Linux 4.0 brings Skynet closer to existence, offers reboot-free kernel patching - allenappe1965

Linux 4.0 is almost upon us! It's codenamed "Hurr durr I'ma sheep." Yes, seriously. Linux kernels have got weird codenames.

Mount divagation the head-scraping deed of conveyance, Linux 4.0 isn't a massive vary from Linux 3.19. It would consume been named Linux 3.20, but lots of people treasured to ensure Linux 4.0. As Linus Torvalds himself said, "the strongest contestation for some mass advocating 4.0 seems to have been a wish to see 4.1.15 – because 'that was the version of Linux Skynet used for the T-800 Terminator.'"

Reboot-free kernel patching

The biggest characteristic (aside from dragging USA always finisher to the robotic hellscape seen in the Terminator series) is live kernel patching. When an update—perhaps a critical security update—is issued for the Linux inwardness, this technology would allow the operating system to swap out its running heart without a reboot. It might sound like a minor meter-saver, only it's actually a vast deal for mission-critical servers that want maximum uptime.

Originally, this feature was offered past Ksplice. But Oracle bought that technology and it now only works with Vaticinator Linux. SUSE developed their own answer, named kGraft, and Red Lid developed their own solution, named Kpatch. The live-patching feature article found in Linux 4.0 industrial plant with both kGraft and Kpatch, making everyone happy.

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Father't necessarily expect your Linux desktop to bring rebootless patching whatsoever time soon, as this requires some work to implement. But IT's a big deal for Linux servers and clusters that need all the uptime they can get.

Intel Skylake, AMD Radeon, and PlayStation 3 drivers

The Linux kernel gained a lot of hardware driver improvements, oblation better computer hardware support. There's been go done on graphics and power-management support for Intel's Skylake processors, the replacement to Intel's Broadwell platform. The Intel Quark system-on-a-knap platform is now also based on, along with many red-hot ARM platforms—Build up funding is increasingly being integrated into the mainline Linux kernel.

AMD Radeon graphics cards are acquiring better driver support in Linux 4.0.

The open-generator AMD Radeon driver now supports audio over the DisplayPort connection, better fan control support, and other improvements. Gamers testament still want to fly the coop the nonopening-source AMD FGLRX device driver, though—or baffle with Nvidia computer hardware, which provides a preeminent shuttered-source graphics device driver.

Computer hardware support for everything from the open-origin Nouveau graphics device driver for Nvidia GPUs to various stimulation devices and Toshiba laptop power-good settings has improved. Sound off drivers have been cleaned up, and the kernel-based virtual automobile (KVM) support also has a bunch of improvements.

Amusingly enough, there have besides been patches forrunning Linux happening the PlayStation 3. Despite Sony removing the "OtherOS" option from present PlayStation 3 consoles with a firmware update—and facing a class-action lawsuit for doing it, although that was dismissed—PS3-related patches are still making it into the Linux kernel.

Sony's PlayStation 3 is still getting lie with in Linux kernel updates.

File-system of rules drivers for everything from the F2FS tawdry-friendly file system, OverlayFS filing system for live environments, pNFS lodge system for network file system clients, and BtrFS next-generation filing system have been improved, too.

Linux is now over twenty years old, and unprecedented kernels are released every few months. All those little optimizations and hardware corroborate improvements do a real difference. Whether you utilisation Linux on your desktop or not, it's powering umteen of the devices you use and servers you connect to all single day. Let's just hope it doesn't actually become self-conscious and try to exterminate us all.

Source: https://www.pcworld.com/article/426886/linux-40-brings-skynet-closer-to-existence-offers-reboot-free-kernel-patching.html

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