the upgrade can take several minutes.

Once the upgrade has been completed, you must reboot your system. While you are in your terminal, execute the following.

reboot

Once logged back in, open your terminal and use the following command to verify the version of AlmaLinux installed.

hostnamectl

Example output:

As above, you have successfully upgraded to the new release.

Comments and Conclusion

In the tutorial, you have learned how to update to AlmaLinux 8.5. Overall, the release is still in mode. Still, if you upgrade and encounter issues, you can report the issue on the AlmaLinux Bug Tracker, and further information can be found on the AlmaLinux 8.5 Wiki changelog.