AlmaLinux OS Foundation

United States · owned by Independent (United States) · almalinux.org · 7 vendors

AlmaLinux OS Foundation is a 501(c)(6) non-profit organization that develops and maintains AlmaLinux OS, a free, open-source, community-driven enterprise Linux distribution binary compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). It was created to fill the gap left by the discontinuation of the CentOS Linux stable release and is governed by its community members. The project receives $1M in annual sponsorship from CloudLinux Inc. and support from over 25 other sponsors.

Resilience scores

Disruption prediction

AlmaLinux OS Foundation has an estimated 11% probability of disruption in the next 6 months.

3 of AlmaLinux OS Foundation's 7 vendors monitored for disruptions.

Technology vendors

Services catalogue

3 services in catalogue across 2 categories; runs on 7 sub-vendors.

Insights

Last updated 2026-08-16 · revision 3

7 direct vendors, 108 subvendors

Direct vendors by controlling owner country (sample)

Subvendors by controlling owner country (sample)

Migration Readiness: 9/10

Assessed by AI based on technology stack characteristics (cloud-native vs legacy, containerization, microservices), regulatory environment, data residency requirements, financial stability, and vendor lock-in risks. The score ranges from 0-10, where higher scores indicate better readiness for technology migration.

AlmaLinux OS Foundation exhibits very high migration readiness. Its internal tech stack is highly cloud-native, containerized, and automated, utilizing technologies such as Docker, Docker Compose, Ansible, and Terraform, along with public cloud platforms like Amazon AWS and Google Cloud Platform. The organization's product offerings, including AlmaLinux Cloud Images and Container Images, further underscore its proficiency and architectural alignment with modern, portable deployments. The extensive use of open-source software throughout its operations (e.g., PostgreSQL, Redis, Zabbix, Mattermost, Gitea) significantly minimizes proprietary vendor lock-in, providing substantial flexibility for platform shifts. The absence of explicit data residency requirements and a low regulatory burden (NIS2, GDPR/HIPAA not applicable) greatly simplifies any potential migration efforts by reducing compliance complexities. While the financial capacity to fund a major migration cannot be assessed due to missing revenue and growth data, the technical agility and minimal lock-in suggest that the technical hurdles for migration would be exceptionally low. The multi-cloud strategy for CDN mirrors also demonstrates an architectural approach that favors portability and reduces dependency on a single provider.

Compliance

7 in-scope frameworks identified; showing 3.

FIPS 140-3 — Compliant

AlmaLinux OS 9.2 has achieved FIPS 140-3 validation with two NIST CMVP Active-listed certificates: kernel module (#4750) and OpenSSL module (#4823). This is a formal, independently validated compliance status. Risk is Low because the validation is confirmed by NIST, the certifying authority. The primary caveat is that FIPS 140-3 validation applies specifically to AlmaLinux OS 9.2 modules; newer releases (9.3+) are not yet on the Active list (9.6 is in the validation pipeline). This means users on newer versions may not be running validated modules, but the foundation itself has met the standard for the validated version.

Evidence: https://almalinux.org/security/fips-certification, https://csrc.nist.gov/projects/cryptographic-module-validation-program/certificate/4750, https://csrc.nist.gov/projects/cryptographic-module-validation-program/certificate/4823, https://almalinux.org/blog/2024-10-07-fips-validation-for-almalinux-update/, https://ncp.nist.gov/checklist/1264

GDPR (source) — Partially Compliant

AlmaLinux OS Foundation is a US-based 501(c)(6) non-profit that explicitly acknowledges GDPR rights (Articles 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, and 7 III) in its published Privacy Policy, confirming awareness of GDPR obligations. The foundation operates a globally distributed open-source project with a worldwide user base, community members, sponsors, and contributors from EU/EEA countries (evidenced by EU-based sponsors such as CERN, MEGWARE, StorPool, rackSPEED, Viatel, and Hetzner, and events held in Germany). It collects personal data (names, email addresses, IP addresses) from EU/EEA residents via its website, mailing lists, forums, and community platforms. The Privacy Policy references GDPR data subject rights but does not explicitly name a Data Protection Officer (DPO), does not specify an EU/EEA legal representative (required under GDPR Art. 27 for non-EU controllers targeting EU residents), and does not detail the lawful basis for processing under GDPR Art. 6. Third-party data transfers are noted as limited to the US or EU under data processing agreements, which is a positive indicator. Risk is Medium rather than High because the foundation is a small non-profit with limited commercial data processing, enforcement risk is lower than for large commercial entities, and the privacy policy demonstrates meaningful GDPR awareness. However, gaps in formal GDPR compliance infrastructure (no DPO named, no EU representative identified, no explicit lawful basis statements) create residual risk.

Evidence: https://almalinux.org/p/privacy-policy/, https://almalinux.org/foundation, https://almalinux.org/almalinux-day-germany-2024/, https://almalinux.org/almalinux-day-germany-2026/

US Non-Profit — Compliant

AlmaLinux OS Foundation is a registered 501(c)(6) non-profit organization under US law with Tax ID 86-2791864, verifiable on the IRS EOS (Exempt Organization Search) database. The foundation publicly discloses its tax-exempt status, governance structure (bylaws, board operations, ethics policy), board meeting minutes, and membership structure. This transparency is consistent with 501(c)(6) compliance requirements. Risk is Low because the foundation demonstrates active compliance with IRS non-profit requirements through public disclosures.

Evidence: https://almalinux.org/foundation, https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/, https://almalinux.org/p/foundation-bylaws/, https://almalinux.org/p/foundation-board-operations-and-ethics/, https://wiki.almalinux.org/Transparency.html

Financials

Three-year financials

Financial Resilience Score: 6/10

AlmaLinux OS Foundation operates as a 501(c)(6) non-profit with a lean cost structure and an anchor sponsor commitment of US$1M per year from CloudLinux Inc. since inception. This provides a stable revenue floor unusual for a young non-profit, supplemented by 25+ additional corporate sponsors across Platinum, Gold, Ruby, and Silver tiers, including hyperscalers (AWS, Microsoft Azure, Meta), chip vendors (AMD, ARM), and specialist Linux hosting firms. Estimated total revenue is in the low single-digit millions USD range annually. The Foundation's resilience is bolstered by significant in-kind engineering contributions from sponsor companies, no disclosed debt, and a governance model comparable to proven industry consortia like the Linux Foundation and CNCF. Its strategic pivot in June 2023 to a 'binary compatible with RHEL' model in response to Red Hat's source access restrictions solidified sponsor and community backing, and FIPS 140-3 validation in September 2023 opened regulated market opportunities. However, significant risks include heavy concentration on CloudLinux (whose group, including TuxCare, likely represents 40-50%+ of cash revenue), reliance on discretionary voluntary corporate sponsorship without product revenue, upstream/legal risk from Red Hat/IBM decisions, and competition from Rocky Linux, Oracle Linux, and SUSE Liberty Linux for the same sponsor pool. Limited financial transparency (no audited statements published) also constrains external assessment.

Key strengths: CloudLinux Inc. anchor sponsorship of US$1M/year since 2021, Diversified base of 25+ corporate sponsors including AWS, Microsoft, Meta, AMD, ARM, Lean cost structure with most development contributed in-kind, No disclosed debt or material liabilities, 501(c)(6) industry-consortium structure aligned with proven models, FIPS 140-3 validation opens US government/regulated market, Successful strategic pivot after June 2023 Red Hat source restrictions

Risk factors: High concentration on CloudLinux group (including TuxCare) at likely 40-50%+ of revenue, Reliance on discretionary voluntary corporate sponsorship with no product revenue, Upstream/legal risk from Red Hat/IBM RHEL access changes, Competition from Rocky Linux, Oracle Linux, SUSE Liberty Linux, CentOS Stream, Limited financial transparency - no audited statements published, Sponsor renewals could be pressured in tech-industry downturns

Revenue by geography

Revenue by product/service

Workforce by country

Signed-in users can see whether their own company is exposed to this vendor's disruption, plus the full sub-vendor list and country breakdowns, every in-scope compliance framework plus gaps and next steps, and alerts when any of it changes.

View the full interactive report