A new XanMod Linux Kernel based on Linux Kernel 6.8.1 has been released. XanMod is a general-purpose Linux kernel distribution with custom settings and new features. The real-time version is recommended for critical runtime applications such as Linux gaming eSports, streaming, live productions and ultra-low latency enthusiasts.

Linux 6.8.1-xanmod1

XanMod is a general-purpose Linux kernel distribution with custom settings and new features. Built to provide a stable, responsive and smooth desktop experience.

The real-time version is recommended for critical runtime applications such as Linux gaming eSports, streaming, live productions and ultra-low latency enthusiasts.

Supports all recent 64-bit versions of Debian and Ubuntu-based systems.

Main Features

• Preemptive Full Tickless Kernel at 500Hz w/ Tuned CPU Core Scheduler.
• RCU Boost for better responsiveness and lower overall system latency.
• Block Layer w/ multi-threaded runqueue for high I/O throughput.
• Caching, Virtual Memory Manager and CPUFreq Governor improvements.
• BBR TCP Congestion Control + FQ-PIE Packet Scheduling and AQM Algorithm [5.8].
• ORC Unwinder for Kernel Stack Traces (debuginfo) implementation.
• Third-party patchset available: ZSTD kernel, initrd and modules support [5.8][5.6-rt], Full x86_64 FSGSBASE instructions [5.8], Clear Linux [partial], CK's Hrtimer Patchset [5.8][5.4], Wine / Proton Fsync, PCIe ACS Override, BMQ Process Scheduler [5.4 stock disabled], Aufs [5.4] and GCC graysky's.
• Real-time Linux kernel (PREEMPT_RT) build available [5.6-rt][5.4-rt].
• Generic kernel package for compatibility with most Debian & Ubuntu based distributions. Built on the latest GCC 10.2 and Binutils 2.35.
• GPLv2 license. Can be built for any distribution or purpose.

Install via Terminal

echo 'deb http://deb.xanmod.org releases main' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/xanmod-kernel.list && wget -qO - https://dl.xanmod.org/gpg.key | sudo apt-key add -

Then update and install:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install linux-xanmod

Reboot.

Meta packages available: linux-xanmod, linux-xanmod-edge, linux-xanmod-lts, linux-xanmod-rt-edge and linux-xanmod-rt.

To try without adding the repository

Download from Sourceforge and install:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/xanmod/files/

1. In terminal:

   sudo dpkg -i linux-image-*xanmod*.deb linux-headers-*xanmod*.deb

2. Reboot.

• Check it:

  cat /proc/version

* linux-firmware-image package is optional

• 043a456 Linux 6.8.1-xanmod1
• f30ce07 Merge tag 'v6.8.1' into 6.8
• 8a8b2a0 Linux 6.8.1
• 50d33b9 KVM/x86: Export RFDS_NO and RFDS_CLEAR to guests
• c8a1b14 x86/rfds: Mitigate Register File Data Sampling (RFDS)
• 7586a7c Documentation/hw-vuln: Add documentation for RFDS
• 056c33c x86/mmio: Disable KVM mitigation when X86_FEATURE_CLEAR_CPU_BUF is set

Homepage
Download Linux 6.8.1-xanmod1 source from GitHub