Intel Already Started Working On Linux Driver Code For Lunar Lake
Intel's punctual open-source/Linux support across desktop, mobile, and server platforms is one of the strong selling points for those preferring to use something on their PC besides Windows (Intel normally also does more for BSD/FreeBSD than other vendors as well). A year ago Intel began upstreaming their Rocket Lake Linux enablement code and that was quickly followed by Alder Lake, which we'll hopefully see launch before the end of the calendar year. Towards the end of 2020 Intel open-source developers were already working on the initial support around Meteor Lake while now as we end Q1'2021, there are patches beginning to surface for Lunar Lake, the successor to Meteor Lake and what will be Intel's 14th Gen client processors.
We are unlikely to see Intel's Lunar Lake processors before 2023 while the start of the kernel patches have begun this month. The work began with e1000e driver updates for supporting Lunar Lake. "Add devices IDs for the next LOM generations that will be available on the next Intel Client platform (Lunar Lake) This patch provides the initial support for these devices."
That's a small change but showing the Lunar Lake platform enabling work for Linux has already begun. As details on Lunar Lake are still scarce, it will be interesting to see the rest of the Linux patches materialize in due course. Lunar Lake is rumored to have Gen12.9 or Gen13 graphics as one of the areas we'll be on the look out for in the Linux enablement and seeing what is revealed.
With the Linux 5.12 merge window having just passed, the e1000e network changes at least will likely queue up for Linux 5.13 and we'll see what other code may work its way out in the weeks ahead prior to that next kernel merge window. In any case, great to see Intel continuing their timely client platform bring-up for Linux. Stay tuned.
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