this is very speculative, feedback welcome

Feature Overview

Introduce an opt-in minimal stream of Red Hat Enterprise Linux CoreOS (RHCOS) that provides a reduced footprint operating system for security-conscious OpenShift customers. This minimal stream returns to the original "just enough OS to run Kubernetes" philosophy while allowing customers to selectively add only the packages required for their specific infrastructure needs.

Background

Over time, RHCOS has necessarily expanded beyond its original minimal design to accommodate diverse customer requirements and OpenShift operator dependencies. While this evolution has improved compatibility and functionality, it has also resulted in increased image size and expanded attack surface.

A minimal RHCOS stream would address the needs of highly security-minded customers who:

• Operate in regulated or high-security environments
• Prefer a "start minimal, add what you need" approach to system building
• Have specific compliance requirements that favor lean, auditable system configurations

Requirements / potential capabilities

• Opt-in selection at provisioning time
• Pools can be changed from baseline stream to minimal and back post-install
• Selective RHEL package addition through on-cluster image mode needs excellent documentation with clear workflows, including for offline deployments 

Also Note!

• Quick analysis of rough potential package count and size reduction is needed
• Analysis of current package list is needed to identify operator dependencies
• Impact on ecosystem partners should be considered