Linux 3.10 out with better SSD caching and Radeon support

[nsane.forums]

Linux devs still trying to identify the fastest SSD caching mechanism.

Linux 3.10 was released by Linus Torvalds last night, bringing with it a new method of SSD caching and some upgrades to the Radeon graphics driver. "This release has been pretty typical and not particularly prone to problems," Torvalds wrote in his e-mail announcing the release. "No major new subsystems this time around, although there are individual new features."

As you may recall, Linux 3.9 (released in April) included an experimental feature called dm-cache that allows SSDs to act as caches for other storage devices. An additional SSD caching technology known as Bcache was also in the works for more than a year and has now merged into the Linux kernel with the newly released 3.10.

"Linux 3.10 will include the 'block-layer cache' Bcache, which can be used to configure one disk as a cache for another disk; a fast SSD, for example, could be used as a cache for a slower hard drive with more capacity," H-Online editor Thorsten Leemhuis wrote in his thorough roundup of the new kernel version."This kind of SSD cache can speed up access to frequently read data and take on write requests until a quieter moment when they can be written to the slower disk."

Early benchmark tests have not found a clear winner between dm-cache and Bcache. Tests have found "that each solution works well in some situations and unexpectedly badly in others—clearly, they all could still stand to improve a bit," Leemhuis wrote. "t remains to be seen how well Bcache, which Google has already been using in-house for some time, handles situations outside of a data processing centre's clearly defined parameters."

The two most significant changes in Linux 3.10 are the aforementioned SSD caching "and support for the newer Radeon graphics cores' video decoder," Leemhuis wrote. "The Radeon driver in the Linux kernel now offers interfaces for interacting with the Unified Video Decoder on Radeon HD 4000 and later HD graphics cards. An open source UVD driver which uses this interface will be included in the next major revision to Mesa 3D (version 9.2 or 10.0). The kernel now supports the graphics chip on the recently released Richland processor family, otherwise known as A4, A6, A8, and A10 series APUs. Linux can also now address Radeon Hainan GPUs."

Other changes allow newer Intel GPUs to be overclocked. Systems with Intel GPUs can also now wake from standby faster.

Looking ahead, Linux 3.11 will likely include patches that let the Radeon driver make better use of power management features.

View: Original Article

[brain_death]

I get it. After v.3.9.6, v.3.9.7 and v.3.9.8 comes v.4.0.0 v.3.10...

Of course, how stupid of me to imagine otherwise.

:s

[BDX]

I get it. After v.3.9.6, v.3.9.7 and v.3.9.8 comes v.4.0.0 v.3.10...

Of course, how stupid of me to imagine otherwise.

:s

Version numbers aren't decimal, you know?

[brain_death]

Version numbers aren't decimal, you know?

Sounds to me like bad planning. Version numbers like this won't sort properly. It should be:

3.09.6 > 3.09.7 > 3.09.8 > 3.10

jQuery did a similar thing recently...

1.9 > 1.9.1 > 1.9.2 > 1.10.0 > 1.10.1

:wtf: