IBM and Red Hat, two of the world's biggest Linux developers, have revealed details of a joint effort to integrate new technologies into the Linux kernel.

Developers at IBM's Linux Technology Center collaborated with Red Hat's engineering team to integrate improved virtualisation features, security enhancements and "real-time" capabilities into the Linux kernel.

The companies said that new virtualisation and security capabilities in the kernel will also be available in the new release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 (RHEL 5).  

The Real-Time Linux technologies are currently being incorporated into the kernel and will be extended to IBM and Red Hat customers in a future offering.

Big Blue is currently testing and certifying RHEL 5 across all its standards-based middleware and servers, and plans to provide services and support for RHEL 5.

The three key Linux developments are: the Xen virtualisation optimisation environment; new security features that provide greater data protection and encryption; and the Real-Time Linux development and deployment platform.

Real-Time Linux allows customers to run systems that can perform at greater processing rates with high levels of reliability, according to the companies.

"The upcoming release of our enterprise platform signifies much more than just an upgrade to Linux," said Paul Cormier, executive vice president of engineering at Red Hat.

"It is the culmination of a complete enterprise architecture that includes a broad ecosystem of certified, reliable solutions from partners like IBM."