yum Command
Beginner Package Management man(1)Package manager for older RPM-based systems (legacy)
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📅 Updated: Apr 29, 2026
SYNTAX
yum [OPTION]... COMMAND [PACKAGE]...
What Does yum Do?
yum (Yellowdog Updater Modified) is the legacy package manager for RHEL, CentOS, and Fedora. It manages RPM packages with automatic dependency resolution. On RHEL 8+, yum is an alias for dnf.
yum has been the standard Red Hat package manager for over a decade. While dnf is the official successor, yum commands still work on all RPM-based distributions and are found in most existing documentation.
yum uses repositories configured in /etc/yum.repos.d/ to find and download packages.
yum has been the standard Red Hat package manager for over a decade. While dnf is the official successor, yum commands still work on all RPM-based distributions and are found in most existing documentation.
yum uses repositories configured in /etc/yum.repos.d/ to find and download packages.
Options & Flags
| Option | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| install | Install packages | sudo yum install httpd |
| remove | Remove packages | sudo yum remove httpd |
| update | Update packages | sudo yum update -y |
| search | Search for packages | yum search php |
| info | Show package info | yum info nginx |
| list installed | List installed packages | yum list installed |
| groupinstall | Install a package group | sudo yum groupinstall 'Development Tools' |
Practical Examples
#1 Install package
Installs nginx with auto-confirmation.
$ sudo yum install -y nginx#2 Update system
Updates all installed packages.
$ sudo yum update -y#3 Search packages
Searches for PHP-related packages.
$ yum search php#4 Clean cache
Clears cached package data to free space.
$ sudo yum clean all#5 Install EPEL
Installs the EPEL repository for additional packages.
$ sudo yum install epel-releaseTips & Best Practices
yum is dnf on RHEL 8+: On RHEL 8+, CentOS Stream, and Fedora, yum is a symlink to dnf. Your yum commands automatically use dnf.
Use dnf for new work: For new scripts and documentation, use dnf instead of yum. dnf is faster and better at dependency resolution.
RHEL 7 end of life: RHEL/CentOS 7 (which uses real yum) reached end of life. Upgrade to RHEL 8/9 which use dnf.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is yum still supported?
On RHEL 8+, yum is an alias for dnf — it works fine. On RHEL 7, real yum works but the OS is end-of-life.
What is the difference between yum and dnf?
dnf is the modern replacement with better performance. On new systems, yum simply calls dnf. Use dnf for new work.
How do I clean the yum cache?
sudo yum clean all removes cached packages and metadata.
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