Security for any OS is critical nowadays, thus as a CentOS legacy system admin at work or using CentOS Stream releases 8 and 9 that are to be around for the coming years
CentOS 8 and CentOS 9 Stream Lifecycle
CentOS Stream follows the same lifecycle as Red Hat Enterprise Linux. From version 8 onward this means every version is supported for 10 years, split into 5 years of Full Support and 5 years of maintenance support. Users also have the option to purchase an additional 3 years of Extended Life Cycle Support (ELS) as an add-on.
Version General Availability Full Support Ends Maintenance Support Ends Extended Life Cycle Support (ELS) Ends
8 May 7, 2019 May 31, 2024 May 31, 2029 May 31, 2032
9 May 18, 2022 May 31, 2027 May 31, 2032 May 31, 2035
In this article, you are going to learn how to enable automatic software updates on CentOS 8 and CentOS 9 ( Stream ) Linux OS-es. I'll show how to set up your system to download and apply security and other updates without user intervention.
It is really useful to use the CentOS automatic updates OS capability, turning on updates and instead typing all the time yum update && yum upgrade (and wasting time to observe the process) as it takes usually some 5 to 10 minutes to make the OS automatically install updates in the background and notify you once all is done so you can periodically check what the dnf-automatic automatic update tool has done that in most cases of success would save you at least few minutes per host. Automatic updates is critical especially if you have to maintain an infrastructure of CentOS virtual servers at version 8 or 9.
Those who use heavily used CentOS might have already enabled and used dnf-automatic, but I guess just like me until recently, most people using CentOS 8 don’t know how to enable and apply CentOS Linux updates automatically and those article might be helpful.
1. Enable Automatic CentOS 8 / 9 Updates Using DNF Automatic RPM Package
Install the DNF-automatic RPM package, it will provide a DNF component that enables start automatically the update process.
To install it on both CentOS 8 / 9.
[root@centos ~]# yum install dnf-automatic
CentOS Stream 9 – BaseOS 78 kB/s | 14 kB 00:00
CentOS Stream 9 – AppStream 28 kB/s | 15 kB 00:00
CentOS Stream 9 – Extras packages 81 kB/s | 18 kB 00:00
Dependencies resolved.
======================================================
Package Architecture Version Repository Size
======================================================
Installing:
dnf-automatic noarch 4.14.0-23.el9 baseos 33 k
Upgrading:
dnf noarch 4.14.0-23.el9 baseos 478 k
dnf-data noarch 4.14.0-23.el9 baseos 37 k
python3-dnf noarch 4.14.0-23.el9 baseos 461 k
yum noarch 4.14.0-23.el9 baseos 88 kTransaction Summary
=======================================================
Install 1 Package
Upgrade 4 PackagesTotal download size: 1.1 M
Is this ok [y/N]: y
Downloading Packages:
(1/5): dnf-data-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch.rpm 556 kB/s | 37 kB 00:00
(2/5): dnf-automatic-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch.rpm 406 kB/s | 33 kB 00:00
(3/5): yum-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch.rpm 1.4 MB/s | 88 kB 00:00
(4/5): python3-dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch.rpm 4.9 MB/s | 461 kB 00:00
(5/5): dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch.rpm 2.6 MB/s | 478 kB 00:00
——————————————————————————————————
Total 1.1 MB/s | 1.1 MB 00:00
Running transaction check
Transaction check succeeded.
Running transaction test
Transaction test succeeded.
Running transaction
Preparing : 1/1
Upgrading : dnf-data-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 1/9
Upgrading : python3-dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 2/9
Upgrading : dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 3/9
Running scriptlet: dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 3/9
Installing : dnf-automatic-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 4/9
Running scriptlet: dnf-automatic-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 4/9
Upgrading : yum-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 5/9
Cleanup : yum-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 6/9
Running scriptlet: dnf-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 7/9
Cleanup : dnf-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 7/9
Running scriptlet: dnf-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 7/9
Cleanup : python3-dnf-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 8/9
Cleanup : dnf-data-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 9/9
Running scriptlet: dnf-data-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 9/9
Verifying : dnf-automatic-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 1/9
Verifying : dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 2/9
Verifying : dnf-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 3/9
Verifying : dnf-data-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 4/9
Verifying : dnf-data-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 5/9
Verifying : python3-dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 6/9
Verifying : python3-dnf-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 7/9
Verifying : yum-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch 8/9
Verifying : yum-4.14.0-9.el9.noarch 9/9Upgraded:
dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch dnf-data-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch python3-dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch yum-4.14.0-23.el9.noarch
Installed:
dnf-automatic-4.14.0-23.el9.noarchComplete!
[root@centos ~]#
Here is info on what dnf-automatic package will do:
[root@centos ~]# rpm -qi dnf-automatic
Name : dnf-automatic
Version : 4.14.0
Release : 23.el9
Architecture: noarch
Install Date: Wed 15 Jan 2025 08:00:47 AM -03
Group : Unspecified
Size : 57937
License : GPLv2+
Signature : RSA/SHA256, Thu 02 Jan 2025 01:19:43 PM -03, Key ID 05b555b38483c65d
Source RPM : dnf-4.14.0-23.el9.src.rpm
Build Date : Thu 12 Dec 2024 07:30:24 AM -03
Build Host : s390-08.stream.rdu2.redhat.com
Packager : builder@centos.org
Vendor : CentOS
URL : https://github.com/rpm-software-management/dnf
Summary : Package manager – automated upgrades
Description :
Systemd units that can periodically download package upgrades and apply them.
Next up is configuring the dnf-automatic updates. The configuration file is located at /etc/dnf/automatic.conf. Once you have opened the file, you can to set the required values to fit your software requirements.
The values you might want to modify are as so:
[root@centos ~]# grep -v \# /etc/dnf/automatic.conf|sed '/^$/d'
[commands]
upgrade_type = default
random_sleep = 0
network_online_timeout = 60
download_updates = yes
apply_updates = no
reboot = never
reboot_command = "shutdown -r +5 'Rebooting after applying package updates'"
[emitters]
emit_via = stdio
[email]
email_from = root@example.com
email_to = root
email_host = localhost
[command]
[command_email]
email_from = root@example.com
email_to = root
[base]
debuglevel = 1
[root@centos ~]#
The most important things you need to tune in automatic.conf are:
[root@centos ~]# vim /etc/dnf/automatic.conf
apply_updates = no
should be changed to yes
apply_updates = yes
for automatic updates to start by dnf-automatic service
It is nice to set the email server to use configuration values, as well as email from, email to and the way for
email to be set emit_via = stdio is default (check out the other options if to be used inside the commented lines)
Finally, you can now run dnf-automatic, execute the following command to schedule DNF automatic updates for your CentOS 8 machine.
[root@centos ~]# systemctl enable –now dnf-automatic.timer
The command above enables and starts the system timer. To check the status of the dnf-automatic service, run the following.
[root@centos ~]# systemctl list-timers *dnf-*
NEXT LEFT LAST PASSED UNIT ACTIVATES
Wed 2025-01-15 09:31:52 -03 13min left – – dnf-makecache.timer dnf-makecache.service
Thu 2025-01-16 06:21:20 -03 21h left Wed 2025-01-15 08:09:20 -03 1h 8min ago dnf-automatic.timer dnf-automatic.service2 timers listed.
Pass –all to see loaded but inactive timers, too.
[root@centos ~]#
Enable and Manage Automatic updates with Cockpit GUI web interface
Sooner or later even hard core sysadmins has to enter the 21 century and start using a Web interfaces for server or Desktop Linux management to offload your head for more important stuff.
Cockpit is a great tool to help you automatically manage and update your servers with no need to use the Linux console most of the time.
Cockpit is a very powerful tool you can use to manage remotely updates through a web interface, it is very handy tool for system admins as it gives you overview over updates and supports automatic updates and set RPM package management tasks through web-based console.
Cockpit allows updates over multiple servers and it makes it a kind of server orchestration tool that allows yo to update many same versioned operating system software.
If you haven't it already pre-installed in CentOS 8 / 9 depending on the type ofinstall you have done, you might need to install Cockpit.
To install cockpit
[root@centos ~]# yum install cockpit -y
To make the web service accessible in a browser you'll have to start it with cmds:
[root@centos ~]# systemctl start cockpit
[root@centos ~]# systemctl status cockpit
To access cockpit you'll either have to access it on https://localhost:9090 in case you need to access it locally via https://SERVER_IP:9090/.
Note that of course you will have to have firewalld enabling traffic to SERVER_IP PORT 9090.
By default cockpit will run with self signed certificate, if you need you can set up a certbot certificate or regenerate the self signed one for better managed security risk. For a first time if you haven't changed the certificate simply use the browser exclusion menu and login to Cockpit.
Once logged in you can check the available updates.
By default you will have to login with non-root account, preferably that should be an account who is authorized to become root via sudo.
To elevate to administrative privileges while in cockpit clock on 'Administrative access' and grant cockpit your superuser privileges.
Once authorized you can run the upgrade and enojy a coffee or beer in the mean time 🙂
Among the useful cockpit options, is also the Terminal through which you can run commands like over a normal Web SSH service.
The 'Logs' section is also very useful as it shows you clearly synthesized information on failed services and modules, since last OS system boot.
To add and manage updates for multiple hosts use the 'Add new host' menu that is a expansion of the main machine on which cockpit runs.
In the next window, turn automatic updates ON. You can now select the type of updates you want (Apply All Updates or Apply Security Updates), the day and time you want the updates applied, and the server rebooted.
CentOS 9's cockpit even have support for the innovative Kernel live patching, so the machine kernel can be updated even Live and you can save the reboot after complete patching of OS including the kernel.
Note that you cannot set up automatic updates without rebooting the system. Therefore, make sure your server can be rebooted at the time you’ve selected for the updates.
Sum it up
In this post, we learned have learned how to set up automatic updates for your CentOS 8 / 9 Linux. There are two main stream ways you can do it.
1. By using DNF automatic updates tool.
By enabling DNF automatic updates on CentOS 8 Linux the machine updated is faster, seemless and frequent as compared to manual updates.
This protects the OS more about crackers cyber-attacks. Secondly for the more lazy admins or for better structuring of updates (if it has to be executed on multiple hosts), the Cockpit web console is available.
With Cockpit, it’s much easy to enable automatic updates as the GUI is self-explanatory graphical user interface (GUI) as opposed to the DNF automatic updates, which would waste you more time on CLI ( shell ).
