Novell has taken the unusual step of introducing a new kernel with the release of its first major update to its SUSE Enterprise Linux 11 operating system.
After consulting with the ISVs and hardware vendors that certify its enterprise Linux OS, Novell determined that it could launch a new kernel without forgoing its current compatibility.
Novell has also updated its Xen virtualization engine and some of the virtualization components in the rival KVM . Server Watch takes a look.
Novell is out today with its first major update to its SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 operating system. SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 Service Pack 1 (SP1) does at least one thing differently than Novell has done in the past with updates for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 9 and 10: It introduces a new Linux kernel.
When it comes to enterprise Linux distributions, maintaining compatibility throughout a version release is critical for software and hardware vendor support. That’s why enterprise Linux vendors including Novell and Red Hat typically retain the same Linux kernel version number throughout the entirety of an enterprise release like SLES 10 and backport features from newer kernels. Novell is now breaking that mold with SLES 11 SP1, in an effort it says will provide more functionality while maintaining compatibility.