# How to Install Apache Cassandra on Rocky Linux 8 > URL: https://www.atlantic.net/dedicated-server-hosting/how-to-install-apache-cassandra-on-rocky-linux-8/ | Published: 2021-10-02 | Updated: 2023-11-14 | Author: Hitesh Jethva Apache Cassandra is a free and open-source distributed NoSQL database management system. It is specially designed to handle large amounts of data across many commodity servers. Generally, it is used as a real-time data store for transactional applications and as a read-intensive database. It supports relational databases including MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Microsoft SQL. It is used by many companies that use large data sets including, Instagram, GitHub, Netflix, Reddit, and more. In this guide, we will show you how to install Apache Cassandra on Rocky Linux 8. ## Step 1 – Install Java 8 Apache Cassandra supports Java version 8, so you will need to install OpenJDK 8 to your system. You can install it with other required packages using the following command: ``` dnf install epel-release python2 python2-pip java-1.8.0-openjdk -y ``` Once Java is installed, verify the Java installation using the following command: ``` java -version ``` Sample output: ``` openjdk version "1.8.0_302" OpenJDK Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_302-b08) OpenJDK 64-Bit Server VM (build 25.302-b08, mixed mode) ``` You will also need to install cqlsh utility to your system. You can install it using the following command: ``` pip2 install cqlsh ``` ## Step 2 – Install Apache Cassandra By default, the Apache Cassandra package is not included in the RockyLinux 8 default repository, so you will need to create a repository for Apache Cassandra. ``` nano /etc/yum.repos.d/cassandra.repo ``` Add the following lines: ``` [cassandra] name=Apache Cassandra baseurl=https://www.apache.org/dist/cassandra/redhat/40x/ gpgcheck=1 repo_gpgcheck=1 gpgkey=https://www.apache.org/dist/cassandra/KEYS ``` Save and close the file, then install the Apache Cassandra with the following command: ``` dnf install cassandra -y ``` ## Step 3 – Create a Service File for Cassandra Next, you will need to create a systemd service file to manage the Apache Cassandra service. You can create it with the following command: ``` nano /etc/systemd/system/cassandra.service ``` Add the following lines: ``` [Unit] Description=Apache Cassandra After=network.target [Service] PIDFile=/var/run/cassandra/cassandra.pid User=cassandra Group=cassandra ExecStart=/usr/sbin/cassandra -f -p /var/run/cassandra/cassandra.pid Restart=always [Install] WantedBy=multi-user.target ``` Save and close the file, then reload the systemd daemon to apply the changes: ``` systemctl daemon-reload ``` Next, start and enable the Cassandra service with the following command: ``` systemctl start cassandra systemctl enable cassandra ``` Next, verify the status of Apache Cassandra with the following command: ``` systemctl status cassandra ``` You should see the following output: ``` ● cassandra.service - Apache Cassandra Loaded: loaded (/etc/systemd/system/cassandra.service; disabled; vendor preset: disabled) Active: active (running) since Wed 2021-09-22 08:07:05 UTC; 603ms ago Main PID: 11515 (cassandra) Tasks: 4 (limit: 11411) Memory: 156.1M CGroup: /system.slice/cassandra.service ├─11515 /bin/sh /usr/sbin/cassandra -f -p /var/run/cassandra/cassandra.pid ├─11584 /bin/sh /usr/sbin/cassandra -f -p /var/run/cassandra/cassandra.pid ├─11588 find /lib64 /lib /usr/lib64 /usr/lib /usr/lib64//bind9-export /lib /lib64 /lib/sse2 /lib64/sse2 /lib64/tls -regex .*/libjem> └─11589 head -n 1 Sep 22 08:07:05 RockyLinux8 systemd[1]: cassandra.service: Service RestartSec=100ms expired, scheduling restart. Sep 22 08:07:05 RockyLinux8 systemd[1]: cassandra.service: Scheduled restart job, restart counter is at 5. Sep 22 08:07:05 RockyLinux8 systemd[1]: Stopped Apache Cassandra. Sep 22 08:07:05 RockyLinux8 systemd[1]: Started Apache Cassandra. ``` ## Step 4 – Verify Apache Cassandra Wait for some time to bring up Apache Cassandra completely, then verify the Apache Cassandra using the following command: ``` nodetool status ``` You should get the following output: ``` Datacenter: datacenter1 ======================= Status=Up/Down |/ State=Normal/Leaving/Joining/Moving -- Address Load Tokens Owns (effective) Host ID Rack UN 127.0.0.1 69.08 KiB 16 100.0% d6672930-2b15-426b-8445-e6f6a2e923f2 rack1 ``` You can also connect to Cassandra with the following command: ``` cqlsh ``` Once you are connected, you should get the following output: ``` Python 2.7 support is deprecated. Install Python 3.6+ or set CQLSH_NO_WARN_PY2 to suppress this message. Connected to Test Cluster at 127.0.0.1:9042 [cqlsh 6.0.0 | Cassandra 4.0.1 | CQL spec 3.4.5 | Native protocol v5] Use HELP for help. cqlsh> ``` ## Step 5 – Change Cassandra Cluster Name In order to change the Cassandra cluster name, connect to the Cassandra with the following command: ``` cqlsh ``` Next, change the cluster name with the following command: ``` cqlsh> UPDATE system.local SET cluster_name = 'Atlantic Cluster' WHERE KEY = 'local'; ``` Next, exit from the Cassandra shell with the following command: ``` cqlsh> exit ``` Next, edit the Apache Cassandra main configuration file: ``` nano /etc/cassandra/default.conf/cassandra.yaml ``` Change the Cassandra cluster name as shown below: ``` cluster_name: 'Atlantic Cluster' ``` Save and close the file, then restart the Apache Cassandra to apply the changes: ``` systemctl restart cassandra ``` Now, verify the Cassandra cluster name with the following command: ``` cqlsh ``` You should get your new cluster name in the following output: ``` Connected to Atlantic Cluster at 127.0.0.1:9042 [cqlsh 6.0.0 | Cassandra 4.0.1 | CQL spec 3.4.5 | Native protocol v5] Use HELP for help. ``` ## Conclusion In the above guide, we explained how to install Apache Cassandra on RockyLinux 8. You can now use Apache Cassandra to handle and manage large data sets. Try it on [dedicated hosting](https://www.atlantic.net/dedicated-server-hosting/) from Atlantic.Net today!