Linux 2.6.27-rc8 Kernel Released

As what will likely be the final release candidate for the 2.6.27 series, Linus Torvalds has announced the Linux 2.6.27-rc8 kernel. This 2.6.27-rc8 kernel consists of changes that are "pretty small, and there aren't even a
whole lot of them." The regression fixes in this release are scattered throughout the kernel from hardware drivers to file-systems to architecture updates. In the release announcement, Linus notes that this should be the last release before the Linux 2.6.27 kernel goes gold. With that said, we should be able to expect the Linux 2.6.27 kernel in early October.

The Linux 2.6.27 kernel adds in the UBIFS file-system for flash devices, improved direct I/O scalability and performance, multi-queue networking, the MMIO tracer (first developed within the Nouveau project), Xen improvements, the Atheros ath9k driver for their 802.11n hardware, and many other prominent new additions. More on the changes in this major quarterly kernel update can be read about at KernelNewbies.org.