kpatch

Article summary

kpatch is a feature of the Linux kernel that implements live patching of a running kernel, which allows kernel patches to be applied while the kernel is still running. By avoiding the need for rebooting the system with a new kernel that contains the desired patches, kpatch aims to maximize the system uptime and availability. At the same time, kpatch allows kernel-related security updates to be applied without deferring them to scheduled downtimes. Internally, kpatch allows entire functions in a running kernel to be replaced with their patched versions, doing that safely by stopping all running processes while the live patching is performed. kpatch is developed by Red Hat, with its source code licensed under the terms of the GNU General Public License version 2 (GPLv2). In May 2014, kpatch was submitted for inclusion into the Linux kernel mainline, and the minimalistic foundations for live patching were merged into the Linux kernel mainline in kernel version 4.0, which was released on April 12, 2015.

Key claims

1. release date: 2015-04-12 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the release date is "2015-04-12". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

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