How to install Raven repository on CentOS, Red Hat, Rocky Linux and AlmaLinux

The Raven repository is a valuable resource for CentOS, Red Hat, and Fedora users, offering a collection of software packages that might not be available in the default repositories. By adding the Raven repository to your system, you gain access to a broader range of software, ensuring you have the tools you need for any task.

Raven repository is known for its diverse collection of packages, which cater to both everyday users and developers. Some of the notable packages include development tools, multimedia software, and system utilities.

To add Raven repository to your system, you need to install the raven-release package which you first need to download. It's available for Enterprise Linux (CentOS, RHEL, Rocky Linux, AlmaLinux) 8 and 9, and only for the x86_64 architecture.

1. Open the terminal.
2. Install wget if it's not already installed.

   $ sudo dnf install --assumeyes wget
   Last metadata expiration check: 0:38:21 ago on Thu 31 Aug 2023 12:03:37 AM UTC.
   Dependencies resolved.
   ================================================================================
    Package       Architecture    Version                 Repository          Size
   ================================================================================
   Installing:
    wget          x86_64          1.21.1-7.el9            appstream          789 k
   
   Transaction Summary
   ================================================================================
   Install  1 Package
   
   Total download size: 789 k
   Installed size: 3.1 M

3. Download the raven-release package using wget.

   $ wget $(echo "https://pkgs.dyn.su/el9/base/x86_64/raven-release.el9.noarch.rpm" | sed "s/el9/el$(rpm -q --queryformat '%{RELEASE}' rpm | grep -oP 'el\K[0-9]+')/g")
   --2023-08-31 00:42:42--  https://pkgs.dyn.su/el9/base/x86_64/raven-release.el9.noarch.rpm
   Resolving pkgs.dyn.su (pkgs.dyn.su)... 191.101.33.144
   Connecting to pkgs.dyn.su (pkgs.dyn.su)|191.101.33.144|:443... connected.
   HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
   Length: 9401 (9.2K) [application/x-redhat-package-manager]
   Saving to: ‘raven-release.el9.noarch.rpm’
   
   raven-release.el9.n 100%[===================>]   9.18K  --.-KB/s    in 0s
   
   2023-08-31 00:42:43 (85.1 MB/s) - ‘raven-release.el9.noarch.rpm’ saved [9401/9401]

4. Install the downloaded repository package.

   $ sudo rpm -ivh raven-release*.rpm
   warning: raven-release.el9.noarch.rpm: Header V4 RSA/SHA256 Signature, key ID 2dcd03a2: NOKEY
   Verifying...                          ################################# [100%]
   Preparing...                          ################################# [100%]
   Updating / installing...
      1:raven-release-1.0-4.el9          ################################# [100%]
   !!! WARNING !!!
   You have installed an unofficial repository configuration. Some parts of it may
   break compatibility with the base packages of your OS, so you use it at YOUR OWN RISK!
   
   Unstable and/or conflicting repository parts are not enabled by default,
   you can use the --enablerepo=raven-extras or --enablerepo=raven-testing option
   to enable them temporarily.

5. Clean the repository cache and ensure it's updated.

   $ sudo dnf clean all && sudo dnf update --assumeyes
   50 files removed
   CentOS Stream 9 - BaseOS                         12 MB/s | 7.8 MB     00:00
   CentOS Stream 9 - AppStream                      22 MB/s |  18 MB     00:00
   CentOS Stream 9 - Extras packages                73 kB/s |  14 kB     00:00
   Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux 9 - x86_64   12 MB/s |  18 MB     00:01
   Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux 9 openh264  3.2 kB/s | 2.5 kB     00:00
   Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux 9 - Next -  1.9 MB/s | 1.3 MB     00:00
   Raven's RPM repo for el9-x86_64 - base          649 kB/s | 622 kB     00:00
   Raven's RPM repo for el9-x86_64  - multimedia   113 kB/s |  78 kB     00:00
   Dependencies resolved.
   ##### snipped

6. Verify that the Raven repository has been added.

   $ dnf repolist
   repo id             repo name
   appstream           CentOS Stream 9 - AppStream
   baseos              CentOS Stream 9 - BaseOS
   epel                Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux 9 - x86_64
   epel-cisco-openh264 Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux 9 openh264 (From Cisco) - x86_64
   epel-next           Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux 9 - Next - x86_64
   extras-common       CentOS Stream 9 - Extras packages
   raven               Raven's RPM repo for el9-x86_64 - base
   raven-multimedia    Raven's RPM repo for el9-x86_64  - multimedia

   Look for the Raven repository in the displayed list.