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Timecodes:
00:00 Intro
00:35 Sponsor: TuxCare
01:49 Linux Kernel
03:08 Generic Stable kernel
04:54 LTS Kernel
06:03 Libre Kernel
07:05 Hardened Kernel
08:09 Real Time / Low latency
09:48 Android kernel
11:05 Zen, Liquorix and Xanmod
13:00 TKG kernel
13:47 What should you use?
15:15 Sponsor: Tuxedo Computers
16:26 Support the channel


The "official" Linux kernel, straight from Linus Torvalds and all the kernel developers, you generally see a new version every 2 to 2 and a half months.

All stable versions of the Linux kernel are numbered in the usual scheme, so major number DOT minor number, but they also have really strange codenames. Some distros tend to modify these kernels with additional patches, or features that haven't been added yet, which is why you can see some kernel versions with a "-ubuntu" at the end for example.

Certain kernel versions are also marked as LTS, meaning Long Term support. These are versions that will be supported for much longer, up to 6 years. The Linux kernel project recently reduced that support window to 2 years.

Since both the stable and LTS kernels ship with some non free firmware, there's the Kernel Libre project, which removes all of that, to only ship software and code that is completely free, as in freedom..

Next, we have the hardened kernel. It's not an "official" project per se, it's a kernel version that certain distros ship in their repos, like Arch Linux for example. It's the stable kernel, with an additional patch set applied to it to make it more resilient security-wise.

Next, we have the realtime kernel. The goal is to reduce the latency between a task being assigned to the CPU, and its execution, and it's mainly meant for industrial applications, or for audio production.
This, in turn, makes it less efficient for multi tasking, and it requires a lot more manual config to be efficient, and applications need to be specifically tailored to take advantage of this lower latency.

The low latency kernel variants do the same thing, but at a lesser degree: it still lets you pre-empt CPU threads like the real time kernel, but it isn't as regular as the realtime kernel.

The Android kernel is focused on supporting a specific category of devices, meaning that it has optimizations for these exact things.

The Zen kernel applies a few fixes and improvements meant to have the best performance and experience for linux desktop users. It's also packaged as the Liquorix kernel for Ubuntu or Debian, and other distros, although Liquorix isn't exactly like the Zen kernel.

Another version is the XanMod kernel, with sort of the same optimization as the Zen kernel, and a few more on top of that, with the same goal: improving the performance of Linux systems.

Finally, we have the TKG kernels, and I'm saying kernels, because TKG isn't a specific Linux kernel you can download and use, it's more like a build system that lets you choose a few specific patches and compile your own kernel with that.

The Linux Experiment

The Linux kernel, though often seen as a unified system, has numerous variants tailored for different needs. Key versions include the stable kernel, LTS kernel, real-time kernel, low-latency kernel, and specialized versions like the Android, Zen, Xanmod, and TKG kernels. Each version offers unique features, optimizations, and use cases, from general stability to tailored performance improvements. Users can experiment with different kernels suitable for their hardware and specific requirements.

LINUX KERNEL variants explained: Zen, Xanmod, TKG, RealTime, Liquorix...