The Changelog: Software Development, Open Source

The rise of Rocky Linux (Interview)

Jan 22, 2021

Gregory M. Kurtzer, founder of the CentOS Project and Rocky Linux, dives into the evolution of community-driven Linux distributions. He shares insights on the historical context of CentOS and its recent corporate shifts under Red Hat. Kurtzer explains how Rocky Linux emerged as a robust alternative, aiming for full compatibility with Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The conversation touches on building trust within the community and engaging contributors, alongside the challenges and excitement of fostering a new, collaborative operating system.

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ANECDOTE

CentOS Origins

CentOS originated from the Chaos Linux project around 2003-2004.
It gained popularity after rebuilding Red Hat Enterprise Linux when Red Hat Linux 8/9 reached end-of-life.

ANECDOTE

CentOS Naming

The name CentOS comes from 'Community Enterprise Operating System.'
Gregory Kurtzer preferred the pronunciation as one word to emphasize it as free.

ANECDOTE

Red Hat and CentOS

Gregory Kurtzer disassociated from CentOS after Red Hat threatened legal action over trademark usage.
Red Hat was concerned about CentOS appearing above them in search results for 'Red Hat'.

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This week we’re talking with Gregory Kurtzer about Rocky Linux. Greg is the founder of the CentOS project, which recently shifted its strategy and has the Linux community scrambling. Rocky Linux aims to continue where the CentOS project left off — to provide a free and open source community-driven enterprise grade Linux operating system. We discuss the history of the CentOS project, how it fell under Red Hat’s control, the recent shift in Red Hat’s strategy with CentOS, and how Rocky Linux is designed to be 100% bug-for-bug compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

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Featuring:

Gregory M. Kurtzer – Website, GitHub, X
Adam Stacoviak – Website, GitHub, LinkedIn, Mastodon, X
Jerod Santo – GitHub, LinkedIn, Mastodon, X

Show Notes:

Regarding the name “Rocky Linux” - The new project’s name is a tribute to CentOS co-founder Rocky McGaugh. “He is no longer with us, so as a H/T to him, who never got to see the success that CentOS came to be, I introduce to you… Rocky Linux,” said Kurtzer.

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!