Some Features To Look Forward To With The Linux 4.3 Kernel

With Linux 4.2 hopefully being released this weekend, here's a look at some of the features that are currently out on the horizon for likely merging into the Linux 4.3 kernel.

Among the items we've been tracking for likely integration into Linux 4.3 include:

Graphics

- Open-Source AMD Fury/Fiji GPU support via the AMDGPU DRM driver along with other improvements to this new Direct Rendering Manager driver. Sadly, the discrete GPU support for AMDGPU still lacks power management / re-clocking.

- HDCP support and new hardware enablement for Freedreno's MSM DRM driver.

- Potentially the Raspberry Pi KMS driver but initially will be without the 3D acceleration bits.

- VMware VMwgfx changes to handle OpenGL 3 support for those using this driver stack for virtual OpenGL/3D support within VMware VMs.

- Numerous Intel graphics improvements.

File-Systems / Disks

- Open Channel SSD support.

- The removal of the EXT3 driver.

Other

- KDBUS will hopefully come as the new in-kernel IPC mechanism.

- The MOST driver subsystem for improving Linux in cars will enter staging.

There's also many other features that will come during the Linux 4.3 merge window and will be covered on Phoronix, it's just particularly the graphics and related areas I pay the most attention to through the -next process. As always, daily benchmarks of the Linux kernel Git code are done via LinuxBenchmarking.com while the usual focused tests will be published in due time on Phoronix.com.