How to Install CentOS 8?, CentOS 8 installation?, Installing CentOS 8?, Step by step installation of CentOS 8?. CentOS 8 was released on 24.09.2019 with plenty of new features as discussed in RHEL 8 New features and on CentOS 8 New Features. This guide will discuss how to install CentOS 8 Linux on VirtualBox, KVM, Proxmox VE, RHEV or any other Virtualized / Physical environment.
For Vagrant use, check: How To run CentOS 8 VM using Vagrant on KVM / VirtualBox / VMWare / Parallels
Follow our steps below while installing CentOS 8 on VirtualBox, KVM, VMware or Physical server.
Step 1: Download CentOS 8 ISO Image
Download a copy of CentOS 8 ISO from CentOS 8 mirror. The ISO files are available under isos directory and CPU architecture. For those interested in using CentOS 8 stream, check CentOS 8 Stream ISO downloads page. You can also check All CentOS mirrors near you.
We’ll use direct ISO links for this.
# CentOS 8
$ wget http://isoredirect.centos.org/centos/8/isos/x86_64/CentOS-8-x86_64-1905-dvd1.iso
# CentOS 8 Stream
$ wget http://isoredirect.centos.org/centos/8-stream/isos/x86_64/CentOS-Stream-x86_64-dvd1.iso
Step 2: Create a CentOS 8 bootable USB drive
After the CentOS 8 iso file is downloaded, create a bootable USB drive using dd command if you’re running Linux on your local machine.
Confirm ISO file exists locally.
$ file ~/iso/CentOS-8-x86_64-1905-dvd1.iso /home/jmutai/iso/CentOS-8-x86_64-1905-dvd1.iso: DOS/MBR boot sector; partition 2 : ID=0xef, start-CHS (0x3ff,254,63), end-CHS (0x3ff,254,63), startsector 23120, 19924 sectors
Create CentOS 8 bootable USB by running the command:
sudo dd if=~/iso/CentOS-8-x86_64-1905-dvd1.iso of=/dev/sdb status=progress && syncWhere:
- ~/iso/CentOS-8-x86_64-1905-dvd1.iso is the path to ISO file.
- /dev/sdb is your usb device location.
Alternative tools for creating CentOS 8 bootable device are Etcher, PowerISO, WoeUSB, and Win32DiskImager.
Install CentOS 8 Linux on VirtualBox
For guys on Virtualized environments, just select the new VM creation and browse to the location of CentOS 8 ISO file.
Click “New“, give VM a name and choose OS type and version.
Complete other steps necessary to install CentOS 8 on VirtualBox.
Install CentOS 8 Linux on KVM:
Create New VM > Choose ISO > Assign resources >Finish
Step 3: Start CentOS 8 Linux Installation
4.1 – Boot from your CentOS 8 installation media to start the installation process.
4.2 – Select “Install CentOS Linux 8” from the list of options available. CentOS 8Anaconda installer will start in a short while.
4.3 – Choose installation language and click “Continue“
4.4 – Under “Localization“, select your Keyboard layout, Language Support, Time and Date.
4.5 – Under “SOFTWARE” section, select installation type and optionally select Add-Ons to install for the selected environment.
The common installation types are:
- Minimal Install – Minimal Server without GUI, for advanced Linux Sysadmins.
- Workstation – For installation on Laptops and PCs.
- Server with GUI – Server installation with Graphical interface for administration.
If you want to use CentOS Linux 8 as hypervisor, e.g running KVM only, then select “Virtualization Host“.
4.6 – Under “SYSTEM” section, Set:
Installation destination – Choose storage configuration.
Network and Hostname.
To set a static IP address, click “Configure“. For hostname setting, provide hostname value and hit “Apply“.
Confirm all settings are okay.
4.7 – When done with all the changes, begin installation.
4.8 – As the installation is starting, set root user password.
4.9 – Also add a new Admin user account under “User Creation”.
Provide user information details and tick “Make this user administrator“.
4.10 – When the installation is complete, click Reboot.
Wait for the installation to complete then reboot the server/workstation to login to CentOS 8 environment.
4.11 – Select your CentOS 8 Linux installation from Grub menu to boot to your new system.
4.12 – On Initial Setup screen,
Accept License
Click “Finish Configuration“.
Login with admin account created.
Accept Gnome initial setup popups.
You’re ready to start using CentOS 8 Linux system.
Step 4: Enable Cockpit Service – Optional
CentOS 8 ships with Cockpit web console which allows you to manage server from a web console. Check its installation on:
How To Manage CentOS 8 With Cockpit Web Admin Console
Step 5: Update CentOS 8
Open your terminal and check for available updates.
$ sudo dnf check-updateTo do actual update, run the command.
sudo dnf -y updateStep 6: Change SSH Port
It is recommended to change your server SSH port from the default TCP port 22 to custom port to avoid brute-force attacks. Follow the instructions in our guide for this.
How To Change SSH Port on CentOS / RHEL & Fedora With SELinux Enforcing
Step 7: Customize Bash Shell (Optional)
The default Bash shell for CentOS 8 doesn’t have a good look with helpful default functions and aliases. I’ve found the Bash-it framework to be so helpful for seasoned SysAdmins and Developers.
To customize Bash, refer to How To Customize Bash on Linux with Bash-it
Conclusion
There are plenty of new features in CentOS 8. For Developers who like to work with cutting-edge technologies, and don’t want to wait for weeks or months for new releases, you can go with CentOS 8 stream. The new CentOS 8 modular repository ensures there are regular updates distributed for packages not part of CentOS Base operating system.
You have completed the installation of CentOS 8 Linux server/workstation.
