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| Linux improves future security for enterprise applications |
Linux is receiving kernel update 5.14, which will pave the way for enterprise and cloud applications in the coming months. This update contains security and performance improvements.
The kernel is a component that provides the basic functions of operating the system and forms the heart of the open source Linux operating system. Which performs a large number of cloud and enterprise application deployments.
Security has always been a particular concern of businesses and cloud users. Therefore, kernel 5.14 update brings many new functions to the Linux operating system.
Mike McGrath, vice president of engineering at Red Hat Linux, said kernel updates include a feature called core layout, which is designed to help mitigate CPU-level vulnerabilities such as Specter and Meltdown, which debuted in 2018.
McGrath stated, “This feature helps separate trusted and untrusted tasks so that the core is not affected, reducing the overall threat area while keeping performance relatively unchanged at the cloud scale.
Another area of security innovation is Kernel Update 5.14, a feature that was developed a year and a half ago to better protect system memory than before.
Attacks against Linux and other operating systems use memory as a primary attack area to be exploited.
There is a function in the new kernel called memfd_secret() that enables applications running on multiple systems to create areas of memory that others (including the kernel) cannot access.
This means that encryption keys, sensitive data and other secrets can be stored there to limit exposure to other users or system activity, McGrath said.
Linux improves future security for enterprise applications
Kernel 5.14 has had 7 release candidates in the past two months and has benefited from the contributions of 1,650 different developers.
Individual contributors are also among those who contribute to the development of the nucleus. In addition to major suppliers such as Intel, Samsung, Oracle, AMD and IBM.
IBM's Red Hat business is a major contributor to a specific version of the Linux kernel.
IBM acquired Red Hat for $34 billion in a 2019 deal.
Although the 5.14 kernel is on the verge of release, the Enterprise version usually takes some time to adopt.
McGrath has stated that kernel 5.14 will debut in the Fedora Linux community's Red Hat distribution. And be a part of the future release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.
Gerald Pfeiffer, chief technology officer at SUSE, said the openSUSE Tumbleweed community build could include a 5.14 kernel within days of its official release.
On the business front, he indicated that SUSE Linux Enterprise 15 SP4 will be released next spring with 5.14 kernels.
The new kernel update was released after the open source operating system reached an important stage. Thirty years have passed since founder Linus Torvalds first announced these efforts.
Over time, Linux has evolved from an amateur's endeavor to an effort to support the Internet's infrastructure.
"Linux is the backbone of the modern cloud," says McGrath. Red Hat is also excited about how Linux has become the backbone of cutting edge computing.
And not just in communication. But over the next several years, it will be pervasive across all industries from manufacturing to healthcare to service and entertainment providers.