Ubuntu maker Canonical is proud to announce the general availability of their enterprise-grade real-time Ubuntu kernel for systems running on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS. This revolutionary security and reliability feature provides enterprises with an unparalleled level of end-to-end protection for time-sensitive workloads, giving companies the confidence they need in a modern digital environment.
The real-time Ubuntu kernel has been created to meet the needs of a multitude of sectors, from aerospace and automotive to defense, IoT, robotics, and telcos. Not only does it provide an ideal platform for public sector organizations or retailers, but also allows enterprises to handle their most exacting workloads swiftly with reduced latency in performance.
Ubuntu’s new RT kernel flavor, available for both x86_64 and ARM architectures, is based on the long-term supported Linux 5.15 LTS kernel found in Ubuntu 22.04 LTS (Jammy Jellyfish). This version of the mainline Linux kernel features out-of-tree PREEMPT_RT patches that make it more preemptive than its predecessors by utilizing a real-time scheduling class with priority above the CFS scheduler.
“The real-time Ubuntu kernel delivers industrial-grade performance and resilience for software-defined manufacturing, monitoring, and operational tech,” said Mark Shuttleworth, CEO at Canonical. “Ubuntu is now the world’s best silicon-optimized AIOT platform on NVIDIA, Intel, MediaTek, and AMD-Xilinx silicon.”
Canonical has developed the real-time Ubuntu kernel to meet telco networks’ 5G transformation needs, but it’s also a great fit for various enterprises, from industrial PCs to HMIs who are looking to expedite their technology adoption.
Unlock the full power of Ubuntu with an Ubuntu Pro subscription – entirely free for personal and small businesses (up to 5 machines) use. After enabling your membership, open a terminal emulator and input this command below to activate real-time kernel features.
pro enable realtime-kernel
To keep your real-time kernel package up to date, it is essential that you execute the command:
sudo apt install ubuntu-realtime
or
sudo apt install linux-image-realtime
To return to your default Ubuntu kernel, you will need to reconfigure the GRUB bootloader manually.
Please keep in mind that the real-time kernel is incompatible with NVIDIA’s proprietary graphics drivers and cannot be activated while utilizing Canonical’s Livepatch feature. This powerful update tool allows you to install critical updates without needing a reboot.
Canonical is excited to bring even more features to its real-time kernel, including the advanced full-task isolation patchset. This powerful and reliable technology can be found out of the box on Ubuntu Core 22 – an optimized containerized version of Ubuntu designed for working with edge devices.
