Desktop-deprived Linus Torvalds releases first release candidate of ‘not huge’ kernel 5.17
(2022/01/24)
- Reference: 1642986913
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2022/01/24/linux_5_17_rc1/
- Source link:
The first release candidate for version 5.17 of the Linux kernel has rolled off the production line – despite fears that working from a laptop might complicate matters.
Emperor Penguin Linus Torvalds is currently on the road and, when [1]announcing the release of Linux 5.16 predicted that the version 5.17 release merge window would be “somewhat painful” due to his travels, and use of a laptop – something Torvalds said “I generally try to avoid.”
Torvalds’ laptop aversion comes from the fact that he likes to do lots of local testing on his [2]beastly workstation powered by a 32-core AMD Ryzen Threadripper. Linus’ lappie appears not to match his desktop, so he ends up using more automated build testing in the cloud.
[3]
“And so [i] really hope that everything has been properly cooking in linux-next so that there are no unnecessary issues that pop up when things hit my tree,” he wrote.
[4]
[5]
Torvalds’ fears appear not to have materialised, as his [6]announcement of version 5.17 rc1’s debut states “Everything seems to have gone fairly smoothly.”
The maintainer in chief opines that version 5.17 “doesn't seem to be slated to be a huge release, and everything looks fairly normal.” Torvalds noted “a bit more activity than usual in a couple of corners of the kernel (random number generator and the fscache rewrite stand out)”, but there’s nothing else he flagged as significant.
[7]Test this new Linux kernel – but don’t forget Christmas or that you have a family, says Linus Torvalds
[8]But why that VPN? How WireGuard made it into Linux
[9]It's that time of the year again when GitHub does its show'n'tell of features – some new and others kinda new
[10]Compromise reached as Linux kernel community protests about treating compiler warnings as errors
Others may beg to differ: The Register reckons changes that let RISC-V silicon address 64TB of physical memory sets the stage for interesting future server developments. Additional support for Intel’s Alder Lake CPUs, which mix-and-match performance and more modest cores, is also important.
The addition of the Real-Time Linux Analysis (RTLA), code [11]billed making life easier for users and developers “to collect performance and trace data, helping fine-tune their systems/algorithms” will also be handy.
[12]
Torvalds’ post apologised to anyone who missed the closure of the merge window for this release, because his travels meant he created the release candidate a few hours ahead of his usual timing. While lightly scalding those who left it so late in the two-week window to submit their code, he added: “there's always 5.18. Never fear - we'll not run out of numbers.”
Might that be a reference to his past musings on the significance, or lack thereof, for version numbers? When Linux 3.19 emerged, Torvalds [13]capped version numbers at x.20 in reaction to version 2.x’s culmination at version 2.6.39. As the 4.x series reached its teens, Torvalds again [14]mused that version names are meaningless and said he doesn’t like to be predictable when it comes to naming. We should know what monikers he has in mind around mid-year if kernel development proceeds at its usual pace. ®
Get our [15]Tech Resources
[1] http://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/2201.1/00613.html
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2020/05/24/linus_torvalds_adopts_amd_threadripper/
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Ye4yeCRow19INVslVsbz-QAAANY&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Ye4yeCRow19INVslVsbz-QAAANY&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
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[6] http://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/2201.2/06983.html
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/12/20/linux_5_16_rc6/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/12/08/wireguard_linux/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/27/github_universe_announcements/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/08/compromise_linux_kernel_compiler_warnings/
[11] https://bristot.me/and-now-linux-has-a-real-time-linux-analysis-rtla-tool/
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Ye4yeCRow19INVslVsbz-QAAANY&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2015/02/09/linux_319_released_for_your_computing_pleasure
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2018/04/16/linux_kernel_5_0/
[15] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Emperor Penguin Linus Torvalds is currently on the road and, when [1]announcing the release of Linux 5.16 predicted that the version 5.17 release merge window would be “somewhat painful” due to his travels, and use of a laptop – something Torvalds said “I generally try to avoid.”
Torvalds’ laptop aversion comes from the fact that he likes to do lots of local testing on his [2]beastly workstation powered by a 32-core AMD Ryzen Threadripper. Linus’ lappie appears not to match his desktop, so he ends up using more automated build testing in the cloud.
[3]
“And so [i] really hope that everything has been properly cooking in linux-next so that there are no unnecessary issues that pop up when things hit my tree,” he wrote.
[4]
[5]
Torvalds’ fears appear not to have materialised, as his [6]announcement of version 5.17 rc1’s debut states “Everything seems to have gone fairly smoothly.”
The maintainer in chief opines that version 5.17 “doesn't seem to be slated to be a huge release, and everything looks fairly normal.” Torvalds noted “a bit more activity than usual in a couple of corners of the kernel (random number generator and the fscache rewrite stand out)”, but there’s nothing else he flagged as significant.
[7]Test this new Linux kernel – but don’t forget Christmas or that you have a family, says Linus Torvalds
[8]But why that VPN? How WireGuard made it into Linux
[9]It's that time of the year again when GitHub does its show'n'tell of features – some new and others kinda new
[10]Compromise reached as Linux kernel community protests about treating compiler warnings as errors
Others may beg to differ: The Register reckons changes that let RISC-V silicon address 64TB of physical memory sets the stage for interesting future server developments. Additional support for Intel’s Alder Lake CPUs, which mix-and-match performance and more modest cores, is also important.
The addition of the Real-Time Linux Analysis (RTLA), code [11]billed making life easier for users and developers “to collect performance and trace data, helping fine-tune their systems/algorithms” will also be handy.
[12]
Torvalds’ post apologised to anyone who missed the closure of the merge window for this release, because his travels meant he created the release candidate a few hours ahead of his usual timing. While lightly scalding those who left it so late in the two-week window to submit their code, he added: “there's always 5.18. Never fear - we'll not run out of numbers.”
Might that be a reference to his past musings on the significance, or lack thereof, for version numbers? When Linux 3.19 emerged, Torvalds [13]capped version numbers at x.20 in reaction to version 2.x’s culmination at version 2.6.39. As the 4.x series reached its teens, Torvalds again [14]mused that version names are meaningless and said he doesn’t like to be predictable when it comes to naming. We should know what monikers he has in mind around mid-year if kernel development proceeds at its usual pace. ®
Get our [15]Tech Resources
[1] http://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/2201.1/00613.html
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2020/05/24/linus_torvalds_adopts_amd_threadripper/
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Ye4yeCRow19INVslVsbz-QAAANY&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Ye4yeCRow19INVslVsbz-QAAANY&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Ye4yeCRow19INVslVsbz-QAAANY&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] http://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/2201.2/06983.html
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/12/20/linux_5_16_rc6/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/12/08/wireguard_linux/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/27/github_universe_announcements/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/08/compromise_linux_kernel_compiler_warnings/
[11] https://bristot.me/and-now-linux-has-a-real-time-linux-analysis-rtla-tool/
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Ye4yeCRow19INVslVsbz-QAAANY&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2015/02/09/linux_319_released_for_your_computing_pleasure
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2018/04/16/linux_kernel_5_0/
[15] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/