Avivi solves problems with Bitrix24 related to CentOS 7 EOL

About the author: Mark, a Backend Developer with many years of experience, loves to understand complex issues in detail, study the product thoroughly and then skillfully use the expert knowledge gained to make real miracles with the software. That's exactly what happened with Bitrix24, so the current situation with CentOS 7, which has become a disaster for many, is just another very real task for our developer. 

For most commercial users of Bitrix24, the principles of this software are ancillary and, frankly, unnecessary information: the product must work, and how it works is a question for specialists. That's why the on-premise edition is popular all over the world, as it is flexible and capable of almost unlimited customization. However, today, all owners of server-based versions are facing difficult times when it is essential to understand the cause of the problem in order to choose the best method for solving it, which our company will offer you. So what happened?

A brief introduction to CentOS 7

CentOS (Community ENTerprise Operating System) is a freely available Linux distribution, which is the basis for the commercial Red Hat Enterprise Linux distribution by Red Hat. The number "7" stands for the version number, which was released in 2014. This is a completely free product (which is why its name remains unknown to most Bitrix24 owners), designed for various commercial projects. In 2020, the 8th version was released, but now it is also considered outdated and the 9th version is being prepared for release. 

Bitrix24 was released in 2012, but since 2014, the use of CentOS 7 has become a prerequisite for deploying the on-premise edition. That is, the Bitrix virtual machine (VM) is installed on a server with CentOS 7 preinstalled; all the necessary scripts and settings are created specifically for this operating system and will not work with another. 

The cause of the problems

In general, the emergence of the problem was predictable and depended on the decision of CentOS 7 owners, which gave companies and developers alike the opportunity to research the issue and get ready to help Bitrix24 users in the "X" hour. And it came in June 2024, when the repositories for CentOS 7 were closed and the end of product support was announced. This instantly caused a number of problems for existing on-premise users and anyone who wanted to do so in the near future. After all, deploying new products is no longer possible either! 

Among the many inconveniences for existing users, I will highlight the following:

1. Hosters, i.e. virtual server service providers, have started to remove the offer to install CentOS 7 on virtual machines;

2. It is impossible to install any new software on already deployed on-premises, which practically renders them useless in terms of development; 

3. You cannot update or reset software versions.

It is worth noting that Bitrix24 does not stop working: the product will continue to work, but no actions can be taken with it in terms of administration. This is unacceptable for business, as technical support is a continuous process where any complications are potentially dangerous for the system as a whole. 

What to do next?

Will the problems with the transition of Bitrix24 to CentOS 9 be solved? I think so, but there is no such solution, and it may take months or even years to create it. Therefore, an effective solution may be to look for alternative ways to solve the problem. It's good that Avivi has at least three of them:

• Custom replacement of repositories with alternative ones in CentOS 7; 

• Migration or new deployment to Docker;

• Installation on alternative Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu.

Of course, each of the proposed options differs from the original idea and has both advantages and disadvantages. However, ignoring the situation cannot be a worthy solution, because with each passing day, your Bitrix24 on-premise will become more and more like a yacht drifting without a captain in the open ocean. Therefore, I suggest that you briefly familiarize yourself with the solution options — you can always find out more information in a personal conversation with Avivi managers:

Replacing repositories with alternative ones

Advantages

1. The fastest option for implementation;

2. It can be used on an existing working system;

3. The best software environment recommended by Bitrix24 developers for optimal performance is stored;

4. Easy to administer the system using the standard tools of the native Bitrix VM

Disadvantages

1. The software versions will remain at the same level as the CentOS 7 EOL;

2. It also makes it impossible to further fix security bugs that appear with new versions of the operating system. 

Deploying on Docker

Advantages

1. In Avivi, this is a long-proven and effective method. Even before the problems with CentOS 7, we migrated to Docker, and the systems are still working productively;

2. Can be implemented on any server and distribution where Docker is installed

3. Docker has a number of advantages of its own, but this is a topic for a separate article;

4. You can still update packages and applications.

Disadvantages 

1. Complexity of administration;

2. Additional costs for maintaining the virtual machine because the software does not work natively;

3. Relatively longer deployment and configuration time. 

Installing on alternative distributions

Advantages

1. I can say for myself that in practice, the system's performance under such conditions doubles compared to both previous options;

2. Moderate administration complexity: it's easier than Docker, but more complex than Bitrix VM;

3. You can still get the latest software versions and security patches;

4. The ability to choose a distribution with a long support period, for example, the same Ubuntu 24.04 LTS)

Disadvantages

1. Long time to deploy the project. However, this is a temporary disadvantage, as Avivi developers are already working on a special script;

2. Possibility of unforeseen problems: we have already found and solved many bugs, but no one knows how many of them may appear on each particular project. 

Results

The work of Bitrix24 on CentOS 7 is, of course, a whole happy era lasting 10 years, when the possibilities of a developer on Bitrix were limited only by the imagination of the customer. However, times are changing and now we are all at a crossroads. Hoping for a quick solution to the problems with the transition to CentOS 9 is useless and dangerous for your business. So we offer you all our experience, expertise, and developer manpower to help you overcome the difficulties and keep your system up and running.