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Ubuntu Picks Upstart, KVM
derrida writes "Because the traditional System V init daemon (SysVinit) does not deal well with modern hardware, including hotplug devices, USB hard and flash drives, and network-mounted filesystems, Ubuntu replaced it with the upstart init daemon. Several other replacements for SysVinit are also available. One of the most prominent, initng, is available for Debian and runs on Ubuntu. Solaris uses SMF (Service Management Facility) and Mac OS uses launchd. Over time, Ubuntu will likely come to incorporate features of each of these systems into Upstart. Furthermore, heading in a different direction from its main rivals, Ubuntu Linux will use KVM as its primary virtualization software. Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Novell's Suse Linux Enterprise Server both use the Xen virtualization software, a 'hypervisor' layer that lets multiple operating systems run on the same computer. In contrast, the KVM software runs on top of a version of Linux, the 'host' operating system that provides a foundation for other 'guest' operating systems to run in a virtual mode." Slashdot shares a corporate overlord with Linux.com.
Except Upstart has been in Ubuntu since IIRC 6.10, nothing has even changed about the design.
/* FUCK - The F-word is here so that you can grep for it */
How is this news? The Ubuntu project came up with Upstart and therefore they are going to use it? Whats next Debian using apt-get rather then RPM?
There is no "disagree" moderation, and troll, flamebait and overrated are not valid substitutes
Not sure how much traction KVM is going to get here unless Ubuntu can wrap it well. I'm no expert but I know my way around most virtualization technologies and KVM seems to be one of-if not the- hardest to use productively. Ubuntu has a great track record with this kind of thing though, and *if* this signals a new push in that direction I eagerly await the results.
Beware! Richard Stallman is behind this! First they replace init with an event driven system. Next they start migrating services out of the kernel. It be proposed and seem natural to have these services driven by events (after all the init system is) . Then of course it will seem obvious to abstract the event system into its own package. This package will be called Mach. Finally a name change will be proposed that we rename Linux to GNU/Hurd. Don't say I didn't tell you! We will be butt of our own Hurd jokes.
Mac uses launchd
Ubuntu uses Upstart
Solaris uses SMF
Debian uses initng
RedHat uses sysvinit (?? not sure ??)
Meaning that a sysadmin that needs to support those systems, need to write scripts that takes care to use the correct way on each and every platform. Blergh. I hate it when this kind of thing happen, instead of just sticking with the old stuff or _agreeing_ on a new way to do it. Instead, we now have a multitude of ways of doing it. Okay. Options are good. This isn't options though - this is differences being forced on you by various vendors, guaranteeing that you'll have to do more work.
Blergh.
"Rune Kristian Viken" - http://www.nwo.no - arca
At last year's Linux.Conf.Au I attended both the virtualization mini-conf and kernel hacker virtualization talks with interest, since I dabble a bit in virtualization but not enough to keep up to date on current trends.
I was struck with the immense gulf in opinion between the "virtualization folks" and the "kernel folks".
Most (possibly all) of the talks in the virtualization stream could be summarized as "Xen! Xen! Xen! Yay! Yay! Yay! Xen, xen, xen, xen xen, xen, xen. Xen! Xen Roxx0rs! Xen! Clients! Xen! Xen! XEN!!!". Lots of action, lots of progress, lots of excitement, lots of Real People in Real Companies doing Real Work and discovering Best Practices.
It was quite a shock to walk into the "kernel hacker QA" with kernel maintainers from several big linux distros and some major names and here a simple "Xen sucks. Use KVM". Talking to one unnamed kernel hacker who actually wrote a big chunk of Xen code, even he basically flat out said Xen was a terribly solution which he only saw as a stop gap until KVN had picked up some speed.
So the impression I walked away with was that while Xen is the current poster child for virtualization, its days are numbered.
Once KVM has had time time to move away from being shiny new code that only a kernel dev could love to a Real Product Xen is going to have its ass kicked by the new Blessed Child.
Fortunately I don't have anything invested in either side (I mostly use qemu because my needs are more for pure isolation and speed isn't needed at all) but it looks like this match is shaping up as a hell of a flame war.
And by the sounds of it, Ubuntu just threw lit up the first flamethrower on behalf of KVM.
Now where did I put those marshmallows.
When I moved from Red Hat to Debian (remember Bruce Peren's UserLinux ?) and to Ubuntu the thing I missed was the clarity of SysV init and the simple tools to add and remove programs from a runlevel.
The article quoted shows examples of upstart scripts. I don't quite see if compatibility with SysV init is a goal of upstart.
It sure would be nice if upstart means easier application sharing between Red Hat and Ubuntu.
It requires them to run with performance, yes. It falls back to pure emulation when they aren't available, because it *is* still qemu as well.
Meanwhile, my crystal ball shows me that VT-capable hardware is not going away, so the "tiny fraction" will become the majority. It seems important to consider them when thinking of future directions.
__CmdrTHAC0__
In Soviet Russia, Spanish Inquisition doesn't expect YOU!!