OpenELA announced the public release of the Enterprise Linux source code, as well as technical and management milestones. OpenELA aims to foster the development and collaboration of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)-compatible distributions by making Enterprise Linux (EL) source code open and free.

“For decades organizations standardized on CentOS because it was freely available, followed the Enterprise Linux standard and was well supported by many vendors. After CentOS was discontinued, it left not only a gaping hole in the ecosystem, but it also clearly showed how the community needs to come together and do better. OpenELA is exactly that—the community’s answer to ensuring a collaborative and stable future for all professional IT departments and enterprise use cases”, said Gregory Kurtzer, CEO of CIQ and founder of Rocky Linux.

OpenELA’s mission is to provide open source code, tools and systems to the community. Core principles include adhering to established standards, providing timely updates and secure solutions, maintaining transparency, and ensuring that these resources remain free and accessible to all.

OpenELA serves as a platform for stakeholders interested in promoting open source enterprise Linux distributions, fostering collaboration, and aligning with the values of the open source community.

OpenELA functions as a platform for individuals and groups interested in advancing open source enterprise Linux distributions, fostering cooperation, and adhering to the principles of the open source community.

Within OpenELA, the Technical Steering Committee (TSC) holds a pivotal role in project governance, as noted by the working group. The TSC is responsible for supervising technical aspects, providing direction for development and maintenance, and managing access to OpenELA’s Git organizations.

Initially, the TSC is composed of experienced individuals from the founding companies, with the expectation that its membership will evolve over time. The TSC is of paramount importance to OpenELA’s technical vision, as it advocates for the interests of the community, facilitates collaboration, ensures code security, and upholds code availability.