The Linux kernel is the most important part of the operating system. It contains everything essential for the system to function. It is also the part where all the drivers necessary for the hardware to function are included. This kernel is constantly receiving changes, improvements and corrections from the community in order to make Linux work as well as possible. And today, Linus Torvalds, its creator, has just announced the release of a new version: 6.11.
When we install Linux on our computer, what we are doing is installing a distribution of the operating system, that is, a version that has been created by a group of users (or an organization, such as Red Hat or Canonical) that combines this core with a series of programs, tools and drivers necessary for the system to be installed on a PC and to work. In this way, we can take advantage of all the advantages and virtues of this system that, little by little, is closing the gap with Windows and macOS.
Let’s see everything that this new version of Linux brings us.
What’s new in Linux 6.11
This new version comes two months after the release of the previous version, 6.10. And, as usual, most of the new features are in the drivers section. Thus, for example, we find a large number of changes and improvements for all types of processors. For example, AMD has added the possibility of taking advantage of the Core Performance Boost of the CPUs, in addition to a new, much more efficient energy cycle, AMD Fast CPPC. Intel has also received its share of improvements, especially for the Lunar Lake range. The TPMI driver has been optimized, and support for NUMA has been improved.
This new version of the Linux kernel also improves many other aspects of the system. For example, support for ARM and Risc-V processors is improved. And support for new hardware is added, such as the Lenovo Yoga C630 WOS, as well as webcams, fans and many other components from manufacturers such as Lenovo and Dell.
We can see the complete list of new features in Linus Torvalds’ own announcement.
How to download and update
The new Linux 6.11 kernel is now available on the main kernel website, kernel.org. We can go to its website and download the source code to compile it ourselves, if we want to and know how to do it. In any case, this is a very complicated process that, unless we have to do it for some reason, is best avoided.
Ideally, we should wait for the maintainers of our distribution to release their own version of the kernel. In the case of Rolling Release distros, such as Arch Linux or Debian Testing, they will receive the new kernel automatically, in the next few days, through an update. However, if we use other distros with closed development cycles, such as Ubuntu or Linux Mint, then we will have to wait for the release of the next version, such as Ubuntu 24.10, to be able to receive this new version of the kernel.
There are also programs, such as Ukku or Mainline, that allow us to download and install the latest versions of the kernel easily. An intermediate alternative for those who want to be up to date without taking too many risks.
