--- title: Amazon Linux 2 Reviews meta_title: 'Amazon Linux 2 Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & Features | G2' meta_description: Filter 92 reviews by the users' company size, role or industry to find out how Amazon Linux 2 works for a business like yours. aggregate_rating: rating_value: 4.5 review_count: 92 scale: '5' date_modified: '2026-08-09' parent_category: name: IT Infrastructure url: https://www.g2.com/categories/it-infrastructure --- # Amazon Linux 2 Reviews **Vendor:** terracloudx **Category:** [Operating Systems](https://www.g2.com/categories/operating-system) **Average Rating:** 4.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 92 ## About Amazon Linux 2 Amazon Linux 2 is a Linux operating system developed by Amazon Web Services (AWS) to provide a secure, stable, and high-performance environment for cloud and enterprise applications. It is designed to integrate seamlessly with AWS services, offering a robust platform for developers and IT administrators. Amazon Linux 2 is available at no additional charge and includes long-term support with ongoing security and maintenance updates. Key Features and Functionality: - AWS Integration: Pre-installed packages and configurations facilitate tight integration with AWS services, simplifying the deployment and management of applications. - Long-Term Support: Provides five years of support, ensuring stability and predictability for enterprise applications. - Extras Repository: Offers access to the latest software packages through the Amazon Linux Extras repository, allowing users to install newer versions of popular software without compromising system stability. - On-Premises Use: Available as virtual machine images for VMware, Oracle VM VirtualBox, and Microsoft Hyper-V, enabling on-premises development and testing. - Systemd Support: Includes the systemd init system for efficient process management and service control. - Optimized Kernel and Toolchain: Features an LTS Kernel tuned for enhanced performance on Amazon EC2, along with updated compiler and build toolchain components. - Security Features: Implements default security measures such as limiting remote access, disabling remote root login, and reducing non-critical packages to minimize exposure to vulnerabilities. - Kernel Live Patching: Supports live patching of the Linux kernel, allowing critical and important security updates to be applied without rebooting or downtime. Primary Value and User Solutions: Amazon Linux 2 addresses the need for a secure, reliable, and high-performance operating system tailored for cloud environments. Its deep integration with AWS services streamlines application deployment and management, enhancing developer productivity. The long-term support and regular security updates provide peace of mind for enterprises, ensuring system stability and compliance. Additionally, the availability of virtual machine images for on-premises use allows for consistent development and testing environments, bridging the gap between local and cloud-based operations. ## Amazon Linux 2 Pros & Cons **What users like:** - Users appreciate the **speed and performance** of Amazon Linux 2, which ensures rapid boot times and reliability under load. (9 reviews) - Users value the **long-term support and reliable stability** of Amazon Linux 2, enhancing their AWS experience. (7 reviews) - Users value the **regular updates** of Amazon Linux 2, ensuring security and optimal performance with minimal maintenance. (5 reviews) - Users appreciate the **seamless AWS integration** of Amazon Linux 2, enhancing cloud deployment and management efficiency. (4 reviews) - Users love the **lightweight size** of Amazon Linux 2, appreciating its quick boot times and resource efficiency on AWS. (4 reviews) - Users value the **Long-Term Support** of Amazon Linux 2, ensuring reliability and timely security updates for production workloads. (3 reviews) - Privacy Focus (3 reviews) - Security Features (3 reviews) - Security/Safety (3 reviews) - Users find Amazon Linux 2's **compatibility and ease of use** excellent, enhancing their server setup experience. (2 reviews) **What users dislike:** - Users find the **limited apps and store** on Amazon Linux 2 restricts flexibility and convenience outside AWS environments. (7 reviews) - Users face **installation difficulties** due to limited documentation and dependencies, complicating setup outside of AWS. (3 reviews) - Users find a **lack of support** with Amazon Linux 2, especially for issues outside the AWS ecosystem. (3 reviews) - Users find the **limited software** in Amazon Linux 2 restrictive compared to other Linux distributions, affecting flexibility and updates. (3 reviews) - Users find that Amazon Linux 2 has **limited support on non-AWS platforms** , hindering flexibility and deployment options. (1 reviews) - Bloatware Issues (1 reviews) - Installation Issues (1 reviews) - Outdated Technology (1 reviews) - Security Issues (1 reviews) - Slow Updates (1 reviews) ## Amazon Linux 2 Reviews ### 1. Optimized for AWS but Limited Flexibility: An Overview of Amazon Linux 2 **Rating:** 3.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Omer I. | Software Engineer, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** May 19, 2023 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** Amazon Linux 2 is specifically optimized for the AWS environment, which is a significant advantage for those primarily operating within the AWS ecosystem. The pre-installed command-line tools and agents are a massive time-saver, allowing us to get up and running with AWS services without having to spend time on installations and configurations. In addition, the OS integration with AWS is seamless, which greatly simplifies management tasks. Although it's a relatively new player in the world of Linux distributions, the fact that it's well documented within AWS itself is a bonus, as it makes troubleshooting and learning easier. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** Despite its strengths, Amazon Linux 2 isn't without its limitations. One of the main concerns is that it may inadvertently cause dependency on AWS as a cloud provider. Given that it's tailor-made for AWS, moving to a different cloud provider could prove challenging if your systems are heavily reliant on this Linux distribution. Additionally, it lacks the wider community support and documentation that other more popular distributions like Ubuntu have. While AWS documentation is generally robust, when it comes to specific, complex issues that extend beyond AWS's purview, finding solutions can be more challenging due to the smaller user community. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** As a software engineer wearing a DevOps engineer hat, my primary role when using Amazon Linux 2 is to establish and manage server infrastructure for our applications on the AWS cloud. This includes setting up new instances, managing security configurations, handling application deployments, and troubleshooting any system-level issues that might arise. Amazon Linux 2's close integration with AWS services and pre-installed toolset makes these tasks considerably more efficient, despite the occasional challenges posed by its limited external documentation. ### 2. Used for AWS Server using Ruby on Rails Prgramming **Rating:** 3.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 12, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** OS provides security and efficient performance execution env to develop and run web cloud applications. It does not have any additional charge from amazon web services **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** Got issue in installing some ruby library and setting nginx configuration. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** Used this service of AWS in my application to solve some AI-related works like a prediction of book sell in the next month/quarter using a standard algorithm. - [View Amazon Linux 2 pricing details and edition comparison](https://www.g2.com/products/terracloudx-amazon-linux-2/reviews?filters%5Bnps_score%5D%5B%5D=3§ion=pricing&secure%5Bexpires_at%5D=2026-08-12+19%3A28%3A46+-0500&secure%5Bsession_id%5D=31458506-601f-48d8-a876-41da9406244d&secure%5Btoken%5D=0ecfdbb83d5576fadcf21657cf0744fcf4ed3583c31282b7773c212f1647e7aa&format=llm_user) ## Amazon Linux 2 Integrations - [Amazon CloudWatch](https://www.g2.com/products/amazon-cloudwatch/reviews) - [Apache Maven](https://www.g2.com/products/apache-maven/reviews) - [Docker](https://www.g2.com/products/docker-inc-docker/reviews) - [IBM Security QRadar Log Insights](https://www.g2.com/products/ibm-security-qradar-log-insights/reviews) - [Laravel](https://www.g2.com/products/laravel/reviews) - [SureLog SIEM](https://www.g2.com/products/surelog-siem/reviews) ## Amazon Linux 2 Features **Memory Management - Operating System** - RAM management - App Management - File Management **Device Management - Operating System** - I/O management **Backup and Recovery - Operating System** - Data backup **Error Detection - Operating System** - System operations monitoring **Additional Functionality** - Generative AI - Data Security - User Interface - Resource Allocation - System Updates - For Developers - AI Copilot - Desktop Interface ## Top Amazon Linux 2 Alternatives - [Red Hat Enterprise Linux](https://www.g2.com/products/red-hat-enterprise-linux/reviews) - 4.6/5.0 (933 reviews) - [Ubuntu](https://www.g2.com/products/ubuntu/reviews) - 4.5/5.0 (2,346 reviews) - [Chrome OS](https://www.g2.com/products/chrome-os/reviews) - 4.5/5.0 (728 reviews)