Announcing availability of AlmaLinux as an endorsed Linux distribution in Azure

More than 60% of customer cores run Linux-based workloads, making Linux the most popular operating system on Azure. We are committed to meeting the evolving needs of our customers by continuously investing in our platform to enhance the Linux and open source experience on Azure.

AlmaLinux is available in the Azure Marketplace as follows: over 3 years Now this feature Approved Linux Distributions On Azure. Almarinux A free, community-owned, enterprise-grade Linux distribution that is binary compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux and provides long-term stability and security features. AlmaLinux is used by a wide range of Azure customers and is growing in popularity as follows: CentOS Linux users look for alternatives After life is over. Azure’s acceptance of AlmaLinux demonstrates its reliability, security, and performance.

“The AlmaLinux OS Foundation is pleased that AlmaLinux has been recognized as an approved Linux distribution on Azure. This assurance emphasizes our commitment to providing reliable, secure, high-performance Linux distributions for enterprise environments. Becoming an approved distribution on Azure not only validates the stability and quality of AlmaLinux, but also allows users to confidently deploy and manage their workloads on Azure.” – Benny Vasquez, Chairman of the Board of AlmaLinux OS Foundation

What does it mean to be an endorsed Linux distribution on Azure?

Customers have the flexibility to deploy Linux distributions on Azure from a variety of image sources, including the Azure Marketplace, custom, or community galleries. Each source offers different expectations for quality, usability, and support. A subset of Linux distributions on Azure includes: Ubuntu, Debian, Flatcar, Oracle Linux, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, SUSE Enterprise Linux, and now AlmaLinux. Approved Distributions. An approved Linux distribution is not an official recommendation from Microsoft, but indicates that the distribution has met the following criteria:

• Market and customer demand: We have received signals about market and customer demand for Linux distributions and their use on Azure.
• contract: We have agreements with our distribution providers, which may be our distribution providers (e.g. Red Hat, Canonical, SUSE, etc.) or other vendors responsible for publishing our images, that guarantee how often we update them and what we fix them.
• Engineering Relations: There is a close engineering relationship between Microsoft and Linux distribution providers, with ongoing forums to discuss issues, customer feedback, new Azure feature activations, and future updates.
• Content mirror on Azure: Linux distribution providers maintain content and infrastructure across multiple Azure regions, ensuring consistent update user experience and providing rapid in-network software installation.

As an approved Linux distribution, AlmaLinux adheres to testing and update standards while also receiving the support described below. Microsoft’s Linux and Open Source Support Policy.

Getting started with AlmaLinux on Azure

AlmaLinux is available for both through the Azure Marketplace. x64 and Arm64 Architecture including Microsoft’s latest architecture Cobalt 100 based virtual machineCustom images are also available for: HPC workload. AlmaLinux images are also available through: Community Gallery and Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL).

Learn more

• Read AlmaLinux press release
• look session At Open Source Summit North America, take a closer look at Microsoft’s engineering efforts to ensure your favorite Linux distributions run well on Azure.
• read Migration Guide Learn how to convert your current OS to AlmaLinux using the AlmaLinux migration tool.