Red Hat has continued to expand its programs for the free use of Red Hat Enterprise Linux, addressing the needs of users following the transformation of the CentOS project into CentOS Stream. In addition to the previously provided free builds for production environments, which support up to 16 systems, a new option has been introduced: 'Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for Open Source Infrastructure'. This allows unlimited free use of RHEL within the infrastructure of open project developer communities and organizations that support open source software development.
Specifically, the new program covers organizations and projects involved in the development and hosting of software distributed under open licenses approved for inclusion in Fedora Linux repositories. Free use of RHEL in such organizations is permitted in infrastructure elements such as build systems, continuous integration systems, mail, and web servers.Program participants are additionally provided access to the Red Hat portal with documentation, a knowledge base, forums, and the Red Hat Insights analytics system. Formal support services do not cover participants of 'RHEL for Open Source Infrastructure', but depending on the importance of the project, Red Hat does not rule out the possibility of providing free technical support.
The presented program is currently limited to organizations and does not apply to individual developers, current partners, Red Hat customers, government entities, educational institutions, and non-profit organizations wishing to use RHEL in areas unrelated to maintaining infrastructure for open source software development. Access to participate in the 'RHEL for Open Source Infrastructure' program is granted based on applications sent to the email 'rosi-program@redhat.com'. Individual developers can obtain free installation of RHEL by taking advantage of the existing 'Red Hat Developer' program. Further programs aimed at addressing the needs for traditional CentOS are planned, particularly programs for non-profit organizations not related to open source software and educational institutions.
It's important to note that the key difference in the CentOS Stream distribution is that classic CentOS served as a 'downstream' version, meaning it was built from already established stable releases of RHEL and was fully binary-compatible with RHEL packages. In contrast, CentOS Stream is positioned as 'upstream' for RHEL, meaning it will serve as a testing ground for packages before they are included in RHEL releases. This change will allow the community to participate in the development of RHEL, monitor upcoming changes, and influence decision-making, but it does not satisfy those who simply need a stable distribution with a long support lifecycle.
Source: opennet.ru
