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Centos vs Debian vs Ubuntu: What are the differences?
Differences between CentOS and Debian and Ubuntu
CentOS, Debian, and Ubuntu are three popular Linux distributions with their own unique features and advantages. Here are the key differences between them:
Package Management: CentOS uses the Yellowdog Updater, Modified (YUM) package manager, while Debian and Ubuntu use the Advanced Package Tool (APT). YUM allows easier management of packages and dependencies on CentOS, while APT provides a more extensive package ecosystem with advanced features such as package pinning on Debian and Ubuntu.
Release Cycle: CentOS is known for its long-term support (LTS) releases, which means it provides longer stability with fewer updates. On the other hand, Debian follows a stable release cycle with periodic updates, while Ubuntu has regular biannual releases with long-term support (LTS) versions available.
Community and Support: CentOS is backed by a collaboration of individuals and companies, including the CentOS Project and Red Hat. Debian has a large and diverse community with strong developer support, and Ubuntu benefits from Canonical's professional support and a vast community. Support options and the size of the community can vary, impacting the availability and quality of assistance and updates.
Default Package Selection: CentOS focuses on stability for server environments and therefore includes a minimal set of packages by default. Debian offers a comprehensive set of packages out-of-the-box, suitable for a wide range of applications. Ubuntu falls between the two, providing a good balance of essential packages and additional software.
System Configuration: CentOS relies on the YUM configuration files and CentOS-specific tools for package management and system configuration. Debian uses text-based configuration files and its own set of tools, while Ubuntu builds upon Debian but generally includes more user-friendly tools and graphical interfaces for system configuration.
Security Features: CentOS's primary focus is server security and stability, and it benefits from Red Hat's commitment to security updates. Debian emphasizes stability but also provides regular security updates. Ubuntu puts a strong emphasis on security and ease of use, providing frequent security updates and built-in firewall configuration tools.
In summary, CentOS offers stability and long-term support, Debian provides a wide range of packages and a stable release cycle, and Ubuntu combines user-friendly features with regular releases and security updates. The choice depends on specific requirements, preferences, and the intended use case.
Ubuntu always let people do what they want to do, it pushes its users to know what they are doing, what they want and helps them learn what they ignore.
Ubuntu is simple, works out-of-the-box after installation and has a incredibly huge community behind.
Ubuntu is lightweight and open, in the way, that the user has access to free AND efficient applications (most of the time, without ads) and, even if learning its folder structure is challenging, once done, you are really able to call yourself "someone who knows what is in your computer".
Windows, in comparison, is heavy, tends to make decision for you and always enable tracking application by default. grr
It has a simple user interface, of course, but on the stability point of view, it is hard to compete with something simpler (even with less features).
Personal preference : I prefer something simple that works 99% of the time, than a full-featured auto-magical system that works 50% of the time (and ask if the good version of the driver is really installed...)
Coming from a Debian-based Linux background, using the Ubuntu base image for my Docker containers was a natural choice. However, the overhead, even on the impressively-slimmed Hub images, was hard to justify. Seeking to create images that were "just right" in size, without unused packages or dependencies, I made the switch to Alpine.
Alpine's modified BusyBox has a surprising amount of functionality, and the package repository contains plenty of muslc-safe versions of commonly-used packages. It's been a valuable exercise in doing more with less, and, as Alpine is keen to point out, an image with fewer packages makes for a more sustainable environment with a smaller attack surface.
My only regret is that Alpine's documentation leaves a lot to be desired.
I have used libvirt in every Linux hypervisor deployment I do. I frequently deploy RHEL or CentOS hypervisor servers with libvirt as the VMM of choice. It's installable via the guided setup for EL-based Linux distros, it uses minimal resources and overhead, integrates seamlessly with KVM and Qemu, and provides powerful CLI for advanced users and experts looking for automated deployments, or via VirtManager in your favorite Linux desktop environment. Best used with Linux VMs, it allows KVM and QEMU direct hardware virtualization access.
Using Arch Linux for our systems and servers means getting the latest technology and fixes early, as well as early warnings for potential future breakage in other (slower) distributions. It's been easy to maintain, easy to automate, and most importantly: easy to debug.
While our software target is every recent Linux distribution, using Arch internally ensured that everyone understands the full system without any knowledge gaps.
Ubuntu is much more faster over Windows and helps to get software and other utilities easier and within a short span of time compared to Windows.
Ubuntu helps to get robustness and resiliency over Windows. Ubuntu runs faster than Windows on every computer that I have ever tested. LibreOffice (Ubuntu's default office suite) runs much faster than Microsoft Office on every computer that I have ever tested.
Global familiarity, free, widely used, and as a debian distro feels more comfortable when rapidly switching between local macOS and remote command lines.
CentOS does boast quite a few security/stability improvements, however as a RHEL-based distro, differs quite significantly in the command line and suffers from slightly less frequent package updates. (Could be a good or bad thing depending on your use-case and if it is public facing)
At the moment of the decision, my desktop was the primary place I did work. Due to this, I can't have it blow up on me while I work. While Arch is interesting and powerful, Ubuntu offers (at least for me) a lot more stability and lets me focus on other things than maintaining my own OS installation.
Pros of CentOS
- Stable16
- Free to use9
- Reliable9
- Has epel packages6
- Good support6
- Great Community5
- I've moved from gentoo to centos2
Pros of Debian
- Massively supported54
- Stable50
- Reliable21
- Aptitude9
- Customizable8
- It is free8
- Turnkey linux use it8
- Works on all architectures6
Pros of Ubuntu
- Free to use230
- Easy setup for testing discord bot96
- Gateway Linux Distro57
- Simple interface54
- Don't need driver installation in most cases9
- Open Source6
- Many active communities6
- Software Availability3
- Easy to custom3
- Many flavors/distros based on ubuntu2
- Lightweight container base OS1
- Great OotB Linux Shell Experience1
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Cons of CentOS
- Yum is a horrible package manager1
Cons of Debian
- Old versions of software10
- Can be difficult to set up on vanilla Debian2
Cons of Ubuntu
- Demanding system requirements5
- Adds overhead and unnecessary complexity over Debian4
- Snapd installed by default2
- Systemd1