Installing TeX Live 2026 on Rocky Linux

A step-by-step guide to installing TeX Live 2026 on Rocky Linux 8.10 using an ISO image. The instructions apply to RHEL-based distributions in general.

Prerequisites

• sudo privileges
• At least 10 GB of free disk space (ISO ~6.4 GB + installation ~8 GB)
• Internet connection

Step 1: Download the ISO Image

Download the ISO from the RIKEN mirror site.

cd ~
curl -C - -O --progress-bar https://ftp.riken.jp/CTAN/systems/texlive/Images/texlive2026.iso

The -C - option resumes the download if it is interrupted.

After the download completes, verify the file size (~6.4 GB):

ls -lh ~/texlive2026.iso

Step 2: Mount the ISO Image

Create a mount point and mount the ISO as a loop device.

sudo mkdir -p /mnt/texlive
sudo mount -o loop,ro ~/texlive2026.iso /mnt/texlive

Verify the mount:

ls /mnt/texlive

You should see output like the following:

install-tl  archive  tlpkg  README  ...

Step 3: Run the Installer

sudo /mnt/texlive/install-tl

A text-based interactive menu will launch.

Key Controls

Key	Action
S	Select installation scheme
D	Change installation directory
I	Start installation
Q	Quit (cancel)

Recommended Settings

• Scheme: scheme-full (includes all packages; contains collection-langjapanese required for Japanese LaTeX)
• Installation directory: /usr/local/texlive/2026 (default)

After confirming the settings, press I to start the installation. The process takes several tens of minutes.

Step 4: Configure PATH

Add the TeX Live binary path to ~/.bashrc.

echo 'export PATH="/usr/local/texlive/2026/bin/x86_64-linux:$PATH"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Step 5: Fix Locale (Rocky Linux / RHEL)

On Rocky Linux, lualatex may fail with an error if the locale is not configured. Run the following:

sudo dnf install -y glibc-langpack-en

Also set the locale on shell startup:

echo 'export LANG=C.UTF-8' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Step 6: Verify Installation

Check the version of each command:

tex --version
lualatex --version
platex --version

Expected output:

TeX 3.141592653 (TeX Live 2026)
LuaHBTeX, Version 1.24.0 (TeX Live 2026)
e-upTeX 3.141592653-p4.1.2-u2.02 (TeX Live 2026)

Step 7: Test Japanese Compilation

Create a test file:

cat > /tmp/test.tex << 'EOF'
\documentclass{jlreq}
\begin{document}
日本語のテスト。TeX Live 2026 による日本語組版のサンプルです。
\end{document}
EOF

Compile it:

cd /tmp && lualatex test.tex

If test.pdf is generated, the installation is successful.

Step 8: Cleanup (Optional)

After installation, you can remove the ISO and mount point:

sudo umount /mnt/texlive
rm ~/texlive2026.iso

Mirror Sites

If the download is slow, try another mirror:

Mirror	URL
RIKEN (recommended)	https://ftp.riken.jp/CTAN/systems/texlive/Images/
JAIST	https://ftp.jaist.ac.jp/pub/CTAN/systems/texlive/Images/
Yamagata University	https://ftp.yz.yamagata-u.ac.jp/pub/CTAN/systems/texlive/Images/
CTAN mirror	https://mirror.ctan.org/systems/texlive/Images/