¶ CentOS Stream
¶ Operating Systems
CentOS Stream arrived at a time when the Linux ecosystem was shifting under everyone’s feet. For years, CentOS had been the go-to choice for developers, administrators, and organizations that wanted the stability of Red Hat Enterprise Linux without the subscription model. It was the quiet workhorse of labs, data centers, homelabs, classrooms, and production systems around the world. Then the landscape changed, and along came CentOS Stream—a new idea, a different rhythm, and a fresh way of thinking about how an enterprise-class Linux distribution should evolve.
This course of one hundred articles is an invitation to explore that world deeply. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a long-time CentOS veteran who remembers compiling kernels on CentOS 6, a curious administrator dipping your toes into Stream for the first time, or someone who simply wants to understand what makes modern enterprise Linux tick. CentOS Stream isn’t just “the next CentOS”—it’s a shift in philosophy, a bridge between cutting-edge development and slow, deliberate enterprise stability. To understand it fully, you need more than just commands and configuration guides; you need context, insight, and a sense of how this operating system fits into the broader world of Linux.
CentOS Stream sits in a unique place in the Red Hat ecosystem. Instead of being a downstream rebuild of RHEL, it’s now the upstream source—a rolling preview of what the next minor release of RHEL will look like. This means that CentOS Stream moves differently. It receives updates sooner, exposes its development process more transparently, and invites contributors to shape the direction of enterprise Linux. In other words, CentOS Stream gives the world a direct window into the lifecycle of a major commercial distribution.
That shift can feel disorienting if you’re coming from the CentOS of years past. But once you spend time with Stream, something else becomes clear: it’s a living distribution, with a pulse that beats steadily instead of in huge jumps every few years. You don’t wait for the next RHEL release to see what’s coming—you watch the updates arrive, review the changes, and understand how enterprise Linux evolves in real time. For developers, that’s a gift. For system administrators, it’s an opportunity to stay ahead of the curve. For organizations that rely on predictable stability, it’s a chance to observe, test, and prepare long before changes reach production.
Throughout this course, we’ll explore that rhythm in depth. You’ll learn what it means for a distribution to be continuously delivered but still enterprise-grade. You’ll understand how packages flow from Fedora to CentOS Stream to RHEL, and why this pipeline matters. You’ll gain a sense of the philosophical difference between a static downstream rebuild and an upstream development track. And more importantly, you’ll learn how to work confidently within that structure—how to deploy, manage, and tune CentOS Stream with the same trustworthiness that made CentOS famous in the first place.
But let’s step back for a moment and talk about what CentOS Stream actually feels like to use. On the surface, it resembles any RHEL-like system: calm, predictable, structured. The same package names, the same file paths, the same systemd units, the same approach to security and configuration. You install it, boot it, and instantly recognize that signature Red Hat DNA. But under the hood, Stream is more dynamic. Updates arrive earlier. Features land before they reach RHEL. Kernel versions move in a controlled, forward-leaning manner. It’s a system that tries to balance innovation with discipline, and that balance is one of the major themes you’ll encounter in the articles that follow.
One of the challenges of learning any operating system is understanding not just how it works, but why it works the way it does. With CentOS Stream, the “why” matters more than ever. Every design choice in Stream exists for a reason: the rolling model, the package cadence, the contribution mechanisms, the close alignment with RHEL’s development branches. This course will uncover those reasons, not by reciting documentation, but by exploring the motivations and consequences behind them. Why does Stream adopt certain kernels? Why do some packages move faster than others? Why does the distribution emphasize certain workflows? By the end of this course, you’ll have answers that help you navigate the system with confidence.
Security is another core part of CentOS Stream’s identity. Enterprise Linux has always been about reliability, and Stream continues that tradition while offering faster visibility into security updates. You’ll explore SELinux with the depth it deserves, understand how the distribution handles CVEs, learn how patches flow through the pipeline, and see how Stream gives administrators more insight into security changes before they reach production environments. These are the kinds of insights that transform casual users into seasoned operators.
But CentOS Stream isn’t just an operating system to install and forget. It’s a platform—one used for containers, virtualization, development pipelines, cloud deployments, edge computing, and countless other workloads. Throughout these hundred articles, you’ll explore Stream in each of these contexts. You’ll learn how it forms the foundation for container images, how it works in Kubernetes clusters, how it behaves under KVM or cloud hypervisors, and how to optimize it for performance-sensitive applications. Stream is as comfortable running on a tiny VPS as it is powering racks of servers in a data center, and you’ll see the distribution through all those lenses.
This course also takes you into the practical realities of managing CentOS Stream in production-like environments. Not in a dry, checklist-driven way, but in a thoughtful, human way that acknowledges how administrators actually work. You’ll explore how to maintain consistency across dozens or hundreds of nodes. You’ll learn approaches to configuration management, tuning, networking, and storage that reflect real-world challenges. You’ll examine logging strategies that are sustainable, not overwhelming. You’ll understand how to troubleshoot systems under stress—why certain logs matter, how the kernel communicates its concerns, when to intervene, and when to let Linux handle things on its own.
One of the most compelling aspects of CentOS Stream is how it opens the door for collaboration. You’re no longer stuck interpreting Red Hat’s choices from afar—you can participate in the process. You can review change requests, submit patches, engage with maintainers, and understand exactly how improvements become part of the system. This transparency is one of the biggest philosophical differences between Stream and the CentOS of the past. And in this course, you’ll get a clear view of how that collaborative model works, why it matters, and how it impacts the future of enterprise Linux.
A recurring theme throughout these articles will be the idea of CentOS Stream as a bridge: a bridge between Fedora’s rapid innovation and RHEL’s slow, deliberate stability. You’ll see how technologies mature through that pipeline. You’ll explore examples where features moved from experimental to production-ready. And you’ll understand how this pipeline benefits developers and administrators who need early access without embracing the volatility of bleeding-edge distributions.
We’ll also spend time looking at the myths and misconceptions surrounding CentOS Stream. When it was first announced, some feared that Stream would be unstable or unpredictable. But the reality is far more nuanced. Stream is not a chaotic rolling release; it is a curated, controlled, forward-looking branch. Understanding that nuance is essential, especially if you are responsible for systems that need long-term reliability. This course will give you the tools to evaluate Stream realistically, without the drama that often surrounds discussions of enterprise Linux.
As you move through these hundred articles, you’ll gain not only technical knowledge but also a sense of how CentOS Stream fits into the broader Linux culture. It reflects an evolution in how distributions share responsibility with their communities. It demonstrates the importance of transparency in enterprise software. And it shows how a distribution can be both accessible and professional, both experimental and stable, both community-driven and industry-backed.
By the time you reach the end of this journey, CentOS Stream won’t feel like a mysterious new direction for the CentOS project. It will feel like a natural progression—one that makes sense in an era defined by containers, cloud deployments, rapid security updates, and collaborative development. You’ll have the skills to install, configure, manage, secure, and troubleshoot the system across a wide range of environments. You’ll understand the flow of updates, the architecture of the distribution, the philosophy that guides it, and the practical realities of using it day to day.
But most importantly, you’ll develop the confidence to work with CentOS Stream as both a stable foundation and an evolving platform. You’ll know how to anticipate changes, how to work with them rather than against them, and how to build systems that remain resilient as the distribution evolves.
This introduction is just the beginning of that journey. CentOS Stream has a lot to teach, and this course is here to guide you through each layer of its world. Whether you’re here out of curiosity, necessity, professional growth, or a love of Linux itself, you’re stepping into a space where stability meets innovation in a way that few distributions manage.
Welcome to CentOS Stream. Let’s begin.
¶ CentOS Stream
¶ Beginner Topics
1. Introduction to CentOS Stream: Overview and Benefits
2. Installing CentOS Stream: A Step-by-Step Guide
3. Understanding CentOS Stream Architecture
4. Exploring the CentOS Stream Desktop Environment
5. Introduction to the Command Line Interface (CLI) in CentOS
6. Navigating the CentOS File System
7. Basic File Operations: cp, mv, rm, and mkdir in CentOS
8. Understanding User and Group Management in CentOS
9. Basic Networking Configuration in CentOS
10. Setting Up and Managing CentOS System Users
11. CentOS Stream and the Linux Kernel: An Overview
12. Understanding and Managing Packages with DNF
13. CentOS Stream Security Basics: Keeping Your System Safe
14. CentOS System Logs and Basic Log Management
15. Exploring File Permissions and Ownership in CentOS
16. Introduction to CentOS Stream Software Repositories
17. Getting Started with CentOS Stream Services (Systemd)
18. Using the vi Editor for Basic Text Editing
19. Working with Directories and Files in CentOS Stream
20. Using System Resources: RAM, CPU, and Disk
21. Introduction to CentOS Stream Package Management with DNF
22. Basic Backup Strategies for CentOS Stream
23. Understanding SELinux and Its Role in CentOS Stream
24. Configuring Network Interfaces in CentOS Stream
25. Using Firewalld for Basic Network Security
¶ Intermediate Topics
26. Understanding CentOS Stream Boot Process and Bootloader
27. System Updates and Patches in CentOS Stream
28. CentOS Stream Process Management and Control
29. Configuring Static IP Addresses in CentOS Stream
30. Introduction to CentOS Stream Security Tools
31. Disk Management with LVM in CentOS Stream
32. Managing and Installing Software Packages with DNF and RPM
33. CentOS Stream System Monitoring Tools: top, ps, htop
34. Understanding and Managing CentOS Stream File Systems (ext4, XFS)
35. CentOS Stream Systemd: Understanding Services and Units
36. Setting Up and Managing Crontab Jobs in CentOS
37. Using the CentOS Stream Firewall (firewalld)
38. CentOS Stream User Permissions and Sudo Configuration
39. Networking with NetworkManager in CentOS Stream
40. Setting Up and Configuring SSH for Remote Access
41. CentOS Stream System Performance: Monitoring and Optimization
42. Mounting and Unmounting File Systems in CentOS
43. Advanced File Permissions: ACLs in CentOS Stream
44. Configuring Time Synchronization with NTP in CentOS
45. Managing System Logs with Journalctl
46. Configuring and Using rsync for Backup in CentOS
47. Setting Up CentOS Stream for Virtualization (KVM/QEMU)
48. Troubleshooting Common CentOS Stream Issues
49. Managing System Services with Systemd in CentOS
50. Understanding and Configuring SELinux in CentOS Stream
51. Introduction to Network Bonding in CentOS Stream
52. Working with Virtual Hosts in CentOS Stream for Apache
53. Configuring DHCP Server on CentOS Stream
54. Understanding the CentOS Stream Package Build System
55. Setting Up FTP Server in CentOS Stream
56. Using Sudo for User Privilege Management
57. Enabling and Configuring Remote Desktop (VNC) in CentOS
58. Performance Tuning: Disk I/O, CPU, and Memory
59. Introduction to Firewalld Zones and Rules in CentOS
60. Network Troubleshooting with netstat, ifconfig, and ss
61. Creating and Managing Software Repositories in CentOS Stream
62. Configuring NAT and Port Forwarding in CentOS Stream
63. Introduction to Network Security Tools in CentOS Stream
64. Working with SELinux Contexts and Troubleshooting
65. Introduction to CentOS Stream and Docker Containers
66. Configuring and Managing System Backups
67. Automating Tasks with Ansible on CentOS Stream
68. Configuring LVM for Volume Management in CentOS Stream
69. Introduction to System Auditing with auditd in CentOS
70. Managing Linux Services with systemctl in CentOS Stream
71. Configuring DNS and DHCP with CentOS Stream
72. Managing Storage Devices and RAID Configurations in CentOS
73. Configuring and Using NFS in CentOS Stream
74. Introduction to CentOS Stream Logging and Monitoring Tools
75. Using Nginx as a Web Server on CentOS Stream
¶ Advanced Topics
76. Advanced Networking with IP Routing and Bridging in CentOS Stream
77. Building and Installing Custom Kernels in CentOS Stream
78. Managing Advanced Disk Storage: LVM Snapshots, RAID, and Multipath
79. Introduction to CentOS Stream High Availability (HA) Clusters
80. Virtualization and Managing Virtual Machines with KVM in CentOS
81. Performance Profiling with iostat, vmstat, and sar in CentOS Stream
82. Automating System Administration with Shell Scripting in CentOS
83. System Security Hardening for CentOS Stream
84. Advanced Package Management: Building and Installing from Source
85. Creating and Managing Custom CentOS Stream Images
86. Using and Configuring Docker for Containerization in CentOS Stream
87. Implementing CentOS Stream for Cloud Infrastructure
88. Integrating CentOS Stream with Active Directory
89. Managing Network Interfaces and Subnetting in CentOS Stream
90. Building a CentOS Stream-based Web Server Cluster
91. Using CentOS Stream for Big Data Analytics (Hadoop, Spark)
92. Monitoring and Performance Tuning with Zabbix in CentOS Stream
93. Setting Up CentOS Stream for Continuous Integration (CI/CD)
94. Advanced System Monitoring with Prometheus and Grafana
95. Configuring Software Defined Networking (SDN) in CentOS Stream
96. Network Security: Using iptables, nftables, and firewalld
97. Managing CentOS Stream in a Cloud Environment (AWS, GCP)
98. Understanding and Using Systemd for Advanced Service Management
99. Configuring High-Performance Computing (HPC) on CentOS Stream
100. Troubleshooting Kernel Panics and Boot Failures in CentOS Stream