Slashdot Mirror
2.4.9 Kernel Released
Justin writes: "Linus is off to Finland for a week or so and released 2.4.9. " Here is the Changelog for those of you interested. Yeah, it's probably gonna be a little crowded for a bit. Please post mirrors in the comments.
"I mean is there a Slahdot article when Microsoft gives out a new Windows 2000 SP? Including the changes and fixes (mirrored in the comments)?"
They might, except knowledge of the SP (let alone the changes) implies a knowledge of proprietary intellectual knowledge, and you must have code ultra-violet m$ clearance to even think about pondering its existence.
-CrackElf
"Blake is an idealist, Jenna. He cannot afford to think." - Kerr Avon, Star One, Blakes 7
Not even Microsoft cooks up that many service packs in this particular timeframe...
:)
That's because they typically deny a bug's existence for a couple of months before they get around to fixing it.
Jay (=
Duh. 2.0 was really stable and 2.1 was being heavily worked on. Graph 2.1 in there and you'd get probably 50 or more kernels for that year.
I mean is there a Slahdot article when Microsoft gives out a new Windows 2000 SP? Including the changes and fixes (mirrored in the comments)?
No, but there should be. That's important information to a large percentage of Slashdot readers.
In case you hadn't noticed, Linux is pretty popular around here.
Here's a mirror ftp://ecliptik.com/pub/linux-2.4.9.tar.gz
http://www.angelfire.com/geek/qdata/index.html
------
Random, useless fact: I type in startx entirely with my left hand.
And ofcourse, a slower release rate would also slow the entire development process.
Has anyone observed the GCC development? People say that Red Hat did a good thing by releasing a development snapshot as 2.96 (altho I dont agree with the version number, I agree with the release).
If a kernel patchlevel (remember v Major.Minor.Patchlevel?) breaks your application, then I am led to believe that your application is very poorly programmed...
.stnemmoc eht ni srorrim tsop esaelP
ftp://209.203.218.6/pub/kernel/2.4.9 have fun
If you run ./configure in the top of the glibc-2.2.4 source tree on a gcc-3.0 system, it ill abort with the following output:
*** This version of GNU libc cannot be compiled by GCC 3.x.
*** GCC 3.x will generate a library that is binary incompatible to
*** older and future releases of GNU libc.
*** You should compile this GNU libc release by an older GCC version
*** or wait for the next GNU libc release.
*** If you really mean to use GCC 3.x, run configure again
*** using the extra parameter `--disable-sanity-checks'.
My post, which was intended to be controversial, sure triggers a lot of reaction. In Posters and Moderators. Just looking at the moderation totals is interesting by itself: Moderation Totals:Flamebait=1, Troll=1, Insightful=2, Overrated=1, Total=5. I am, personally, not that this would interest too many people, an advocat of the right OS for the right purpose. I run Win98 at home. I like to PLAY Computer Games like Baldur's Gate (and my wife does), I run Win2k at work (well, company policy) and FreeBSD for my webservers (stable, fast, I like it). And I would love to have information on every OS when I am reading "news for nerds, stuff that matters". Because other Operating Systems than Linux DO matter. Even if you don't like it. And, my quotes from the changelog where meant to stir the discussion (100% success on that one).
People, I can only say one thing: try to be more open towards people and things that are different from what you might like or value. It is not up to you to judge whether they are right or wrong. They have to come to that conclusion by themselves.
Submitted for amusement, a segment of make modules:
/usr/src/linux-2.4.9/include/linux/modversions.h -c -o rrunner.o rrunner.c
make -C net modules
make[2]: Entering directory `/usr/src/linux-2.4.9/drivers/net'
gcc -D__KERNEL__ -I/usr/src/linux-2.4.9/include -Wall -Wstrict-prototypes -Wno-trigraphs -O2 -fomit-frame-pointer -fno-strict-aliasing -fno-common -pipe -mpreferred-stack-boundary=2 -march=i686 -malign-functions=4 -DMODULE -DMODVERSIONS -include
rrunner.c:1241: macro `min' used with only 2 args
rrunner.c:1252: macro `min' used with only 2 args
rrunner.c: In function `rr_dump':
rrunner.c:1241: parse error before `__x'
rrunner.c:1241: `__x' undeclared (first use in this function)
rrunner.c:1241: (Each undeclared identifier is reported only once
rrunner.c:1241: for each function it appears in.)
rrunner.c:1241: `__y' undeclared (first use in this function)
rrunner.c:1252: parse error before `__x'
rrunner.c:1221: warning: `len' might be used uninitialized in this function
make[2]: *** [rrunner.o] Error 1
make[2]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/linux-2.4.9/drivers/net'
make[1]: *** [_modsubdir_net] Error 2
make[1]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/linux-2.4.9/drivers'
make: *** [_mod_drivers] Error 2
It would be called 2.4.10. The latest 2.2 is called 2.2.19
Though not a showstopper by any means, the EMU10K1 driver has been fixed from 2.4.8, and is now fully up-to-date. I've been using the drivers from opensource.creative.com since the release of the 2.4 kernel, and this is definitely a welcome change. Check it out!
Interested in open source engine management for your Subaru?
. When a kernel is released, I want to know about it. and who in their right mind looks at freshmeat every fucking day?
*me* whistles and taps toe while looking around the room quitely...
Hey, does anyone know if they're going to support dumping debugging information for multi-threaded processes into core files? I'm really tired of not being able to post-mortem debug in gdb. I know the errata kernal drops per-pid cores, but that's not like having real core file support.
Any kernel hackers out there heard whisperings about this?
--
What happens when you outlaw guns
I love reading the ChangeLogs. Oftentimes they can be quite humorous:
// min(-400, 3) == 3 // ??
- David Miller: undo poll() limit braindamage
This would have helped Bush during the election.
- David Woodhouse: up_and_exit -> complete_and_exit
Up and at'em, Dave!
- me: make return value from do_try_to_free_pages() meaningful
Do try for meaningful return values.
- David Miller: "min()/max()" cleanups. Understands signs and sizes.
Ouch.
- Kevin Fleming: more disks the HPT controller doesn't like
And you have to wonder about this one...
- Ben LaHaise: use down_read, not down_write() in map_user_kiobuf.
We don't change the mappings, we just read them.
Check out the following blazing-fast mirror:
. 9.tar.gz . 9.tar.gz.sign . 9.gz . 9.gz.sign
http://linux.pantek.com/resource/kernel/linux-2.4
http://linux.pantek.com/resource/kernel/linux-2.4
http://linux.pantek.com/resource/kernel/patch-2.4
http://linux.pantek.com/resource/kernel/patch-2.4
Happy compiling!
When everybody moves to Windows XP, NTFS will get supported REAL quick.
I made a patch to fix that.
now we need to go OSS in diesel cars
My old 486 computer here still did not finish compiling 2.4.7 ... at this rate, I will never get any work done.
This one is a lot faster. But it is currently a version out.
(Disclaimer: I'm having my company sponsor Anton's work. ;) )
David E. Weekly
Code / Think / Teach / Learn
h4x0r for
See if it responds better than Banjo...
sulli
RTFJ.
... or do we have to wait a whole *two weeks* for 2.4.10?
http://kernel.org/mirrors/
2.4.9 Changelog
Wow, 2.4.8 lasted a whole week.
This sig intentionally left blank.
There is a developer actively working on NTFS support now. It should be safe for read-only mode.
Note that- write support for NTFS is a dangerous, EXPERIMENTAL feature that you have to explicitly select in the kernel configuration. Until recently, it was almost certain to destroy your disk, and it is still not recommended although rumor has it that it "mostly works now".
If you blew up an NT partition running in the "read only" mode, send in a bug report to the mailing list. If you want to experiment with write support, send in bug reports for that too, I'm sure the developer will be interested, but don't expect a lot of sympathy if you wipe out important data.
There's often a good reason why "EXPERIMENTAL" features are called that, even though sometimes it seems political - reiserfs, for example, is pretty safe - reported problems with it usually turn out to be hardware failures.
Torrey Hoffman (Azog)
"HTML needs a rant tag" - Alan Cox
Under control
I think it's important because Linux is a community supported software. It truly is software that blongs to you and me - we have all the rights we need to use it in almost any way. Windows is not *our* software - we rent it from Bill. Linus, Alan, Richard and countless others have rolled out a red carpet and have welcomed us - they have given us more than software, but have given us freedom to use our computer in the way we see fit. I'm gratfull to them and people like them - and I like to see what they are up to.
Moneyed corporations, non-working 'poor' and criminal prisoners are turning productive citizens into tax-slaves.
Actually there was a similar phrase in Linus's book.
Because I had been overly optimistic in the naming of version 0.95, I was caught in a bind. Over the course of the two years it took to get version 1.0 out the door, we were forced to do some crazy things with numbers. There waren't many numbers between 95 and 100, but we continually released new versions based on bug fixes or added functions. By the time we got to version 0.99, we had to start adding numbers to indicate patch levels, and then we relied on the alphabet. At one point we had version 0.99, patch level 15A. Then version 0.99, patch level 15B, and so on. We made it all the way to patch level 15Z. Patch level 16 became version 1.0, the point where it was usable. This was released in March 1994 with great fanfare at the University of Helsinki Computer Sciences Department auditorium.
I never saw anything wrong with version X.YYY, IE: version 0.100, 0.101, 2.4.634, etc...
Because it has no charismatic leader. And many people are simply afraid to upgrade it (more so than the kernel).
now we need to go OSS in diesel cars
As many as needed. There are no set times or numbers. If enough little bugs are fixed, it is released. If a major bug is fixed, it is probably released sooner. In general, you only have three reasons to upgrade.
:)
1) The new one has fixed a bug in something you are using. Such as a new USB driver for your widget.
2) A major security flaw is patched. Which is done way faster (and more publicily) than in most commerical settings.
3) You enjoy cutting your teeth on new shit. Which would be a lot of us.
I personally usually only upgrade if there is a dangerous remote exploit or for some functionaility. I only upgraded to 2.4.x for iptables and firewire support. Even though the backport of firewire worked fine for me.
I was reading the changelog and it said that one of the pre- 2.4 kernels improved NTFS support. Has anyone out there tried this? I tried it a while back and blew up my entire NT partition, and I'm about half afraid of it. What kind of progress has been made in this area?
XFS is great. I have it on 2 production servers (rock solid since installation). However, for my workstation I've recently switched (back) to ReiserFS. I do a lot of large compiles and move huge amounts of code around and that exposes the ONLY weak part in XFS: unlink() time. XFS is doog slow for deleting large directory trees. I sure hope they optimize this, soon.. Other than the long rm times, it's rock solid. The ACL ioctls should be sorted out too soon, so we can have access to extended attributes (I will NOT miss you Be, Inc.)....
-adnans
"In short: just say NO TO DRUGS, and maybe you won't end up like the Hurd people." --Linus Torvalds
- Ben LaHaise: make vma merging more generous, help Mozilla /proc/<>/maps
Can anyone with the know-how explain what this means?
Cheers.
My only experience with ReiserFS was on an SMP machine, and it blew chunks (corrupted file system, bad data, kernel panics). I tried XFS and it worked quite well. I've not given Reiser another shot since then (haven't had time). Perhaps they've fixed this bug.
I like the fact that growing an XFS volume to take up more space is simple, and does not require unmounting the volume (in fact, you CANNOT grow an unmounted XFS volume, you MUST mount it first).
So, in a system with hot-swap drive bays, you can add a physical volume to the logical volume group, and just tell XFS to grow. Presto - more space.
I also like the fact that you can move the journal over to another block device. If "you feel the need, the need for speed" you can use a 10MB SCSI battery-backed up SRAM drive for the journal, and a big RAID array for the main storage. Speed and safety in one.
www.eFax.com are spammers
What happend in '97-'98 that made for so few releases?
A deep unwavering belief is a sure sign you're missing something...
Does anyone know what the deal is with the kerneli patch? Short of an unofficial hacked patch to work with newer kernels, kerneli hasn't been updated since 2.4.3, and there seems to be some serious issues currently with file corruption when using kerneli with 2.4 series kernels. Alternative projects like cryptoapi and loop-aes have sprung up from currently foobar'd kerneli, and while they work great, I can't help but wonder what's going on with the kerneli project that it hasn't been updated in so long.
For those of you trols that think "Slashdot isn't Fresh Meat" here is my 2cents:
:)
STFU. When a kernel is released, I want to know about it. and who in their right mind looks at freshmeat every fucking day? NOBODY
So what is the point in starting a bitch session just to bitch? To waste Bandwidth? To blow time at your job? GIME A BREAK!
Now I can update my linux boxen tonight, and have a piece of mind that the IDE driver wasnt working correctly in 2.4.7 for me, is noted in the changelog as being fixed.
have a nice day
Two infinite things: your stupidity and mine. But I'm not sure about the latter. If my sig offends you, I'm sorry.
I managed to grab all the 2.4.9 files earlier, and they're now mirrored at:
ftp://ftp.wingnet.net/pub/linux/kernel/2.4.9/
All the standard files for 2.4.9 from kernel.org (bz2, gz, signatures, etc.) are there. Just the 2.4.9 though - no older stuff. Have at it!
One kernel update isn't even downloaded or the next is already finished! Not even Microsoft cooks up that many service packs in this particular timeframe...
Never underestimate the relief of true separation of Religion and State.
I just compiled 2.4.9 with read-only support for NTFS. It turns out that there is a small bug that stops it from compiling. To fix the bug, edit fs/ntfs/unistr.c, and add somewhere near the top (line 24 or 25 is fine):
#include <linux/kernel.h>
I can't wait until SGI gets XFS merged into the main tree. I'm running XFS on all my systems, and so I have to wait until SGI gets the changes merged back into their port.
XFS (especially when combined with LVM) is great. No fscks, big files, ACLs, and you can grow a mounted file system (great with LVM and hot-swap drives).
www.eFax.com are spammers
http://linux.uky.edu/kernel/v2.4/
This mirror is so fast, it will speed your downloads up, even past your NIC/modem's supposed maximums.
If you want to avoid such troubles you have some options:
- not upgrading at all (do you really need the newest spiffiest kernel?)
- upgrade only after there was some discussion, so you'll be warned about trouble
- wait for the first patches, see if they fix the things you need
- wait for a precompiled kernel (say as rpm) for your distribution
If you want the newest Kernel from kernel.org the day it comes out you're expected to keep your old kernel so you can use that if the newest stuff don't work, and that you take a glance at the compile logs and use that option if something comes up you can't handle.
You don't need to edit "the friggin source code", it's an option. If that newest MS-Stuff breaks you're without that option, you have to roll back (if you can). Since users with the level of knowledge you hint at, are probably relying on their distribution for precompiled kernels i don't see your problem.
"By the way if anyone here is in advertising or marketing... kill yourself." -- Bill Hicks
it still doesn't explain/correct the Alpha/pc_keyb.c problem tough !!
I have no direct experience with the battery backed up drives, but here is a typical link:
http://www.buymemory.com/mr35.htm
These things aren't cheap, but they aren't marketed toward your average Joe. However, if I ever get the cash to get a Firewire camcorder, I'd want to do my video editing on a journaled system with the journal on something like this.
www.eFax.com are spammers
looks like some dangerous changes were made: I see errors that say macro 'min' used with only 2 args. this kinda scares me...
as I've not had much luck with wireless support inside the kernel tree, I've taken to using hinds' pkg instead. so for those who use pcmcia, perhaps wait for the next release..
--
"It is now safe to switch off your computer."
The max() and min() macros have been changed throughout the kernel to now use 3 arguments instead of 2. The new argument is the first, which is the type for the temporary variables used. This avoids problems with multiple references to data. Usually those get compiled out, but with variables of type volatile, they do not. But in since cases you don't want multiple fetches from volatile variables. The problem here is that the max() macro has one instance and the min() macro has two instances of being used inside the for() clause. Simply changing back to the 2 argument usage won't fix it because the macro is defined for 3. My patch just changes the 3 affected uses back to conventional C code.
now we need to go OSS in diesel cars
Enjoy
RFC1925
The only kernel releases that should break applications are the major and minor releases (not the patch/bugfix releases). If you have an app that works with 2.4.7 (for example) and breaks with 2.4.8 then either your app is broken or it's a driver issue where the maintainer fucked up. Which seemed to be what happened to me with Q3A and the SB Live! drivers in 2.4.8. Although I'm not certain wether it's an issue with the drivers or Q3A.
The patch level releases fix bugs. Sometimes serious bugs. So you should be greatful that they come out as fast as they do. The minor releases (2.2-2.4) only come out every couple of years so I would hardly consider that "Too fast! OMG I can't keep up!".
</rant>
--
Garett
Don't forget that the libc is just as important for your computers stability as the kernel. Most applications go trough the libc to access kernel services. Today glibc-2.2.4 was released, go to your local mirror (yes, that is a gnu mirror, not a kernel mirror) and do the upgrade now.
Slashdot: News for nerds ?
Why does the libc get so little publicity compared to the kernel ? I don't get it !
RFC1925
Here are the counts by year. Only the release versions are counted because development kernels can run into the hundreds.
1994 - 10 (1.0.0 - 1.0.9)
1995 - 14 (1.2.0 - 1.2.13)
1996 - 28 (2.0.0 - 2.0.27)
1997 - 6 (2.0.28 - 2.0.33)
1998 - 3 (2.0.34 - 2.0.36)
1999 - 2/14 (2.0.37 - 2.0.28 & 2.2.0 - 2.2.13)
2000 - 5 (2.2.14 - 2.2.18)
2001 - 1/1/10 (2.0.39 & 2.2.19 & 2.4.0 - 2.4.9)
avg number of kernels per year: 11.75
The benefit is that you can have the latest and greatest version now instead of six months from now.
Shameless plug: Or you could subscribe to some of my projects :-).
Cheers //Johan
Installed the Bubblemon yet?
Does anyone have a link to the kernel compilation project? I can't find anything.