Red Hat releases Enterprise Linux 6 beta

RHEL 6 boasts enhanced scalability and power efficiency

Red Hat today released a beta version of Enterprise Linux 6, and is asking for feedback on what it called the “most ambitious and important operating platform releases to date”.

RHEL 6 includes more virtualisation tools, as well as improved scalability and availability.

New time-keeping improvements to the kernel will let the system move processors which are not active into an idle state more frequently, and could lead to cooler CPUs and power economies, according to Red Hat. Performance has been improved across the board, it added.

Other enhancements include a complete rewrite of the process scheduler and a range of new multiprocessor lock synchronisation features. Drivers have been updated to take advantage of Nvidia graphics devices, and RHEL 6 also includes significant updates to the Gnome and KDE desktops.

In addition, a new System Security Services Daemon (SSSD) feature allows for centralised identity management, while the SELinux sandbox feature lets administrators better tackle untrusted content.

Red Hat said RHEL 6 would meet many enterprises’ future scalability demands, regardless of how their systems change.

New capabilities include optimised support for large CPU counts and memory configurations, as well as the ability to handle an increased number of system-interconnect buses and peripherals, the firm explained.