Amazon Linux Extras: Resolving the Stability vs. Freshness Dilemma

Enhanced Stability and Innovation

Amazon Linux Extras addresses the ongoing challenge of balancing stability and innovation within operating systems. By offering pre-packaged software components that alleviate the need for extensive customization and maintenance, Extras allows users to enjoy the benefits of both stability and freshness.

Exclusive to Amazon Linux 2

This innovative solution is exclusively available for Amazon Linux 2, ensuring seamless integration with your existing infrastructure. The steps outlined in this guide are not applicable to Amazon Linux 1 201803 or Amazon Linux 1.

Curated Software Components

Amazon Linux Extras provides a carefully curated catalog of software components that are optimized for use with Amazon Linux 2. This eliminates the need to search for and manually install individual packages, saving time and reducing potential conflicts.

Prerequisites

To leverage Amazon Linux Extras, ensure that you have:

• An instance running Amazon Linux 2

Example Output for Amazon Linux 2

 [ec2-user ~]$ amazon-linux-extras list Available Extras:   logging (2.3.0-1.amzn2)   devtoolset (8.5.0-1.amzn2)   glibc (2.33-19.amzn2)   htop (3.1.3-1.amzn2)   java (openjdk-11-latest.amzn2)   nginx (1.18.0-1.amzn2)   nodejs (16.13.2-1.amzn2)   python (3.9-1.amzn2)   redis (6.2.6-1.amzn2)   vim (8.2.2836-1.amzn2) 

Expanded Catalog and Extended Support

AWS is continuously expanding the Extras catalog in Amazon Linux 2 to include AWS-optimized variants of popular software packages. Moreover, Amazon Linux 2 offers extended availability of software updates for the core operating system through Extras.

Additional Resources

* Managing Amazon Linux Extras * Amazon Linux Extras Catalog * Amazon Linux 2