Linus Torvalds officially announced the stable release of the Linux kernel 6.15 on May 25, 2025. This release marked a significant milestone in open-source development, with groundbreaking Rust integration, substantial performance improvements, and extensive hardware support expansion.
This release introduces the first Rust-written Direct Rendering Manager driver, delivers dramatic exFAT performance gains, and implements controversial but innovative subsystems that reshape kernel architecture.
Linux 6.15 introduces the foundational framework for NOVA, NVIDIA’s next-generation open-source graphics driver written entirely in Rust.
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Rust-Based NOVA Driver and Performance Enhancements
This marks Rust’s first Direct Rendering Manager driver to enter the mainline kernel, representing a paradigm shift toward memory-safe kernel development.
The NOVA driver targets RTX 2000 “Turing” series and newer GPUs, serving as a modern successor to the existing Nouveau driver.
The kernel delivers exceptional performance improvements, particularly in file system operations. Optimized cluster discarding algorithms have dramatically enhanced exFAT file deletion performance.
When using the discard mount option, deleting an 80GB test file now takes just 1.6 seconds, compared to over 4 minutes in previous versions.
This improvement implements batch discarding of contiguous clusters rather than processing them individually, as demonstrated by the performance benchmark commands:
Advanced Networking &File System Improvements
Linux 6.15 introduces zero-copy receive (zcrx) via io_uring, a revolutionary networking feature that eliminates kernel-to-user memory copying overhead.
This implementation allows network packet data to flow directly into userspace memory without traditional alignment requirements or complex mmap()/munmap() operations.
The feature requires specific NIC hardware capabilities, including header/data split, flow steering, and RSS configuration.
Btrfs receives substantial updates, including support for fast and real-time zstd compression levels (-15 to -1), which aim to improve processing speed while maintaining acceptable compression ratios.
The file system now implements intelligent fallback to buffered writes when direct I/O is attempted on files requiring checksums, reducing checksum mismatch errors in virtual machine environments.
The networking stack gains a new TCP_RTO_MAX_MS socket option, which provides enhanced control over connection timeout retry durations for IPv4 connections.
Additionally, Linux 6.15 implements a new fanotify API for real-time monitoring of filesystem mount and unmount events.
Hardware Support & Kernel Optimizations
The release expands hardware compatibility significantly, introducing Apple Touch Bar support for both Intel MacBook Pros and Apple M1/M2 models through dedicated drivers.
A new Samsung GalaxyBook driver enables comprehensive laptop functionality, including ACPI platform profiles, battery charge threshold management, and function key support.
Gaming peripherals receive enhanced support with improvements to the Sony PlayStation 5 controller through hid-playstation driver updates, and expanded racing simulator compatibility via updated hid-pidff force feedback drivers for Moza Racing and Cammus devices.
The Xpad driver now supports Turtle Beach Recon, Stealth Ultra, and PowerA Wired Controller for Xbox.
Intel networking users benefit from Intel Killer E5000 ethernet support, achieved through a single line of code recognizing it as a rebranded Realtek RTL8126.
The kernel also introduces the controversial fwctl subsystem for standardized firmware configuration and debugging through defined Remote Procedure Calls (RPCs).
Linux 6.15 represents a significant evolutionary step, balancing innovative Rust integration with proven performance optimizations across diverse hardware platforms.
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