dnf is the package manager on AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux and the rest of the RHEL family — what apt is to Ubuntu and Debian. This guide covers the commands you will use every week, the extra repositories most servers need, automatic security updates, and how to roll back a change that went wrong.
Updating the System
sudo dnf upgrade --refreshdnf refreshes repository metadata and installs updates in one step; there is no separate “update the list” command as with apt. (dnf update is an alias for dnf upgrade.) To see what would change first:
dnf check-update
sudo dnf upgrade --security # security fixes onlyAfter a kernel or core-library update, check whether a reboot is needed:
sudo dnf needs-restarting -rInstalling, Removing, Finding
sudo dnf install nginx
sudo dnf install nginx mariadb-server php-fpm
sudo dnf remove nginx
dnf search nginx
dnf info nginx
dnf provides /usr/sbin/nginx # which package owns a file
dnf provides '*/semanage' # which package would provide a commandLeave out -y while you are learning: dnf shows exactly what it is about to install or remove, and that list is worth reading.
Listing What Is Installed
dnf list --installed
dnf list --installed | grep php
rpm -qa --last | head # most recently installed packagesCleaning Up
sudo dnf autoremove # dependencies nothing needs any more
sudo dnf clean all # cached metadata and packagesRepositories: CRB and EPEL
Many common tools (Lynis, Fail2Ban, htop, certbot plugins) live in EPEL, the Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux. EPEL depends on the CRB repository, which is disabled by default:
sudo dnf install -y dnf-plugins-core
sudo dnf config-manager --set-enabled crb
sudo dnf install -y epel-release
dnf repolistAdd a third-party repository from its own .repo file, and only from projects you trust:
sudo dnf config-manager --add-repo https://example.com/example.repoSpecific Versions, Downgrades and Version Locks
dnf list --showduplicates nginx # versions available
sudo dnf install nginx-1.26.3 # a specific version
sudo dnf downgrade nginx # back to the previous version
sudo dnf install -y python3-dnf-plugin-versionlock
sudo dnf versionlock add nginx # stop it being upgradedModules (AlmaLinux and Rocky 9)
On version 9, some software comes in several streams — for example different PHP or Node.js versions:
dnf module list php
sudo dnf module reset php
sudo dnf module enable php:8.2
sudo dnf install php-fpmVersion 10 dropped modules; there, different versions arrive as separately named packages or from vendor repositories.
Package Groups
dnf group list
sudo dnf group install "Development Tools"History and Undo
dnf records every transaction, which makes it easy to see what changed and to reverse it:
sudo dnf history
sudo dnf history info 15
sudo dnf history undo 15
sudo dnf history undo lastUndo is not a substitute for backups: it reverses package changes, not configuration or data.
Automatic Security Updates
sudo dnf install -y dnf-automatic
sudo nano /etc/dnf/automatic.conf[commands]
upgrade_type = security
apply_updates = yessudo systemctl enable --now dnf-automatic.timer
systemctl list-timers | grep dnfAutomatic updates do not reboot. Check dnf needs-restarting -r from time to time, or schedule reboots in a maintenance window.
apt and dnf Side by Side
| Task | apt (Ubuntu/Debian) | dnf (AlmaLinux/Rocky) |
|---|---|---|
| Update everything | apt update && apt upgrade | dnf upgrade --refresh |
| Install / remove | apt install / apt remove | dnf install / dnf remove |
| Search | apt search | dnf search |
| Which package owns a file | dpkg -S | dnf provides |
| Hold a version | apt-mark hold | dnf versionlock add |
| Undo a change | (manual) | dnf history undo |
| Clean cache | apt clean | dnf clean all |
Common Problems
“No match for argument” — the package is in a repository you have not enabled (often EPEL or CRB), or the name differs. Try dnf provides '*/COMMAND'.
“Nothing provides ... needed by ...” — usually EPEL is enabled without CRB, or a third-party repository was built for another release.
Conflicting packages — sudo dnf install PACKAGE --allowerasing lets dnf replace the conflicting package. Read what it plans to remove before confirming.
dnf is slow — add max_parallel_downloads=10 and fastestmirror=True to the [main] section of /etc/dnf/dnf.conf.
Continue Reading
- How to Get Started with AlmaLinux/Rocky Linux on a VPS
- Understanding SELinux Basics
- How to Install PostgreSQL on AlmaLinux/Rocky Linux
- AlmaLinux vs Rocky Linux
Browse more articles in AlmaLinux & Rocky Linux.
