How to Upgrade AlmaLinux 9 to 10: A Step-by-Step Guide
The arrival of a new major version of AlmaLinux is always an exciting time for system administrators and developers. AlmaLinux 10 brings with it a host of new features, security enhancements, and updated packages that can significantly improve your server’s performance and capabilities.
If you’re currently running AlmaLinux 9, you can perform an in-place upgrade to version 10 using the powerful ELevate project tools. This guide will walk you through the entire process, from initial preparation to post-upgrade verification, ensuring a smooth and successful transition.
Before You Begin: Essential Prerequisites and Warnings
An in-place upgrade is a major system operation. Before you type a single command, it’s absolutely critical to prepare your system to prevent data loss or unexpected downtime.
- Create a Complete System Backup: This is the most important step. Before proceeding, take a full backup or snapshot of your system. If anything goes wrong during the upgrade, a reliable backup is your only way to restore your server to its previous state.
- Fully Update Your System: Ensure your current AlmaLinux 9 system is fully up-to-date. This minimizes the risk of package conflicts during the upgrade process. Run the following commands and reboot if a new kernel was installed:
bash
sudo dnf update -y
sudo reboot
- Check Disk Space: The upgrade process requires significant free disk space to download new packages and perform the installation. Ensure you have at least 5GB of free space in your root filesystem (
/). - Ensure a Stable Connection: The upgrade will download a large number of packages. A stable and fast internet connection is highly recommended to avoid interruptions.
Step 1: Install the ELevate Tools
The upgrade is managed by the leapp utility, which is part of the AlmaLinux ELevate project. The first step is to install the repository and the necessary packages.
Open your terminal and run the following command to install the ELevate repository configuration and the leapp utility:
sudo dnf install -y https://repo.almalinux.org/elevate/almalinux-elevate-latest-stable.rpm
sudo dnf install -y leapp-upgrade leapp-data-almalinux
This command installs the core leapp tool and the specific data files required for the AlmaLinux 9 to 10 upgrade path.
Step 2: Run the Pre-Upgrade Check
This is a critical safety measure. The leapp utility includes a pre-upgrade check that simulates the upgrade process without making any changes to your system. It analyzes your current configuration, packages, and settings to identify potential problems, or “inhibitors,” that would block the upgrade.
Do not skip this step. Running the pre-upgrade check can save you from a failed upgrade.
sudo leapp preupgrade
The tool will run for several minutes, examining your entire system. When it’s finished, it will generate a report.
Step 3: Review the Report and Resolve Inhibitors
Once the pre-upgrade check is complete, a report will be available at /var/log/leapp/leapp-report.txt. You must carefully review this report.
The report will highlight any issues that need to be resolved. Common inhibitors include:
- Obsolete or unsupported packages.
- Conflicting third-party repositories.
- Incompatible system configurations.
The report will often provide suggested commands or “remediations” to fix the identified problems. For example, it might instruct you to remove a specific package or disable a particular repository.
Read each inhibitor carefully and apply the recommended fixes. You may need to run the leapp preupgrade command again after applying fixes to ensure all issues have been resolved. You cannot proceed until the pre-upgrade check completes without any blocking inhibitors.
Step 4: Initiate the AlmaLinux 10 Upgrade
Once the pre-upgrade check passes without any errors, you are ready to start the actual upgrade. This command will download all the necessary AlmaLinux 10 packages and prepare your system for the final step.
sudo leapp upgrade
This process will take some time, depending on your internet speed and system performance. Once it completes successfully, it will prompt you to reboot the system.
Step 5: Reboot to Finalize the Upgrade
The final phase of the upgrade happens during a special reboot. The leapp utility has created a special entry in your GRUB bootloader to handle the transition.
To finalize the upgrade, simply reboot your server:
sudo reboot
During the boot process, your system will automatically select the “AlmaLinux-Upgrade-Initramfs” entry. The screen will display the progress as the system packages are replaced and the upgrade is finalized. This can take a significant amount of time, so be patient and do not interrupt the process.
Once finished, the server will automatically reboot one last time into your new AlmaLinux 10 environment.
Step 6: Post-Upgrade Verification
Congratulations! You should now be running AlmaLinux 10. Log in and perform a few checks to verify that everything is working as expected.
Check the OS Version:
cat /etc/almalinux-releaseThe output should confirm you are on AlmaLinux 10.
Check the Kernel Version:
uname -rThis should display the new kernel version associated with AlmaLinux 10.
Verify System and Network Services: Check that your critical services (like your web server, database, and SSH) are running correctly. Review system logs for any new or unusual errors.
By following these steps carefully, you can confidently upgrade your system and take advantage of all the improvements AlmaLinux 10 has to offer.
Source: https://centlinux.com/upgrade-almalinux-9-to-10/
