Re: [opensuse] Release schedule change?
- From: Susanne Oberhauser <froh@xxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 04 Oct 2008 10:33:35 +0200
"Greg Freemyer" <greg.freemyer@xxxxxxxxx> writes:
On 10/3/08, John Andersen <jsamyth@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Greg Freemyer wrote:
> I was just looking at an email from Novell and saw:
>
> openSUSE 11.1 (currently in development, to be released December 2008)
>
> I thought the current release schedule was every 8 or 9 months. Has
> Novell gone back to every 6 month?
>
> I hope so.
I would rather have good solid releases than frequent and broken releases.
A new kernel comes out roughly every 2 months. I don't like running
a vanilla, nor a factory kernel. So it is annoying sometimes to
have to wait 8+ months to get the latest kernel feature you may
want. ie. The wireless driver someone just asked about.
well, there's two alternatives:
either you rev the kernel, which, optional or not means the slight
risk of regressions for those who try it (and a significant retesting
effort to ensure regressions are caught in testing, not in release )
OR you figure how to provide the latest drivers or hardware related
subsystems to just those who need it:
http://www.linux-foundation.org/en/Driver_Backport
The basic idea is that for a specific product (a laptop model, a
chipset model) you 'freeze' the current driver. Then you collect all
these frozen drivers into one repository, create a driver update disk
if needed and make sure you can easily make an ISO of the repo. You
also make the DUD and the ISO to the online repo, so that if these
media are used, the online update repo is already registered.
This whole bundle is called a 'driver kit' for that hardware.
Why does this make more sense than rev'ing the kernel?
Various reasons: Most driver updates are for new chipsets anyway, not
for driver bugs. If there is a driver bug it usually only hits
specific chipset revisions. So driver kits allow you to focus the
retesting effort.
Next, reving the kernel will also update sysfs and other system
management related subsystems. That means hal and the sys mgmt
toolchain may need revisions. In many cases that gives you half a
system update anyway, and all of that needs to be tested for
regressions...
And the kernel obviously also brings plenty of driver updates that
also bear the risk of regressions (e1000e toast, to name a recent
one).
We (as in SUSE) have worked long on the infrastructure and what's
needed behind the scenes for driver kits, our friends at canonical and
redhat are implementing the last step for a cozy user experience, an
infrastructure to find and register the right driver kits
automatically (Jockey and a driver database).
Now why is this going so slow?
Because there's some speculations and FUD on why this 'is bad for the
kernel' or 'bad for the community'
I believe, to the contrary, that a end user friendly and tester
friendly solution ot this hardware enablement problem will be a Real
Good thing for Linux.
The drivers needs to be upstream, too anyway, to have it included in
the next distribution releases.
S.
--
Susanne Oberhauser +49-911-74053-574 SUSE -- a Novell Business
OPS Engineering Maxfeldstraße 5
Processes and Infrastructure Nürnberg
SUSE LINUX Products GmbH, GF: Markus Rex, HRB 16746 (AG Nürnberg)
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