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Amazon Linux

The Linux distribution AWS builds for EC2, containers and Lambda. Amazon Linux 2023 is based on Fedora and supported for five years.

  • Active project
  • Latest 2023Nov 2026
  • Supported 1 version
Download Official site 11 Amazon Linux guides
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At a glance

Type
Linux distribution
Developer
Amazon Web Services
Based on
Fedora
First release
2010
Release cadence
New major version about every 2 years; quarterly minor updates
OS family
Linux
Package format
RPM (DNF on AL2023, YUM on AL2)
Init system
systemd
Architectures
x86_64, arm64 (Graviton)
Support
5 years per major version (2 standard + 3 maintenance)
Runs on
Amazon EC2, containers, on-premises VMs
License
Free to use; support included with AWS
Website
aws.amazon.com

Newest release

Amazon Linux 2023

Released 1 Mar 2023 · latest update 2023.12.20261102.0

Support status

2023 Supported

Until 30 Jun 2029 · in 2.5 years

Active support until 30 Jun 2027

2 End of life

Ended 30 Jun 2026 · 4 months ago

Release history

VersionReleasedLatestActive supportSecurity / EOLStatus
20231 Mar 20232023.12.20261102.030 Jun 202730 Jun 2029Supported
226 Jun 20182.0.20261102.030 Jun 202630 Jun 2026End of life
2018.0325 Apr 20182018.03.0.20231218.031 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2017.093 Nov 20172017.09.1.2018040931 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2017.037 Apr 20172017.03.1.2017081231 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2016.0916 Nov 20162016.09.1.2016122131 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2016.0322 Mar 20162016.0331 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2015.0922 Sep 20152015.0931 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2015.0324 Mar 20152015.0331 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2014.0923 Sep 20142014.0931 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2014.0327 Mar 20142014.0331 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2013.0930 Sep 20132013.0931 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2013.0327 Mar 20132013.0331 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2012.0911 Oct 20122012.0931 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2012.0328 Mar 20122012.0331 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2011.0926 Sep 20112011.0931 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life
2010.111 Dec 20102010.1131 Dec 202031 Dec 2023End of life

Release data: endoflife.date and vendor announcements, checked 13 Nov 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.

Support timeline

The 12 most recent releases, from release day to the end of support.

  • Active support
  • Security fixes only
  • Today
2023
2
2018.03
2017.09
2017.03
2016.09
2016.03
2015.09
2015.03
2014.09
2014.03
2013.09

History

Amazon started shipping its own Linux image for EC2 in 2010. The original Amazon Linux AMI was a rolling, RHEL-like distribution. Amazon Linux 2, released in 2018, added systemd, long-term support and the amazon-linux-extras topic repositories, and it became the default image for many AWS services.

Amazon Linux 2023 changed direction: it is based on Fedora rather than RHEL. A new major version is planned every two years, each with five years of support. It uses DNF, SELinux in permissive mode and deterministic versioned repositories, which lets you pin a server to a known package set.

Milestones

  1. 2010The Amazon Linux AMI is released for EC2
  2. 2018Amazon Linux 2 reaches general availability with systemd and long-term support
  3. 2023Amazon Linux 2023 is released, based on Fedora with a predictable release cycle
  4. 2026Amazon Linux 2 reaches end of support on 30 June

Amazon Linux guides

Browse all 11 Amazon Linux guides →

Frequently asked questions

What is the latest version of Amazon Linux?

The newest Amazon Linux release is Amazon Linux 2023, released on 1 Mar 2023. Its latest update is 2023.12.20261102.0 (5 Nov 2026).

Which Amazon Linux versions are still supported?

As of 13 Nov 2026, 1 version is supported: Amazon Linux 2023 (until 30 Jun 2029).

Is Amazon Linux 2 still supported?

No. Amazon Linux 2 reached end of life on 30 Jun 2026 and no longer gets free security updates. Upgrade to Amazon Linux 2023.

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