Red Hat Rolls Out Beta Of Severn
The beta, which can be downloaded as a collection of .iso files from the Red Hat Web site as well as numerous mirror sites, includes changes to the installation process, as well as enhanced security features and a laptop mode that allows the hard drive to be idled, saving battery power.
The kernel now includes Exec-shield, which should limit the operating system's vulnerability to buffer overflows -- a common exploit used by attackers -- and now prevents the loading of kernel modules by intruders.
With the debut of the beta, Red Hat also announced it was ending Red Hat Linux as a retail product. Instead, it's opening development to the Linux community, a program it calls the Red Hat Enterprise Project. The company will base future commercial releases on Severn, Red Hat said.
This story courtesy of TechWeb .