NTC IT ROSA has released the ROSA Fresh 12 distribution based on the new rosa2021.1 platform. ROSA Fresh 12 is positioned as the first release demonstrating the capabilities of the new platform. This release is primarily aimed at Linux enthusiasts and contains the latest versions of software. Currently, only the image with the KDE Plasma 5 desktop environment has been officially formed. Releases with other desktop environments and the server version are being prepared and will be available soon.
Notable features of the new rosa2021.1 platform, which replaces rosa2016.1, include:
- The transition from package managers RPM 5 and urpmi to RPM 4 and dnf, which has made the package system work much more stably and predictably.
- The package base has been updated, including updates to Glibc 2.33 (in compatibility mode with Linux kernels up to 4.14.x), GCC 11.2, and systemd 249+.
- Full support for the aarch64 (ARMv8) platform has been added, including support for the Russian "Baikal-M" processors. Support for the e2k architecture ("Elbrus") is under development.
- The 32-bit x86 architecture has been renamed from i586 to i686. The repository for the 32-bit x86 architecture (i686) continues to exist, but this architecture is no longer tested by the quality control department.
- The minimal base system has been improved, significantly reducing its size, and regular builds of minimal rootfs are provided for all three supported architectures, which can be used to create containers based on the rosa2021.1 platform or for system installation (to obtain a bootable OS, it is enough to install a few meta-packages: dnf install basesystem-mandatory task-kernel grub2(-efi) task-x11, as well as install the OS bootloader (grub2-install)).
- The availability of certain additional kernel modules in binary form (drivers for Wi-Fi/Bluetooth adapters Realtek RTL8821CU, RTL8821CE, Broadcom (broadcom-wl)) is ensured, and they are provided "out of the box," which eliminates the need to compile them on your computer; plans to expand the list of binary modules are in place, including the imminent availability of proprietary NVIDIA driver kernel modules ready for use without compilation.
- The installation program (installer) uses the Anaconda project, which has been refined in collaboration with the upstream to enhance user experience.
- Automated methods for operating system deployment have been implemented: PXE and automatic installation via Kickstart scripts (instructions).
- Compatibility with RPM packages for RHEL, CentOS, Fedora, SUSE distributions has been improved: bindings have been added to some differently named packages, and package manager compatibility with the repository metadata format has been ensured (for example, when installing the RPM package with the proprietary Google Chrome browser, its attached repository will be used).
- The server side of the distribution has been significantly improved: minimal server image builds have been established, and many server packages are being worked on; their development and documentation writing are ongoing.
- A unified mechanism for building all official ISO images has been created, which can also be used for creating custom builds.
- Active use of the directory /usr/libexec has begun.
- IMA functionality has been ensured, including the use of GOST algorithms; plans include integrating IMA signatures into official packages.
- The RPM database has been migrated from BerkleyDB to SQlite.
- For DNS resolution, systemd-resolved is used by default.
Features of the ROSA Fresh 12 release:
- The login interface has been updated based on GDM.
- The interface design has been revamped (based on the breeze style, with an original icon set) to align with modern trends while maintaining recognizability, color scheme, and usability.
- Support for easily and quickly organizing a closed software environment "out of the box" has been provided, allowing the administrator to prohibit the execution of untrusted code (the administrator determines what is considered trusted, and trust in third-party software is not imposed), which is relevant for building highly secure desktop, server, and cloud environments (IMA).
Source: opennet.ru
