# fluent-package v5 vs td-agent v4 Fluentd is written in Ruby for flexibility, with performance-sensitive parts in C. However, some users may have difficulty installing and operating a Ruby daemon. That is why [Fluentd Project](https://www.fluentd.org/) provides **the stable distribution of Fluentd**, called `fluent-package` (formerly known as `td-agent`). The differences between Fluentd and `fluent-package` can be found [here](https://www.fluentd.org/faqs). This article explains the difference between `fluent-package` v5 and `td-agent` v4. {% hint style="danger" %} The series of td-agent had already reached End of Life (EOL). td-agent should not be newly installed because of no support, no new release and no security updates anymore. Use fluent-package instead! {% endhint %} ## Supported Platforms | Platform | v4(x86\_64) | v4(Arm64) | v5(x86\_64) | v5(Arm64) | | ----------------- | :---------: | :-------: | :---------: | :-------: | | RedHat/CentOS 7 | ✔ | ✔ | - (\*1) | - (\*1) | | RedHat/CentOS 8 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | RedHat/CentOS 9 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | Amazon Linux 2 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | Amazon Linux 2023 | - | - | ✔ | ✔ | | Ubuntu Focal | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | Ubuntu Jammy | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | Ubuntu Noble | - | - | ✔ | ✔ | | Debian Buster | ✔ | ✔ | - | - | | Debian Bullseye | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | Debian Bookworm | - | - | ✔ | ✔ | | macOS | ✔ | - | - | - | | Windows | ✔ | - | ✔ | - | \*1: Since v5.0.4, RHEL 7 / CentOS 7 is not supported anymore because CentOS 7 has reached EOL (June, 2024). ## Features ### `fluent-package` v5 New stable. Major feature updates to `fluent-package` v5 are as follows: * Ruby 3.2 * Fluentd v1.16.2 \~ * Added support for Amazon Linux 2023 * Added support for Debian Bookworm * Added support for Ubuntu Noble (since v5.0.4) * Shipped through 2 channels. See [Scheduled support lifecycle announcement about Fluent Package](https://www.fluentd.org/blog/fluent-package-scheduled-lifecycle) for details. * Normal release * Long Term Support (LTS) * Added new features: * Zero-downtime restart / update * [fluent-package v5.2.0 has been released](https://www.fluentd.org/blog/fluent-package-v5.2.0-has-been-released) * [Zero-downtime restart](https://docs.fluentd.org/deployment/zero-downtime-restart) * Fixed some serious bugs: * Fixed [in\_tail](https://docs.fluentd.org/input/tail) wrongly stopping tailing the current target file and causing handle leaks * See [Fluentd v1.16.3 and v1.16.2 have been released](https://www.fluentd.org/blog/fluentd-v1.16.2-v1.16.3-have-been-released) for details. * Fixed emit error when handling large data exceeding chunk size limit * See [Fluentd v1.16.4 has been released](https://www.fluentd.org/blog/fluentd-v1.16.4-have-been-released) for details. * Many other improvements and fixes: * [Fluent Package v5 CHANGELOG](https://github.com/fluent/fluent-package-builder/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md#fluent-package-5-changelog) * [Fluentd CHANGELOG](https://github.com/fluent/fluentd/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md) See also [Changes from Treasure Agent 4](https://github.com/fluent/fluent-package-builder/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md#release-v500---20230728) ### `td-agent` v4 Old stable. Major feature updates to `td-agent` v4 are as follows: * Ruby 2.7 * Fluentd v1 * Arm64 Support See also [Changes from Treasure Agent 3](https://github.com/fluent-plugins-nursery/td-agent-builder#changes-from-treasure-agent-3) ## Conclusion: Use `fluent-package` v5 instead of `td-agent` v4 Please use `fluent-package` v5 instead of `td-agent` v4 because: * `fluent-package` is the successor to `td-agent` and keeps backward compatibility. * The series of td-agent had already reached End of Life (EOL). * Some of the components embedded into td-agent, including Ruby, had already reached EOL. * td-agent v4 has several known bugs, such as the [in\_tail](https://docs.fluentd.org/input/tail) bug. * `fluent-package` provides the Long Term Support (LTS) channel, making subsequent updates easier. How to install `fluent-package`: * [Ubuntu/Debian](https://docs.fluentd.org/installation/install-fluent-package/install-by-deb-fluent-package) * [RedHat/CentOS](https://docs.fluentd.org/installation/install-fluent-package/install-by-rpm-fluent-package) * [Windows](https://docs.fluentd.org/installation/install-fluent-package/install-by-msi-fluent-package) * [RubyGems](https://docs.fluentd.org/installation/install-by-gem) How to upgrade to `fluent-package`: * [Upgrade to fluent-package v5](https://www.fluentd.org/blog/upgrade-td-agent-v4-to-v5). If this article is incorrect or outdated, or omits critical information, please [let us know](https://github.com/fluent/fluentd-docs-gitbook/issues?state=open). [Fluentd](http://www.fluentd.org/) is an open-source project under [Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF)](https://cncf.io/). All components are available under under [the Apache License 2.0.](https://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0) --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.fluentd.org/quickstart/fluent-package-v5-vs-td-agent.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.