Zack's Kernel News
Zack's Kernel News

The Linux kernel mailing list comprises the core of Linux development activities. Traffic volumes are immense, often reaching 10,000 messages in a week, and keeping up to date with the entire scope of development is a virtually impossible task for one person. One of the few brave souls to take on this task is Zack Brown.
Kernel Dependent on Perl
Jose Luis Perez Diez pointed out that Perl 5 was actually required by the kernel build system to create documentation, graphs, and even headers and firmware; however, this fact was not documented anywhere. He posted a patch to the CHANGES file, listing the Perl dependency along with all required Perl modules. My guess is that many kernel hackers will be stewing at their consoles over this patch, having argued for many years against introducing a Perl dependency, then – lo and behold – finding it right there in the kernel. Their displeasure will not likely be mollified by the inevitable suggestion that the Perl engine be embedded in the kernel and the implementation be forked to provide kernel-specific enhancements.
Tracking Filesystem Corruption
Denis Karpov has added a Sysfs interface to alert the user when the kernel becomes aware of possible filesystem corruption. When this happens, the /sys/block/<bdev>/<part>/fs_unclean file will contain a value of 1. The user has to either fix the problem or confirm that it was a bogus alert. After that, the user must manually reset the value contained in that file to 0, typically with an echo command. In addition, Denis has created a uevent that will occur under the same condition.
Stable Reviewers Get Mailing List
Luis R. Rodriguez asked how he could volunteer to review patches for the stable kernel releases (2.6.x.y). Chris Wright replied that Luis's email was sufficient and added him to the review list. When Stefan Bader saw how easy it was, he asked to be added, too, and Greg Kroah-Hartman added him. This brought the total number of volunteers to 17, and Greg thought that the CC list might be getting a little too long for some email clients. He suggested starting a new mailing list, or else using the existing stable-commits list. Chris liked the stable-commits idea, but he said it was really just read-only. Greg suggested creating a stable-review list, and Chris said he'd take care of setting it up.
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you've found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Fedora 39 Beta is Now Available for Testing
For fans and users of Fedora Linux, the first beta of release 39 is now available, which is a minor upgrade but does include GNOME 45.
-
Fedora Linux 40 to Drop X11 for KDE Plasma
When Fedora 40 arrives in 2024, there will be a few big changes coming, especially for the KDE Plasma option.
-
Real-Time Ubuntu Available in AWS Marketplace
Anyone looking for a Linux distribution for real-time processing could do a whole lot worse than Real-Time Ubuntu.
-
KSMBD Finally Reaches a Stable State
For those who've been looking forward to the first release of KSMBD, after two years it's no longer considered experimental.
-
Nitrux 3.0.0 Has Been Released
The latest version of Nitrux brings plenty of innovation and fresh apps to the table.
-
Linux From Scratch 12.0 Now Available
If you're looking to roll your own Linux distribution, the latest version of Linux From Scratch is now available with plenty of updates.
-
Linux Kernel 6.5 Has Been Released
The newest Linux kernel, version 6.5, now includes initial support for two very exciting features.
-
UbuntuDDE 23.04 Now Available
A new version of the UbuntuDDE remix has finally arrived with all the updates from the Deepin desktop and everything that comes with the Ubuntu 23.04 base.
-
Star Labs Reveals a New Surface-Like Linux Tablet
If you've ever wanted a tablet that rivals the MS Surface, you're in luck as Star Labs has created such a device.
-
SUSE Going Private (Again)
The company behind SUSE Linux Enterprise, Rancher, and NeuVector recently announced that Marcel LUX III SARL (Marcel), its majority shareholder, intends to delist it from the Frankfurt Stock Exchange by way of a merger.