Migrating from CentOS to Ubuntu.

[chmuri]

I'm currently using CentOS, but I’m facing significant issues with version upgrades. I'm unsure if AlmaLinux will provide the support I need for smooth OS updates, so I’m considering Ubuntu as an alternative.

I have a question for experienced Ubuntu directadmin users: When upgrading from Ubuntu 18.04 to 20.04, have you used do-release-upgrade successfully, or did you set up a new instance and migrate manually? My current setup is colocated, and I don’t have a secondary node available solely for the migration process, which makes upgrading to something like AlmaLinux particularly challenging.

Looking ahead, I’d prefer to use do-release-upgrade to simplify future updates rather than setting up a separate host each time and migrating data. Has anyone had experience with this on Ubuntu or AlmaLinux?

Have a great day.

 

[Richard G]

The big difference between Debian (and deratives) and RH (and deratives like Alma) is that only Debian and alike have release upgrades supported by the OS.
Almalinux uses the external Elevate tool.
I succesfully migrated from Centos 8 to Almalinux 8 with this migration tool and some elevated from 7 or 8 to 9 succesfully.

Debian/Ubuntu has this upgrade system supported in the OS itself, which might give some more trust to it. Various hosters here already are using Debian or Ubuntu and do release upgrades this way.

So it's a choice you have to make for yourself. If you can work with Debian then in your case Debian/Ubuntu might be the better choice.
However, keep in mind that there is no way to upgrade from Almalinux to Ubuntu. You have to migrate to it.

Which means in your case, a solution would be to rent a cheap VPS with enough space, backup everything to there (including options.conf and maybe system backup). Then reinstall your current server with ubuntu, install Directadmin again and then import the backups.
That would mean some downtime and probably 1 monts rent of a VPS, but that should be doable.

 

[chmuri]

Thank you for the detailed response, Richard. I find myself in a similar situation, as I need to migrate from CloudLinux 7 to a newer version. I’ve had plenty of experience with do-release-upgrade and have successfully performed hundreds of upgrades without issues, though never in a DirectAdmin setup, which is why I posted this question.

You’re absolutely right about needing a temporary location for my data during the migration and reinstallation process. I had previously tested the Elevate tool in a virtual environment, and it seemed to work quite well. However, I’m hesitant to try it on a live system without further assurance.

Thanks again for the insights—this has clarified things for me.

 

[Richard G]

Thanks again for the insights—this has clarified things for me.

You're welcome.
But you just wrote something you didn't write before. You use Cloudlinux. Be aware that Cloudlinux only supports RH and deratives.
So would you decide to change to Debian/Ubuntu then you can't use Cloudlinux anymore.

I don't know enough about the elevation to be honest. Just did it once from Centos 8 to Alma 8, but not upgrade like from 8 to 9 yet.
But @Active8 has some experience with this if I'm correct. It's indeed a bit scary on a live system. But assurances..... well... it's still computers so no assurances.