Posted on - 7 Comments on Linux 4.20 Release – Main Changes, Arm and MIPS Architectures

Linux 4.20 Release – Main Changes, Arm and MIPS Architectures

Linux 4.20 Changelog

After Greg K-H handling Linux 4.19 release, Linus Torvalds is back at the helm, and released Linux 4.20 just before Christmas: Let’s face it, last week wasn’t quite as quiet as I would have hoped for, but there really doesn’t seem to be any point to delay 4.20 because everybody is already taking a break. And it’s not like there are any known issues, it’s just that the shortlog below is a bit longer than I would have wished for. Nothing screams “oh, that’s scary”, though. And as part of the “everybody is already taking a break”, I can happily report that I already have quite a few early pull requests in my inbox. I encouraged people to get it over and done with, so that people can just relax over the year-end holidays. In fact, I probably won’t start pulling for a couple of days, but otherwise let’s just try to keep to the normal merge window schedule, even …

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Posted on - 2 Comments on ClearFog CX 8K ARMADA 8040 Networking Board Complies with COM Express type 7 Specifications

ClearFog CX 8K ARMADA 8040 Networking Board Complies with COM Express type 7 Specifications

ClearFog CX LX2K

After ClearFog GT 8K earlier this year, SolidRun has now launched another variant of their Marvell ARMADA based ClearFog networking boards: ClearFog CX 8K. The new single board computer features the same ARMADA 8040 quad core Cortex A72 processor as found in the GT 8K model, but complies with COM Express type 7 standard, and takes the company’s  CEx7 A8040 module, and in the future any compatible COM Express type 7 module that may be launched by the company, or others. ClearFog CX 8K specifications: Supported COM Module – CEx7 A8040 Marvell ARMADA A8040 quad-core Arm Cortex A72 Memory –  Up to 16GB DDR4 DIMM Storage – M.2b & M 2280 SSD, microSD slot, on-module eMMC flash, SATA 3.0 port Networking – 4x SPF+ cages including 2x 10GbE SFP, 1x 1GbE copper (RJ45) USB – 1x USB 3.0 Expansion 2 x mPCIe 1 x PCIe x4 Gen 3.0 I/O – GPIO header Debugging – MicroUSB for debug (UART over USB) …

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Posted on - 5 Comments on Linux 4.19 Release – Main Changes, Arm and MIPS Architectures

Linux 4.19 Release – Main Changes, Arm and MIPS Architectures

Linux 4.19 Changelog

With Linus Torvalds taking a leave from the Linux kernel project, Greg Kroah-Hartman was the one to release Linux 4.19 last Sunday: Hi everyone! It’s been a long strange journey for this kernel release… While it was not the largest kernel release every by number of commits, it was larger than the last 3 releases, which is a non-trivial thing to do. After the original -rc1 bumps, things settled down on the code side and it looks like stuff came nicely together to make a solid kernel for everyone to use for a while. And given that this is going to be one of the “Long Term” kernels I end up maintaining for a few years, that’s good news for everyone. A small trickle of good bugfixes came in this week, showing that waiting an extra week was a wise choice. However odds are that linux-next is just bursting so the next -rc1 merge window is going to be bigger …

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Posted on - 5 Comments on VMWare Showcases ESXi Bare Metal Hypervisor Support for ARM64 Edge Servers

VMWare Showcases ESXi Bare Metal Hypervisor Support for ARM64 Edge Servers

ESXi ARM64

As I checked my Twitter timeline in Thunderbird this morning, I started to see a lot of tweets about #VMworld2018 and “ESXi on 64-bit Arm”. What is that? VMWare has just announced and showcased several technology innovations at VMworld 2018, including Virtualization on 64-bit ARM for Edge, and the company demonstrated ESXi on 64-bit ARM running on a windmill farm at the Edge. It may be useful to readers (and this writer) to look up what ESXi is and does exactly. As explained on VMWare website: VMware ESXi is a purpose-built bare-metal hypervisor that installs directly onto a physical server. With direct access to and control of underlying resources, ESXi is more efficient than hosted architectures and can effectively partition hardware to increase consolidation ratios and cut costs for our customers. So basically it’s an hypervisor that stays a close as possible to the hardware to keep performance optimal, and the ARM64 implementation also avoids dynamic recompilation such as  Transitive/OS …

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Posted on - 6 Comments on ClearFog GT 8K is a High-End Networking SBC Powered by Marvell ARMADA A8040 Processor

ClearFog GT 8K is a High-End Networking SBC Powered by Marvell ARMADA A8040 Processor

A few years ago, SolidRun launched ClearFog Pro and Base router boards based on Marvell ARMADA 388 Armv7 (32-bit) processor, and about a year later, the company introduced MACCHIATObin networking board powered by a more powerful Marvell ARMADA 8040 quad core Cortex A72 processor. The company has now given an upgraded to its ClearFog family with ClearFog GT 8K networking board powered on the same ARMADA A8040 processor as on the community board, and offering support for up to 16GB RAM, 6 network interfaces including one 10GbE SFP+ cage , and three mPCIe slots. ClearFog GT 8K specifications: SoC – Marvell ARMADA A8040 quad-core Cortex A72 processor up to 2GHz (commercial), up to 1.6 GHz (industrial) Memory – DIMM slot for up to 16GB DDR4 Storage – Up to 128GB eMMC flash, 64 Mbit SPI flash, micro SD slot, M.2 SSD via optional M.2 mPCIe adapter Connectivity 4x 1GbE switched LAN (RJ45) with 2.5 Gbps uplink to SoC 1x 1GbE WAN …

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Posted on - 9 Comments on Turris MOX is a Modular Router with WiFi, SSD, LTE Modem, Ethernet, and SFP (Fiber) Modules (Crowdfunding)

Turris MOX is a Modular Router with WiFi, SSD, LTE Modem, Ethernet, and SFP (Fiber) Modules (Crowdfunding)

Turris-MOX-Modular-Router

The makers of Turris Omnia router – powered by a Marvell ARMADA 385 processor and running Turris OS based on OpenWrt – have been working a new product: Turris MOX modular router which can be extended with mPCIe add-on cards for LTE, SFP cage, M.2 SSD, and so on. They will soon launch an Indiegogo campaign for it,  but in the meantimes, CZ.NIC association has a pre-campaign for a $69 MOX access point with dual band WiFI card, and intended for Turris Omnia users. The full details are not available, although we can find out a little more through root.cz and the video embedded below. The system is comprised of a basic MOX A module powered by a dual-core Armada 3720 processor coupled with 512 MB RAM, as well as USB 3.0, Gigabit Ethernet, and an I/O expansion header with GPIO, SDIO, UART and I2C.  There’s also an mPCIe port that can currently be used by one to three modules …

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Posted on - 7 Comments on SolidRun MACCHIATObin Single Shot Networking Board Launched for $269 and Up

SolidRun MACCHIATObin Single Shot Networking Board Launched for $269 and Up

Earlier this month, I listed SoliRun MACCHIATObin networking board as one of the top 5 most powerful ARM boards in 2017/2018, thanks to its fast quad core Cortex A72 processor, support for up to 16GB RAM, three SATA interfaces, and network connectivity options with several Ethernet copper/SFP interfaces up to 10 Gbps. The problem with powerful boards is that they can be expensive, and the original MACCHIATOBin (Double Shot) board sells for $369 and up. The good news is that SolidRun has just launched a cheaper version called MAACHIATOBin Single Shot with a quad core Cortex A72 processor limited to 1.6 GHz (instead of 2.0 GHz), and the two 10 Gbps interface are only accessibly through SFP cages, and not Ethernet copper (RJ45) ports anymore. MACCHIATOBin Single Shot is based on the same PCB as the original version of the board, and the rest of the specifications are just the same: SoC – ARMADA 8040 (88F8040) quad core Cortex A72 …

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Posted on - No Comments on Marvell 802.11ax WiFi Chips are Designed for Enterprise Gateways, Mainstream Routers, and Set-Top Boxes

Marvell 802.11ax WiFi Chips are Designed for Enterprise Gateways, Mainstream Routers, and Set-Top Boxes

High-Efficiency Wireless (HEW), better known as 802.11ax, is a new WiFi standard that is supposed to deliver up to 10 Gbps bandwidth over 2.4 and 5.0 GHz frequencies, and improve the average throughput per user by a factor of at least 4 times in dense environments. Several draft of the specifications have been voted on, but the latest 802.11ax timeline seems to indicate the final 802.11ax specifications will only be approved sometimes in 2019. This has not prevented companies to announce or unveil 802.11ax SoC or solutions based on the draft specifications, as we’ve seen in the past with NXP Layerscape LA1575 programmable WiSoC, Qualcomm gateway reference design, and Broadcom Max WiFi chips. Marvell has now joined the fray with their 802.11ax wireless portfolio. All Marvell 802.1ax WiSoCs support all using uplink & download OFDMA / MU-MIMO, 1024 QAM, off-channel spectrum scanning, dedicated in-service monitoring, and precision location. Three SKUs have been launched for different markets / products Marvell 88W9068 …

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