Topping over 10 million lines of code, the current day Linux kernel is no push over and is forming a serious threat to its competition.
Some of the features that are there in the more recent Linux kernels are as follows:
- New file systems - Linux kernel supports a new file system called Ext4. Ext4 supports large number of files of greater size and deeper directory structures. Another file system which is still in experimental mode but is soon going to be a choice for Linux users is the Btrfs file system which competes with ZFS in features.
- Better memory management for the Linux kernel graphics stack.
- Boot tracer - This is a feature in built into the new kernels, which will allow the developers to find possible ways in which they can further reduce the time taken for the Linux kernel to completely boot up.
- Freezer - This new feature helps you to easily migrate your operating system to a new host.
- Improved virtual memory scalability
- Disk improvements - Such as better support for solid state devices, improvements for ATA hard disks and so on. For instance, Linux kernel now provides protection against sudden jolts and shocks in ATA hard disks.
M. Tim Jones has a more in depth explanation of all the above mentioned features in the following article. Linux kernel is going places, no doubt. And we the Linux users are its happy recipients.
