Supported Platforms Reference

Complete reference for platform compatibility, system requirements, and feature support across different operating systems and environments.

🖥️ Platform Support Matrix

Operating System Support

Platform	Version	Support Level	Features	Notes
RHEL	8.4+	✅ Full Support	All features	Production recommended
RHEL	9.0+	✅ Full Support	All features	Production recommended
RHEL	10.0+	✅ Full Support	All features	Latest platform
Rocky Linux	8.4+	✅ Full Support	All features	Community alternative
Rocky Linux	9.0+	✅ Full Support	All features	Community alternative
AlmaLinux	8.4+	✅ Full Support	All features	Community alternative
AlmaLinux	9.0+	✅ Full Support	All features	Community alternative
CentOS Stream	9	⚠️ Limited Support	Core features	Testing only

Environment Support

Environment	Support Level	Features Available	Container Awareness	Use Case
Physical Hosts	✅ Full Support	All features including KVM optimization	N/A	Production deployment
Virtual Machines	✅ Supported	Limited optimization features	Nested virt detection	Development/testing
Containers	✅ Testing Only	Container-appropriate tasks only	Advanced detection	CI/CD testing

🔧 Hardware Requirements

Minimum Requirements

CPU Requirements

• Architecture: x86_64 (Intel/AMD)

• Virtualization: Intel VT-x or AMD-V support

• Cores: 2 cores minimum (4+ recommended)

• Features: Hardware virtualization extensions enabled in BIOS

Memory Requirements

• Minimum: 8GB RAM

• Recommended: 16GB RAM for production

• Optimal: 32GB+ for multiple VMs

• Considerations: Additional RAM needed for each VM

Storage Requirements

• Minimum: 100GB available disk space

• Recommended: 500GB+ for production

• Type: SSD recommended for better performance

• Partitioning: Separate partition for /var/lib/libvirt/images recommended

Network Requirements

• Connectivity: Stable network connection

• Bandwidth: Sufficient for package downloads and VM traffic

• Interfaces: At least one network interface for bridge creation

• DNS: Proper DNS resolution configured

Recommended Hardware

Production Environment

cpu:
  cores: 8+
  threads: 16+
  features: ["vmx", "ept", "vpid"]  # Intel
  features: ["svm", "npt", "nrips"]  # AMD

memory:
  total: 64GB+
  hugepages: 25% of total memory
  
storage:
  system_disk: 
    size: 500GB+
    type: SSD
  vm_storage:
    size: 2TB+
    type: NVMe SSD (preferred)
    
network:
  interfaces: 2+ (management + VM traffic)
  speed: 1Gbps+ (10Gbps preferred)

Development Environment

cpu:
  cores: 4+
  threads: 8+
  
memory:
  total: 16GB+
  
storage:
  system_disk:
    size: 200GB+
    type: SSD
    
network:
  interfaces: 1+
  speed: 100Mbps+

💻 Software Requirements

Ansible Requirements

Ansible Core

• Minimum Version: 2.13.0

• Recommended Version: 2.17.x (latest stable)

• Installation:

  pip install ansible-core>=2.13.0
  

Required Collections

collections:
  - community.libvirt: ">=1.3.0"
  - ansible.posix: ">=1.5.0"
  - community.general: ">=7.0.0"

Python Requirements

• Minimum Version: Python 3.9

• Recommended Version: Python 3.11

• Required Modules:

  pip install libvirt-python lxml netaddr
  

System Software

Required Packages (Auto-installed)

base_packages:
  - curl
  - wget
  - git
  - vim
  - unzip
  - tar

kvm_packages:
  - qemu-kvm
  - libvirt-daemon
  - libvirt-daemon-driver-qemu
  - libvirt-client
  - virt-install
  - virt-viewer

network_packages:
  - NetworkManager
  - bridge-utils
  - net-tools

storage_packages:
  - lvm2
  - parted

Optional Packages

optional_packages:
  - cockpit
  - cockpit-machines
  - cockpit-podman
  - htop
  - iotop
  - tcpdump

🔍 Feature Compatibility Matrix

Core Features by Platform

Feature	RHEL 8	RHEL 9	RHEL 10	Rocky 8/9	AlmaLinux 8/9
Base System Setup	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
KVM/Libvirt	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Network Bridges	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Storage Pools	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Cockpit Web UI	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Performance Optimization	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Container Testing	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅

Advanced Features

Feature	RHEL 8	RHEL 9	RHEL 10	Notes
Nested Virtualization	✅	✅	✅	CPU dependent
SR-IOV	✅	✅	✅	Hardware dependent
DPDK	✅	✅	✅	Advanced networking
GPU Passthrough	✅	✅	✅	Hardware dependent
NUMA Optimization	✅	✅	✅	Multi-socket systems

🐳 Container Environment Support

Container Detection

The collection automatically detects container environments and adapts behavior:

container_detection_criteria:
  - virtualization_type: "container"
  - environment_variables: ["container", "CONTAINER"]
  - filesystem_analysis: "/proc/1/cgroup"
  - selinux_context: "container_t"

Container-Specific Behavior

• Hardware Tasks: Automatically skipped

• Service Management: Adapted for container constraints

• Network Configuration: Limited to container-appropriate tasks

• Storage: Uses container-compatible storage options

Supported Container Runtimes

• Podman: Preferred for testing

• Docker: Supported for testing

• Kubernetes: Limited support for testing scenarios

🔒 Security and Compliance

Security Features by Platform

Security Feature	RHEL 8	RHEL 9	RHEL 10	Implementation
SELinux	✅	✅	✅	Enforcing mode supported
Firewalld	✅	✅	✅	Automatic configuration
FIPS Mode	✅	✅	✅	Compatible when enabled
Secure Boot	⚠️	✅	✅	RHEL 9+ full support

Compliance Standards

• STIG: Security Technical Implementation Guide compliance

• CIS: Center for Internet Security benchmarks

• NIST: National Institute of Standards and Technology guidelines

📊 Performance Characteristics

Performance by Platform

Platform	Boot Time	Memory Overhead	Storage Performance	Network Performance
RHEL 8	~30s	~2GB	Good	Good
RHEL 9	~25s	~1.8GB	Better	Better
RHEL 10	~20s	~1.5GB	Best	Best
Rocky/Alma	~30s	~2GB	Good	Good

Optimization Features

• Hugepages: Automatic configuration

• CPU Isolation: NUMA-aware optimization

• I/O Scheduling: Optimal scheduler selection

• Network Tuning: Bridge and interface optimization

🔄 Upgrade Paths

Supported Upgrade Scenarios

From	To	Support Level	Migration Guide
RHEL 8	RHEL 9	✅ Full Support	System Migration
RHEL 9	RHEL 10	✅ Full Support	System Migration
CentOS 8	Rocky/Alma 8	✅ Full Support	Distribution Migration
CentOS 8	Rocky/Alma 9	✅ Full Support	Distribution Migration

Collection Version Compatibility

Collection Version	Ansible Version	Python Version	Platform Support
0.9.x	2.13+	3.9+	RHEL 8/9/10, Rocky 8/9, Alma 8/9
0.8.x	2.12+	3.8+	RHEL 8/9, Rocky 8/9, Alma 8/9
0.7.x	2.11+	3.8+	RHEL 8/9, Rocky 8/9

🧪 Testing Platform Support

Test Coverage by Platform

Platform	Unit Tests	Integration Tests	System Tests	Container Tests
RHEL 8	✅	✅	✅	✅
RHEL 9	✅	✅	✅	✅
RHEL 10	✅	✅	✅	✅
Rocky Linux	✅	✅	✅	✅
AlmaLinux	✅	✅	✅	✅

Container Test Images

test_images:
  rhel8: "registry.redhat.io/ubi8-init:latest"
  rhel9: "registry.redhat.io/ubi9-init:latest"
  rhel10: "registry.redhat.io/ubi10-init:latest"
  rocky8: "docker.io/rockylinux/rockylinux:8-ubi-init"
  rocky9: "docker.io/rockylinux/rockylinux:9-ubi-init"
  alma8: "docker.io/almalinux/almalinux:8-ubi-init"
  alma9: "docker.io/almalinux/almalinux:9-ubi-init"

🔗 Related Documentation

• Installation: System Requirements

• Migration: System Migration Guide

• Testing: Container Testing

• Compatibility: Feature Matrix

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This reference provides complete platform compatibility information. For installation guidance, see tutorials. For migration procedures, check how-to guides.