CERN migrated from RHEL/CentOS to Debian

CERN plans to migrate thousands of front-end computers in its Large Hadron Collider (LHC) hardware control system from the Red Hat family Linux distribution to Debian by the end of 2026. Previously, CERN had long relied on RHEL/CentOS for running related systems. However, after CentOS ceased maintenance and switched to rolling updates, about 65% of custom-embedded hardware became incompatible due to Red Hat’s default use of x86-64-v2 compiler flags. This migration involves modifying approximately 2,200 industrial computers and embedded systems. Engineering evaluations show that custom hardware needs to be redesigned and underground tunnels need to be explored. With a planning period of 15 years, the project’s success rate is estimated to be only 20%, and the estimated cost is at least 5.4 million Swiss francs. Despite the significant challenges, CERN ultimately decided to choose Debian as an alternative to address the issue of hardware obsolescence.