Linus Torvalds announced today that the first Release Candidate (RC) for the upcoming Linux 6.12 kernel series is now available for public testing.
Today marks a fortnight since the merge window for Linux kernel 6.12 opened, coinciding with the release of Linux kernel 6.11. This indicates that it is time to start testing the Release Candidate (RC) versions of what will soon be the Linux 6.12 kernel series, with the first version available for download right now from Linus Torvalds’ git tree here.
Key features of the Linux kernel 6.12 include real-time “PREEMPT_RT” support, the introduction of a new scheduler named sched_ext, Clang compatibility (including LTO) for nolibc, and the cpuidle tool which now displays the residence values of cpuidle states, offering a clearer view of idle state information through cpuidle-info. Additionally, there is support for NVIDIA‘s virtual command queue implementation for SMMUv3, DRM panic messages in the form of QR codes, along with SWIG bindings for libcpupower that facilitate the creation of scripts utilizing and enhancing libcpupower’s capabilities.
Moreover, another new feature includes the capability to translate normalized error addresses from an AMD memory controller into system physical addresses using a mechanism known as the platform runtime mechanism (PRM). There’s simplified loading of microcode patches on AMD Zen and more recent CPUs by leveraging the family, model, and stepping details encoded in the patch revision number. Furthermore, file-backed mount support for the EROFS file system has been added, along with final adjustments to the Intel VFM CPU model matching macros.
Linux 6.12 introduces a new module for testing thermal cores, enabling the creation and management of mock thermal zones through debugfs to validate the functionality of the thermal core. It offers support for ACPI-based identification of interrupt controllers on RISC-V, guest PMU support for LoongArch KVM, and the ARM “Permission Overlay Extension” utilizing memory protection keys. Additionally, it allows for operation as a protected guest on Android, along with performance improvements and support for several new interconnect PMUs.
Furthermore, Linux 6.12 enhances hardware compatibility with new features such as i.MX95 NETCMIX support within the block control provider, new drivers catering to the MSM8976 and MSM8937 platforms, and an innovative driver for the LC824206XA micro USB switch. This update also accommodates the ON Semiconductor LC824206XA micro USB switch and accessory detection chip specifically on the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2 Pro-1380. Moreover, hybrid CPU capacity scaling is now supported in the intel_pstate driver.
Additionally, the intel_idle driver has been updated to natively manage Granite Rapids Xeon processors, while the intel_rapl power capping driver now recognizes the family 1Ah of AMD processors alongside Intel ArrowLake-U chips. The intel_pstate driver has enhanced support for Granite Rapids and Sierra Forest chips in out-of-band (OOB) mode. Furthermore, Linux 6.12 revamps PCM buffer allocation handling alongside optimizations for locking, and introduces improvements to the USB audio driver.
There is now added support for controllers including Marvell xSPI, Mediatek MTK7981, Microchip PIC64GX, NXP i.MX8ULP, and Rockchip RK3576. This update also introduces a fresh driver for various Realtek automotive PCIe devices (RTL9054, RTL9068, RTL9072, RTL9075, RTL9068, RTL9071), along with a new driver for the Microchip LAN8650/1 10BASE-T1S MAC-PHY. Additionally, support for RTL8126A rev.b has been included, alongside a new driver for the Rockchip RK3568 CAN-FD controller and another for the Sophgo SG2042 external hardware monitor. Other notable additions are support for the PixArt PS/2 touchpad and enhanced compatibility with RTL8852BT and 8852BE-VT (Wi-Fi 6).
The expansion of supported hardware continues with features for ARM64-based Surface devices, operational region support for LG laptops, the ability to modify battery charge settings on Dell laptops, and fan profile support for ASUS Vivobook laptops. New functionality also includes advanced features such as high-resolution wheel scrolling, touch strings with relative motions, and dual touch rings in the Wacom driver. Furthermore, a new 9p network gadget has been integrated, and Intel Xe2 graphics are now enabled by default for both Lunar Lake and Battlemage processors.
Linux kernel 6.12 brings intriguing networking improvements as well. Notable enhancements include Device Memory TCP support, which facilitates zero-copy reception of TCP payloads to a DMABUF memory region, while packet headers are processed separately in standard kernel buffers. Additional features comprise IPv6 IOAM6 support for a new tunsrc encapsulation mode, support for the IPv6 PIO p flag in the Prefix Information Option, and the capability to read the PTP PHC (Physical Hardware Clock) alongside MONOTONIC_RAW timestamps with PTP_SYS_OFFSET_EXTENDED.
There’s more to discover! The Linux kernel version 6.12 introduces continuous read capabilities within the SPI-NAND subsystem. It also includes features for assigning custom names to regmap irqdomains, allowing multiple interrupt controllers to be linked with a single struct device. Additionally, it provides support for configuring the MOSI pin state when the bus is idle, and ports for vDSO getrandom are made available for several architectures, including LoongArch64, ARM64 (AArch64), PowerPC, and s390x.
RISC-V has welcomed several enhancements, such as the ability to use Zkr for seeding KASLR, support for IPI-triggered CPU backtracking, and functionalities for reporting generic CPU vulnerabilities to userspace. It also includes tracing userspace stacks and the Svvptc extension. Furthermore, Linux 6.12 delivers multiple updates for filesystems like EXT4, Btrfs, exFAT, FUSE, F2FS, and Bcachefs, in addition to Rust updates, improvements in documentation, clean-up tasks, and bug fixes.
The anticipated final release for the Linux kernel 6.12 is expected around mid to late November 2024, contingent on the number of Release Candidate (RC) versions that Linus Torvalds will announce beforehand. Therefore, we might see Linux 6.12 on November 17th should there be seven RCs, or on November 24th if there are eight RCs published.
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