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What to Expect from Linux 2.6.12

Posted by timothy on from the free-candy-for-all-users dept.

apt-get writes "Saw this Linuxworld report from the annual Australian Linux conference, Linux.conf.au, in Canberra last week. The article outlines some of the new features we can expect for the 2.6.12 kernel release, including: support for trusted computing, and security enhanced Linux. The kernel developers are also working on improving the 'feel' of the Linux desktop with inotify for file managers and events notification so hardware 'just works'. Unfortunately no release date other than 'sometime soon' is given."

10 of 505 comments (clear)

  1. What this means by JohnFluxx · · Score: 5, Informative

    Just for those not in the know..

    Inotify is a replacement for dnotify. With both you can watch for a file for changes. You can even watch a directory for changes. However with dnotify you couldn't recursively watch a directory for changes. To do so required basically 'opening' each folder and quickly you use up the maximum number of files you can open.

    With inotify it still doesn't directly support recursively watching a directory but example code for doing so is given and doesn't have the same problems. One distro uses this for watching /home recursively. I don't remember why or which. :)

    As for the notification thing - that's part of HAL, and means usb pens, cameras, etc should be 'auto detected' and the user can be notified and asked what to do automatically.

    1. Re:What this means by JohnFluxx · · Score: 3, Informative

      Oh just to reply to myself.. dnotify had this problem where if you watched a file say on a CD, it meant that file was 'opened' and hence the CD couldn't be ejected because it was being used..

      inotify fixes this.

      (waiting 2 mins between posts... sigh)

    2. Re:What this means by tialaramex · · Score: 3, Informative

      hotplug isn't enough

      The hotplug system is part of the OS, running as root, and is intended to do things like insert driver modules, pump firmware around, and set permissions. This is useful even on a server, although its more important for a laptop or desktop machine. It doesn't do anything to your desktop directly though...

      HAL uses DBUS to notify the user's desktop software about these exciting events so that it can do something appropriate. The desktop doesn't have dangerous privileges (so it's unlikely to accidentally format your main SCSI drive instead of the freshly inserted USB flash) and is able to interfact with the user through pop-ups and making icons appear in file managers etc.

      This system (Hotplug + HAL + DBUS) replaces earlier systems where desktop software polled for any interesting changes every few seconds. The new system is event driven, using resources only when they're needed, and should hopefully be more powerful too.

  2. Re:Those are pretty big changes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    1. There is no 2.7 tree, so no backporting.
    2. Why do you assume, that the interest is sudden? Maybe the technology is simply deemed ready (as in tested and reliable enough) now to go into the main kernel?

  3. Re:Trusted Computing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    It's a different thing. The 'trusted computing' in Windows is all about DRM, preventing you from getting access to data on your machine.

    The 'trusted computing' in Linux 2.6.12 is about being able to run a process that is restricted in what it can do (read and write to a pipe, essentially), so that you can run an arbitary downloaded binary without worrying that it will do bad things. (think: distributed.net, SETI, etc).

  4. Re:Trusted Computing by Blapto · · Score: 4, Informative

    If you're a *nix user, think really cool chroot jail.

  5. I Wish firewire would just work by t35t0r · · Score: 3, Informative

    Every day I see a new bug on the ieee1394 mailing list. There are some serious issues with firewire on linux. It is nowhere as mature as it is on winxp or macosx. DMESG spits out lots of errors, sometimes my drives unmount themselves when I transfer 50gb+ (ext3/reiser were massacres, xfs was slightly better). Even with the latest kernel these problems persist.

  6. Re:What a waste of effort... by Slashcrap · · Score: 3, Informative

    Your post is as incoherent and paranoid as it is long.

    The problem with what you understand as Trusted Computing is that someone else gets the keys. They can decide what your computer can run and what it can't. Obviously this is bad and justifies the acute paranoia from which you seem to be suffering.

    With the Linux implementation, you get the keys. So you can sign all of the executables you normally use and tell the kernel to only run them. Anything unsigned (e.g trojans, rootkits etc..) won't run.

    It's a useful security feature. It's not about the RIAA preventing you from running that Britney Spears mp3 that you downloaded from Kazaa.

  7. Re:Gamers: Configurable USB Mouse Polling Rate! by alyandon · · Score: 3, Informative

    In most FPS games you typically respond with very small, quick mouse movements. The faster you poll the mouse the more accurate the mouse motion can be tracked which means less undershooting/overshooting your target intended target.

    Is it a night and day difference? No.

  8. Re:Trusted Computing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    (posting anonymously, cuz I work at verisign, though not in any of the cert-related depts...)

    Free clue -- VeriSign's raison d'etre is not to convince end users that Business X is "trustworthy", only to verify whether or not someone representing themselves as Business X is in fact Business X. We verify the connection(s) between a real-world/meatspace identity and an electronic identity.

    If We Install Spyware, Inc. applies for a SSL cert for www.weinstallspyware.com, our job is to verify that the guy requesting the cert is actually works for We Install Spyware, and that the domain name is also legitimately connected with the company. Ditto for code signing certs.

    If, after we have verified that yes, indeed, the spyware you are about to install is really from We Install Spyware, Inc, you still want to install it, then hey, that's on you. We verify the company's identity, that's all.