We are pleased to announce the immediate availability of CentOS-5.1 for the i386 and x86_64 Architectures.
CentOS-5.1 is based on the upstream release 5.1, and includes packages from all variants including Server and Client. All upstream repositories have been combined into one, to make it easier for end users to work with. And the option to further enable external repositories at install time is now available in the installer.
Further Arch support for PowerPC, IA64 and Sparc are planned and will be released soon. These arch's will follow the existing pattern of release to Beta first, and then to Final.
This is the first release where we are also publishing a special netinstall iso that can be used to start a remote install. Its included in the isos/ directory. This iso is in addition to the boot.iso published in the images/ directory of the distribution - there are no changes to that file.
+++++++++++++++++++++++ Verification of downloads and media
We highly recommend that all forms of downloads be verified before use. Both md5sum and sha1sum for all isos and torrents released by the CentOS project are published at the same location as the isos and torrents themselves. md5sum and sha1sum verification tools are available for all major platforms. As an added option, but not a replacement to the md5sum/sha1sum process, its possible to check media during install time.
All rpms published by the CentOS project are signed with a gpg key, and by default we configure yum to verify this signature on package download. In order to check that this is operating as normal ensure that each repository section includes two lines that look exactly like this :
gpgcheck=1 gpgsignature=http://mirror.centos.org/centos/RPM-GPG-KEY-CentOS-5
Note: 1) url to the gpg key will never point at an external non .centos.org machine. 2) a copy of the gpg key is also provided on the install media, and installed as /etc/pki/rpm-gpg/RPM-GPG-KEY-CentOS-5, however do the possibility of compromised media we recommend you still verify that key with the one hosted on http://mirror.centos.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++ Download Instructions:
First a request from us : When possible, consider using torrents to run the downloads. Not only does it help the community and keeps mirrors from running up high bandiwdth bills, in most cases you will find its also the fastest means to download the distro.
Via BitTorrent : Torrents are available for i386 at http://isoredirect.centos.org/centos/5/isos/i386/ and for x86_64 at http://isoredirect.centos.org/centos/5/isos/x86_64/
Via direct download: Due to bandwidth considerations the CentOS Project does not publish ISOS directly from our network machines. However direct downloads are available from external mirrors over http, ftp and rsync, and a geoip based list is available at http://isoredirect.centos.org/centos/5/isos/ to give you the best predictable match ( and only lists mirrors that are updated already, so you dont need to go looking for a mirror with all the isos you want ! )
Some mirrors also publish DVD images that can be downloaded directly. Refer to the mirrors list page at http://www.centos.org/mirrors for more details Mirrors that offer DVD's are clearly marked on the page.
----------------------------------------------- i386 ISOS and their sha1sum's are :
18dbc08071f381b327e7d591d6921f125ff43359 CentOS-5.1-i386-bin-1of6.iso 87f1fa3cd42fbfb6d9d12d7d4440101aba2e4647 CentOS-5.1-i386-bin-2of6.iso ec4b1875de5bf9da3fcedad66a0ed61f59d07dd3 CentOS-5.1-i386-bin-3of6.iso 077179429ef46e8aee6726a64aaf461a4f44a668 CentOS-5.1-i386-bin-4of6.iso bcc3b5d839b56638419eee09fa933c90005f291d CentOS-5.1-i386-bin-5of6.iso c6b62bbf82cc850d2855705934a0e4b04f0abfe3 CentOS-5.1-i386-bin-6of6.iso 0a07e11a43515e772eb392e5b9261ecc52980b7c CentOS-5.1-i386-bin-DVD.iso e010156ae3bb7499c057f25cc3b42bd66bb686b7 CentOS-5.1-i386-netinstall.iso
----------------------------------------------- x86_64 ISOS and their sha1sum's are :
7e70ca98f6042342159a6705cc10eae9b937a12f CentOS-5.1-x86_64-bin-1of7.iso eaec3219d9ee29ead7d79e87674ea1b289cddb2f CentOS-5.1-x86_64-bin-2of7.iso 89d922359fab8668bf5aee594de3e3bdad8b27f0 CentOS-5.1-x86_64-bin-3of7.iso 6a7d55cbcaf4412001ed276c20d299e1c48aa2cd CentOS-5.1-x86_64-bin-4of7.iso 018c877063e1893785ba28859552f0ec73b101f6 CentOS-5.1-x86_64-bin-5of7.iso d5daca1b6341b290d090162441078b6c6a054827 CentOS-5.1-x86_64-bin-6of7.iso 1ab34cf0977aa966436dd0d3b54a7f56e99f3344 CentOS-5.1-x86_64-bin-7of7.iso 22403c5d46fd620e3d7156a8df0f73889680a20d CentOS-5.1-x86_64-bin-DVD.iso da61e6c3d0b119da59804144cf7d42478cf812c8 CentOS-5.1-x86_64-netinstall.iso
+++++++++++++++++++++++ Release Notes:
The distro release notes are only available online at http://wiki.centos.org/Manuals/ReleaseNotes/CentOS5.1/ The release notes include important changelog info as well as notes about the installer and outcomes from test situations which the centos-qa team worked through. Its considered essential reading.
Upstream release notes are available in the NOTES/ directory of the install media, as well as online at http://www.centos.org/docs/5/ . These include release specific technologies, new features in the distro and other misc infomation that can help you better utilise the distro. Always something worth reading.
+++++++++++++++++++++++ How to get help with CentOS
The best place to start when looking for help with CentOS is at the wiki ( http://wiki.centos.org/GettingHelp ) which lists various options and communities who might be able to help. If you think there is a bug in the system, do report it at http://bugs.centos.org/ - but keep in mind that the bugs system is *not* a support mechanism.
Friendly URL's : http://wiki.centos.org/ http://www.centos.org/ http://bugs.centos.org/ http://www.centos.org/donate http://lists.centos.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++ And a big thanks to everyone who contributed to the distro, including the translation teams, the qa team, the CentOS Developers and all the users out there.
Enjoy!