# Install Apache Flink

## In this learning path

- [Introduction](https://learn.arm.com/learning-paths/servers-and-cloud-computing/flink-on-gcp/)
- [Get started with Apache Flink on Google Axion C4A](https://learn.arm.com/learning-paths/servers-and-cloud-computing/flink-on-gcp/background/)
- [Create a Google Axion C4A Arm virtual machine](https://learn.arm.com/learning-paths/servers-and-cloud-computing/flink-on-gcp/instance/)
- [Install Apache Flink](https://learn.arm.com/learning-paths/servers-and-cloud-computing/flink-on-gcp/installation/)
- [Test Flink baseline functionality](https://learn.arm.com/learning-paths/servers-and-cloud-computing/flink-on-gcp/baseline/)
- [Benchmark Flink performance](https://learn.arm.com/learning-paths/servers-and-cloud-computing/flink-on-gcp/benchmarking/)
- [Next Steps](https://learn.arm.com/learning-paths/servers-and-cloud-computing/flink-on-gcp/_next-steps/)

This section shows you how to install Apache Flink and its required dependencies on a Google Cloud Platform (GCP) SUSE Arm64 virtual machine.

## Update the system and install Java

```bash
sudo zypper refresh
sudo zypper update -y
sudo zypper install -y java-17-openjdk java-17-openjdk-devel
```

This step ensures you have the latest system updates and the Java runtime needed to execute Flink applications.

## Download Apache Flink Binary

Navigate to /opt (a standard location for system-wide tools) and download the official Flink distribution:

```bash
cd /opt
sudo wget https://dlcdn.apache.org/flink/flink-2.1.1/flink-2.1.1-bin-scala_2.12.tgz
```

This command retrieves the official Flink binary distribution for installation on your VM.

**Note:** Flink 2.0.0 introduced Disaggregated State Management architecture, which enables more efficient resource utilization in cloud-native environments, ensuring high-performance real-time processing while minimizing resource overhead. See [the Flink 2.0.0 Release Note](https://flink.apache.org/2025/03/24/apache-flink-2.0.0-a-new-era-of-real-time-data-processing/).

For best performance on Arm, the [Arm Ecosystem Dashboard](https://developer.arm.com/ecosystem-dashboard/) recommends using Flink ≥ 2.0.0.

## Extract the archive

Untar the archive:

```bash
sudo tar -xvzf flink-2.1.1-bin-scala_2.12.tgz
```

After extraction, you will have a directory named `flink-2.1.1` under `/opt`.

Rename it for convenience:

```bash
sudo mv flink-2.1.1 /opt/flink
```

This makes configuration, upgrades, and scripting easier for your Flink installation.

## Configure environment variables

Add Flink to your shell environment:

```bash
echo "export FLINK_HOME=/opt/flink" >> ~/.bashrc
echo "export PATH=\$FLINK_HOME/bin:\$PATH" >> ~/.bashrc
```

Create a logging directory and assign proper permissions:

```bash
sudo mkdir -p /opt/flink/log
sudo chown -R $(whoami):$(id -gn) /opt/flink/log
sudo chmod -R 755 /opt/flink/log
```

Apply the changes:

```bash
source ~/.bashrc
```

Adding Flink to the global PATH lets you use commands like `flink`, `start-cluster.sh`, and `taskmanager.sh` from any terminal.

## Verify the installation

To confirm that Flink has been installed correctly, check its version:

```bash
flink -v
```

You should see an output similar to:

```plaintext
__output__ Version: 2.1.1, Commit ID: 074f8c5
```

Apache Flink is now installed and ready for use.