Limited Support and Functionality for CentOS in End-of-Life EOL- Migrating to RL8
CentOS 5 reached its end-of-life EOL in 2014. No Novohit installations have been performed on this operating system since then.
CentOS 6 reached its end-of-life EOL in 2021. No Novohit installations will be performed CentOS 6 since then.
CentOS 8 got an anticipated EOL from 2029 to 2021. As of August 2021, we are only installing RL8 and migrating from CentOS 8 to RL8. Please read this article for greater detail.
Novohit is a Web-based system that can be installed on a local server "on premises" or in the "Cloud" and runs on the Linux operating system, which thanks to its robustness and stability is the most used in Web servers worldwide.
To keep Novohit at the forefront of Cloud systems, it is necessary that the entire server environment is up to date, including the CentOS operating system and the PHP support libraries and PostgreSQL database managers. If you have the SBUM service, Novohit performs constant updates of the same version of the CentOS operating system, however, if CentOS changes "major" version, Novohit must perform migration work, including to new servers as there are limitations that are intrinsic to the technology and that happen in any migration of operating systems.
CentOS 6 End of Life in 2022
On November 30, 2020, CentOS, the Enterprise Linux version used by Novohit, indicated the end of life (EOL) for its CentOS 6 version. It is worth noting that for 8 years the CentOS 6 operating system version has remained stable, which is a sign of the stability of the Novohit platform whose category is Enterprise, i.e., it is designed to minimize abrupt changes. This is precisely why we use CentOS, the operating system par excellence that guarantees stability and security over time. As an additional reference, Novohit used the previous version, CentOS 5, for 6 years.
Therefore, to keep Novohit secure and with new capabilities, we have to migrated to RL8 (Rocky Linux 8).
How does this affect our customers?
Cybersecurity
The new RL8 Operating System features new fundamental security schemes and structures that greatly enhance the security of the data on your server. In addition, RL8 will continue to be supported until May 2029. This means that any vulnerabilities that are found, the worldwide Rocky Linux development team will release the corresponding fixes and your server will be continuously secure.
Moreover, older CentOS 6 and CentOS 5 operating systems no longer receive security updates in 2022. Hackers use these opportunities to break into older systems and access data, alter or even hijack the server.
If you are still using CentOS 6 you are putting your company's and your customers' data at risk.
Novohit Minor Upgrades
This may limit Novohit upgrades for customers who have not yet migrated to RL8. By this we mean that some upgrades may not be installed due to incompatibility of the new operating system. In any case, we clarify that during 2021 for the current version of Novohit NO "breaking changes" are planned, i.e. changes that break or affect the use of any functionality. However, the impact of not migrating in 2021 may lie in the fact that, if any legislation on tax issues changes or a third-party software such as SiteMinder or Woocommerce changes its API and requires a mandatory update that is not compatible, it will not be able to be installed on CentOS 6.
While from 2022 on-wards we will no longer install updates on CentOS 6 to favor our development team's focus on new and improved technologies.
Major Novohit Upgrades or New Novohit Modules
New Novohit features are shipped with updates called "Major Updates". These are only compatible with new versions of Operating Systems.
As of 2022 some Novohit features will only be compatible with RL8.
What can our Customers do?
Novohit Cloud Customers
If you are a Novohit Cloud customer, Novohit will take care of migrating your instance to RL8 as part of the Novohit Cloud service. This requires no intervention on your part.
Third Party Cloud Customers
It is necessary for our staff to coordinate with your third-party cloud provider to perform OS migration, Novohit reinstallation and Operational data migration. Place a ticket at help.novohit.com for more details.
Clients on Local or On Premises Servers
If your server (hardware equipment) is a pre–HP Generation 10 version, or is not listed in the Red Hat compatibility matrix, you have two options:
1) Purchase a new server with compatible features according to our official list of recommended servers.
2) Evaluate if it is convenient to Migrate to the Cloud.
As recommended in all our installations, the servers have a useful lifetime of between 3 and 5 years (maximum), due to the fact that the equipment is on 24x7x365 days subject to voltage variations, high temperatures and physical wear of components and hard disks.
Roadmap
2021
As of Q2 2021, some Novohit functionality may be limited if you still use CentOS 6, for example:
- Ecommerce,
- Electronic Payment,
- Electronic Invoicing and Accounting,
- Channel Manager Distribution,
- Real-time connection with Remuneration entities (Previred).
We recommend making the decision as soon as possible to determine whether to migrate to Cloud or Local Server.
For new customers/servers, CentOS 6 will not be installed and Novohit cannot be installed on unsupported servers. See the list of supported servers.
Please consider that a Server has a lifetime when it has a better performance after that time it is more prone to fail. See On-Premises Server Lifetime.
2022
From 2022 on-wards Novohit upgrades may be limited if you still use CentOS 6.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an Operating System?
It is the main software where Novohit is installed to run. In the case of Novohit, the Operating System is Linux, from August 2021, Rocky Linux.
On Which Operating System will Novohit be Installed or Upgraded?
As of August 2021, Novohit will only be installed on RL8, but some upgrades for existing customers may be installed on CentOS 6. Starting in 2022, only modules or upgrades will be installed on RL 8.
Is My Server Compatible with RL8?
If your server (hardware equipment) is a pre–HP Generation 10 version or is not listed in the RH 8 compatibility matrix, it is probably not. Submit a ticket at help.novohit.com indicating the make and model of your current server.
Can I Use Another Operating System, Such as Ubuntu, Fedora or Windows Server?
No. Novohit is designed to be installed on a Linux OS server. Although theoretically the Web technology can be implemented on any Operating System, our projection on Rocky Linux guarantees:
- Lower implementation costs
- Zero additional licensing costs
- Limitation of unnecessary variants by having a single version.
What is the Migration Process Like?
The following diagrams serve as a reference
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