This week, after approximately two months of development, Linus Torvalds released Linux kernel 6.0. In the latest release, the most notable improvements are in CPU, virtualization, and file systems. Meanwhile, Microsoft is still struggling with Exchange vulnerabilities. While users are still waiting for a patch from the tech giant, cybersecurity researchers announced that the mitigation method announced by Microsoft can be bypassed easily. Also this week, Canonical introduced the beta version of Ubuntu Pro, the expanded security maintenance and compliance subscription.
Linux kernel 6.0 is released. What’s new?
Linus Torvalds, developer of Linux kernel has announced the final release of Linux kernel 6.0, bringing many enhancements and improvements. Linux kernel 6.0 comes with a variety of improvements; most notably in CPU, virtualization, and file systems. While it is currently available for download, it will take additional time for distributions to update their kernel versions to 6.0. Linus Torvalds decided to go on with 6.0 as the version number, instead of 5.20 because it was a big number, Linus changed the “5” and it became 6.0. Nothing revolutionary comes with Linux kernel 6.0; it is a usual kernel release.
Researchers bypass Exchange zero-day vulnerability mitigation
Microsoft Exchange zero-day vulnerabilities, still being exploited in the wild, allow hackers to breach servers and achieve remote code execution. Until now, Microsoft didn’t release any fixes that address the vulnerabilities yet, leaving users vulnerable to incoming attacks. The mitigation method, mentioned in the official advisory urges users to disable remote PowerShell access for non-admin users. Unfortunately, this method is only effective against known attacks, thus, the URL pattern is limited to them. Security researchers pinpoint that this temporary solution is not enough and can be bypassed easily.
Canonical introduces Ubuntu Pro beta with a free subscription option
Canonical introduces the expanded security maintenance and compliance subscription plan for its popular operating system, Ubuntu Pro as a public beta state. Canonical also provide a free tier version for personal and small-scale commercial use. Ubuntu Pro is expanding security coverage for critical, high, and medium Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures to thousands of applications and toolchains. It is currently available for all Ubuntu LTS releases since Ubuntu 16.04 LTS release.
cPanel is to increase its prices in December
cPanel informed its partners about a price increase for the fourth consecutive year that will come into effect from the 16th of December 2022. The company announced the price changes with an email sent to its partners. While some plans remain the same, most of them are increased by 10-13%. cPanel also introduced some new features for 2023, such as Team Manager, allowing cPanel account owners to safely and securely delegate management. The cPanel team is also working on a new product to facilitate horizontal website scaling.
Google Cloud Next ’22 kicks off on October 11
The Google Cloud Next ’22 event will start on October 11 at 9 am PDT. The event will kick off with a 24-hour digital broadcast named “follow the sun” which will feature live keynotes from five cities around the world, including New York, Sunnyvale, Tokyo, Bengaluru, and Munich. Users can join the event digitally and in person. Google Cloud Next is free for all attendees and registration is now open. Users will be able to join the event through the Google Cloud Next website.
AWS announced Ubuntu Desktop for Amazon WorkSpaces
Canonical announced the availability of Ubuntu WorkSpaces on AWS, a fully managed virtual desktop infrastructure on the public cloud and the first third-party Linux OS available on the platform. On Amazon WorkSpaces, the only options were either Windows or Amazon Linux machines until now. The new solution enables users to easily provision and scale Ubuntu WorkSpaces. Users can launch Ubuntu desktops quickly with preferred configurations and they are only needed to pay for what they use.
Next Debian Linux to include proprietary drivers and firmware
The Debian community decided that the popular distro should include proprietary drivers and firmware. The Debian community voted on incorporating non-free firmware in Debian in September, which can be one of the biggest changes in the 29-year Debian history. The voting was made with the Condorcet method and Proposal E, Choice 5 won, which will change the Debian Social Contract. From now on, Debian will include non-free firmware packages on both the official installer and live images.