Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 Release Notes

   Copyright © 2007 Red Hat, Inc. and others. This material may be
   distributed only subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Open
   Publication License, v1.0, available at
   [1]http://www.opencontent.org/openpub/.

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Introduction

   The following topics are covered in this document:

     o Release Notes Updates

     o Installation-Related Notes

     o General Information

     o Technology Previews

     o Kernel Notes

     o Changes to Drivers and Hardware Support

   Some updates on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 may not appear in this
   version of the Release Notes. An updated version of the Red Hat Enterprise
   Linux 4 Update 5 Release Notes may also be available at the following URL:

   [2]http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/enterprise/

Release Notes Updates

   This section contains information that was not included in the
   distribution version of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 Release
   Notes.

     o The OpenIB Infiniband network and clustering stack is now fully
       supported. InfiniBand is a high-speed switched fabric communications
       link primarily used in high-performance computing. This feature was
       originally introduced as a Technology Preview in Red Hat Enterprise
       Linux 4 Update 3.

       At present, only mthca-based InfiniBand HCA (Host Channel Adapter)
       cards are supported.

     o In-kernel key management is now fully supported. This facility permits
       the association of key sets (or keyrings) with file system processes
       (such as OpenAFS) and other applicable subsystems. To enable in-kernel
       key management, use the CONFIG_KEYS option in the kernel
       configuration. Keys can then be manipulated through the keyctl utility
       in the keyutils package.

       This feature was originally introduced as a Technology Preview in Red
       Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 2.

     o The GNU Compiler Collection (gcc-4.1) is still included in this
       release as a Technology Preview. This compiler was originally
       introduced as a Technology preview in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4
       Update 4.

       For more information about gcc-4.1, refer to the project website at
       [3]http://gcc.gnu.org/. An in-depth manual for gcc-4.1.2 can also be
       read at [4]http://gcc.gnu.org/onlinedocs/gcc-4.1.2/gcc/.

     o OpenOffice 2.0 is now included in this release as a Technology
       Preview. This suite features several improvements, including ODF and
       PDF functionalities, support for digital signatures and greater
       compatibility with open suites in terms of format and interface. In
       addition to this, the OpenOffice 2.0 spreadsheet has enhanced pivot
       table support, and can now handle up to 65,000 rows.

       For more information about OpenOffice 2.0, please refer to
       [5]http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/2.0/index.html.

     o The QLogic driver in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 has two components:
       the main driver and a hardware-specific firmware loader. Both
       components must be loaded for the driver to work. Currently, the
       module use count for the main driver is incremented when the attached
       storage device is in use. The use count for firmware loader modules is
       not incremented.

       As a result, the system does not automatically prevent you from
       performing an rmmod on the firmware module even when it is in use.
       Doing so will result in I/O errors.

       As such, you should never remove the firmware module while the main
       driver module is still in use.

     o The lvm-2.02.01-1.3 package is dependent on kernel version 2.6.9-24.EL
       or higher. However, the installation of this lvm package will not fail
       if you do not have the correct kernel version installed.

       As such, to install lvm, you should verify first if you have the
       correct kernel version and manually upgrade if necessary.

     o Removing mpt modules may cause a panic in scsi_mod. As such, you
       should not rmmod any mpt modules

     o The QLogic iSCSI Expansion Card for IBM BladeCenter provides both
       Ethernet and iSCSI functions. Some parts on the card are shared by
       both functions. The current qla3xxx and qla4xxx drivers support
       Ethernet and iSCSI function individually. They do not support the use
       of both functions simultaneously.

       Using both Ethernet and iSCSI functions simultaneously may hang the
       device, causing data loss and file system corruption on iSCSI devices
       or network disruptions on Ethernet.

     o When Red Hat Enterprise Linux runs in in LPAR, it attempts to acquire
       information about all devices granted to the LPAR. This could result
       in an out-of-memory condition. As such, when installing Linux on an
       LPAR (Logical Partition), ensure that the kernel can only detect
       devices that are used by the Red Hat Enterprise Linux system.

       To do this, use the cio_ignore parameter of zipl at boot time. Setting
       the cio_ignore parameter creates a blacklist of devices that the
       kernel should not detect.

       To set the cio_ignore parameter interactively, run zipl and enter the
       following command:

 cio_ignore=all,]device 1,]device 2,]device 3

       where device 1, device 2, and device 3 are valid LPAR device numbers
       of devices you want to include in the blacklist. The right square
       bracket (]) is interpreted as a logical NOT in the interactive command
       line.

       After booting, you can set these parameters permanently, by editing
       the /etc/zipl.conf file to include the cio_ignore option in the [ipl]
       section. Simply replace the right square bracket (]) with an
       exclamation point (!).

     o When running rpm --verify on the rpmdb-redhat package, the following
       three files may be included in the output:

       /usr/lib/rpmdb/<arch>-redhat-linux/redhat/__db.001

       /usr/lib/rpmdb/<arch>-redhat-linux/redhat/__db.002

       /usr/lib/rpmdb/<arch>-redhat-linux/redhat/__db.003

       These files should not be confused with similarly named files in the
       /var/lib/rpm directory, which are unrelated to the main RPM database.

       Depending on how the system is installed and used, the three
       aforementioned files may be overwritten or removed. Doing so is
       harmless, although it will be reported by rpm --verify. Such entries
       in the output of rpm --verify can be safely ignored.

       These files will be removed from the package in a future update.

Installation-Related Notes

   The following section includes information specific to installation of Red
   Hat Enterprise Linux and the Anaconda installation program.

  Note

   In order to upgrade an existing Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 installation to
   Update 5, you must use Red Hat Network to update those packages that have
   changed.

   You may use Anaconda to perform a fresh installation of Red Hat Enterprise
   Linux 4 Update 5 or to perform an upgrade from the latest updated version
   of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.

     o If you are copying the contents of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4
       Update 5 CD-ROMs (in preparation for a network-based installation, for
       example) be sure you copy the CD-ROMs for the operating system only.
       Do not copy the Supplementary CD-ROM, or any of the layered product
       CD-ROMs, as this will overwrite files necessary for Anaconda's proper
       operation.

       These CD-ROMs must be installed after Red Hat Enterprise Linux has
       been installed.

     o If you installed Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 through a serial
       console, the login prompt may not appear. To work around this, open
       /etc/yaboot.conf and locate the following line:

         append="console=tty0 console=ttyS4 rhgb quiet"

       Edit this line by switching the order of console=tty0 and
       console=ttyS4 such that the line now reads as follows:

         append="console=ttyS4 console=tty0 rhgb quiet"

General Information

   ql2xfailover Support and Multipath

           Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 does not include support for
           ql2xfailover, as it has not been accepted upstream.

           To implement multipathing, use mdadm instead. For more information
           about dm-multipath, consult its man page using the command man
           multipath.

   MCFG on AMD-based Systems

           During PCI probing, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 attempts
           to use information obtained from MCFG (memory-mapped PCI
           configuration space). On AMD-systems, this type of access does not
           work on some buses, as the kernel cannot parse the MCFG table.

           To work around this, add the parameter pci=conf1 or pci=nommconf
           on the kernel boot line in /etc/grub.conf. For example:

 title Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS (2.6.9-42.0.2.EL)
         root (hd0,0)
         kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.9-42.0.2.EL ro root=/dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00 rhgb quiet pci=conf1
         initrd /initrd-2.6.9-42.0.2.EL.img

           Doing this instructs the kernel to use PCI Conf1 access instead of
           MCFG-based access.

   Rollbacks Using up2date

           The up2date options --undo and list-rollbacks are now deprecated.
           Currently, the recommended method for performing a rollback is to
           use the Multi-state Rollback feature provided by the Provisioning
           entitlement on Red Hat Network. For more information about this,
           refer to [6]http://www.redhat.com/rhn/rhndetails/provisioning/.

           Alternatively, you can also downgrade an RPM manually. To do this,
           obtain the old RPM and run the following command:

           rpm -Uvh --oldpackage --nosignature --nodigest <filename of old
           RPM>

   Virtualization

           Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 is now supported as a
           paravirtualized guest, but cannot be used as dom0.

           At present, paravirtualization for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4
           Update 5 has the following issues:

              o The PV-FB (ParaVirtualized FrameBuffer) currently does not
                support keymaps other than en-US. As such, other keyboards
                may not be able to type certain keystrokes. This issue will
                be addressed in a future update of Red Hat Enterprise Linux
                4.

              o Paravirtualized domains can only auto-detect relative mouse
                movement, and pointer movement is rather erratic. This will
                be addressed in a future update of Red Hat Enterprise Linux
                4.

              o Only virtualized network and disk devices are supported on
                paravirtualized guests. Direct control by guests of PCI, USB,
                printer or serial devices is not supported.

   Slow Disk Dump

           Slow disk dump may be improved using the block_order parameter.
           This parameter specifies the I/O block size to be used when
           writing the dump. Testing has shown that the default value 2 works
           well for most adapters and system configurations.

           Note that disk dumps on Megaraid hardware (in certain system
           platforms and under certain configurations) may be prohibitively
           slow. To address this, increase the value of the block_order
           parameter.

           Larger block_order values consume more module memory. For more
           information about the block_order parameter, refer to
           /usr/share/doc/diskdumputils-<version>/README (replace <version>
           with the corresponding version of the diskdumputils package
           installed).

   iSeries Access for Linux

           The iSeries ODBC Driver for Linux has been replaced by a new
           product -- the iSeries Access for Linux. This new product can be
           downloaded at the following link:

           [7]http://www.ibm.com/eserver/iseries/access/linux/

           iSeries Access for Linux is the latest offering in the iSeries
           Access product line. It offers Linux-based access to iSeries
           servers. iSeries Access for Linux allows you to :

              o Access the DB2 UDB (Universal Database) for iSeries using its
                ODBC Driver

              o Establish a 5250 session to an iSeries server from a Linux
                client

              o Access the DB2 UDB via the EDRS (Extended Dynamic Remote SQL)
                driver

              o Support 32-bit (i386 and PowerPC) and 64-bit (x86-64 and
                PowerPC) platforms

   ibmasm

           The ibmasm package is used to facilitate communication with the
           IBM Advance System Management PCI Adapter, also known as RSA I. If
           you are using the RSA II, you need to manually uninstall the
           ibmasm package after downloading the corresponding package for RSA
           II.

Technology Previews

   Technology Preview features are currently not supported under Red Hat
   Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 subscription services, may not be functionally
   complete, and are generally not suitable for production use. However,
   these features are included as a customer convenience and to provide the
   feature with wider exposure.

   Customers may find these features useful in a non-production environment.
   Customers are also free to provide feedback and functionality suggestions
   for a technology preview feature before it becomes fully supported.
   Erratas will be provided for high-severity security issues.

   During the development of a technology preview feature, additional
   components may become available to the public for testing. It is the
   intention of Red Hat to fully support technology preview features in a
   future release.

   Systemtap

           Systemtap provides free software (GPL) infrastructure to simplify
           the gathering of information about the running Linux system. This
           assists diagnosis of a performance or functional problem. With the
           help of systemtap, developers no longer need to go through the
           tedious and disruptive instrument, recompile, install, and reboot
           sequence that may be otherwise required to collect data.

   Frysk GUI

           The goal of the frysk project is to create an intelligent,
           distributed, always-on system monitoring and debugging tool that
           allows developers and system administrators to:

              o monitor running processes and threads (including creation and
                destruction events)

              o monitor the use of locking primitives

              o expose deadlocks

              o gather data

              o debug any given process by choosing it from a list or
                allowing frysk to open a source code (or other) window on a
                process that is crashing or misbehaving

           In Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 the frysk graphical user
           interface is a technology preview, whereas the frysk command line
           interface is fully supported.

Kernel Notes

   This section lists updates related to the kernel.

   Generic Kernel Notes

              o CONFIG_SERIAL_8250_MANY_PORTS has been increased to 64.

              o sata_nv module now supports diskdump.

              o acpiphp driver now supports ACPI-based hotplugs for bridged
                adapters.

              o (x86;x86_64) Added paravirtualization guest support

              o CIFS (Common Internet file system) has been upgraded to
                version 1.45

   Platform-Specific Updates

              o Added capabilities for disabling MSI for SHPC (Standard Hot
                Plug Controllers) on PXH6700 and PHX6702 systems; these
                systems will use the legacy intX mode instead

              o Intel ICH9 chipsets are now supported

              o PowerNow! (with new frequency control) is now supported on
                the H206 processor

              o Timer skew issue on PowerNow! drivers is now fixed

              o Quad-core processors are now supported

              o RDTSCP (Read Time-Stamp Counter Pair), an instruction that
                provides better resolution in reading a processor's time
                stamp, is now supported

              o MCE Thresholding is now supported on AMD 0x10 processors

              o PCI-Express is now supported for the SGI Altix platform

              o SHUB2 is now supported

Changes to Drivers and Hardware Support

     o Sealevel 8-port serial cards are now supported

     o Added a new PWC (Philips Web Cam) driver that supports a wider range
       of webcam models

     o IBM Advanced Management Module 2 has been added to the USB storage
       whitelist for USB devices with multiple LUNs (Logical Unit Numbers)

     o EDAC (Error Detection and Correction) is now supported on the AMD
       Opteron

     o Updated Alsa driver to version 1.0.9

     o Added Alsa support for Broadwater platforms

     o Updated LMSensors smsc47b397 driver

     o Updated ixgb driver to version 1.0.109-k2

     o Updated r8169 network driver to version 2.2LK

     o Pathscale IB adapter is now supported

     o Added qla4xxx driver to support Qlogic iSCSI hardware initiator. Also
       added qla3xxx driver to provide LAN connections on the same hardware.

     o Updated Infiniband support to OFED 1.1

     o Updated e1000 driver to version 7.2.7-k2 to support Intel Pro/1000 PT
       adapter, ICH8 LAN, and Intel Dual Port 1Gb Ethernet PCI-Express
       adapter

     o Updated BNX2 driver to version 1.4.43-rh

     o Updated Broadcom TG3 driver to version 3.64-rh to support Broadcom
       BCM5787M, the Broadcom 5715 PCIExpress adapter and the Broadcom 5704S
       chip

     o Updated ipr driver to support SAS/SATA

     o LSI Logic SAS ZCR is now supported

     o sata driver now supports ULi M5289 SATA controller

     o Updated cciss driver

     o Updated qla2xx driver to support SLIM expansion card on JS21

     o Updated MPTSAS driver to version 3.02.73rh

     o Updated the LSI MegaRAID driver

     o 8139cp networking driver now supports netdump; this enables fully
       virtualized Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 guests to run netdump

   ( x86 )

References

   Visible links
   1. http://www.opencontent.org/openpub/
   2. http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/enterprise/
   3. http://gcc.gnu.org/
   4. http://gcc.gnu.org/onlinedocs/gcc-4.1.2/gcc/
   5. http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/2.0/index.html
   6. http://www.redhat.com/rhn/rhndetails/provisioning/
   7. http://www.ibm.com/eserver/iseries/access/linux/