Linux 3.8 released

Linus Torvalds has released version 3.8 of the Linux kernel, which brings with it full support for the graphic cores in Intel's upcoming processor generation Haswell and everything a system needs to use the 3D acceleration on all NVIDIA GeForce graphics chipsets. F2FS, a filesystem that is optimised for flash media as used in cameras, tablets, smartphones, USB flash drives and memory cards, is another innovation in Linux 3.8.

The kernel developers have also accelerated some aspects of the performance of the Btrfs and Ext4 filesystems and, as always, new and upgraded drivers have improved the range of hardware supported by Linux. There are also interesting enhancements to the handling of containers and functionality that should help NUMA systems perform better. 3.8 also says goodbye to a feature with the end of support for the original i386 processors.

The H has published an overview of these and the other enhancements in Linux kernel 3.8 in an article which also includes a statistical breakdown of the new release and the outlook for Linux 3.9 features:

• What's new in Linux 3.8

In the run up to the release, The H's "Kernel Log" published a number of preview articles for 3.8 which contain more detail on particular aspects:

• Kernel Log: Coming in 3.8 (Part 1) - Filesystems and storage
• Kernel Log: Coming in 3.8 (Part 2) - Infrastructure
• Kernel Log: Coming in 3.8 (Part 3) – Drivers

(djwm)