Red Hat is pleased to announce the beta availability of Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform 5.0, our offering that combines the power of Red Hat Enterprise Linux with Red Hat OpenStack technology to deliver a scalable and secure foundation for building an open private or public cloud. The combination of these two powerful technologies can benefit users who are exploring the early stages of an OpenStack deployment or moving their resources into an open hybrid cloud environment with a solution like Red Hat Cloud Infrastructure.

The beta release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform 5.0 includes both OpenStack Icehouse, the newest version of the rapidly maturing open source cloud software platform, and the beta of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, the next version of Red Hat’s flagship operating platform, continuing our efforts to deliver an enterprise-class OpenStack offering. Shortly following will be a second release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform 5.0 supporting Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6. Red Hat will maintain these dual versions for a period of time to support both Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 and 7, so customers can choose the distribution that best complements their current operating system.

This beta release includes important advancements in compute, storage, and networking for users who want to gain a holistic OpenStack experience based on the security and stability of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Additionally, Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform 5.0 beta brings significant installation and configuration enhancements, helping to simplify OpenStack deployments for new users. There are hundreds of updates and new features included in this release. However, here is a highlight of some of the new key advancements.

Advancements in Compute
A new compute API enhancement facilitates the use of Instance-groups, which provides affinity and anti-affinity policies to determine how virtual machines must be scheduled in relation to hosts within a group. These new policies ensure specific application workloads are either grouped together or prevented from being scheduled on the same host, ensuring optimal performance without overload and providing fault-tolerance when necessary.

Updates to Cinder Storage Capabilities
An updated OpenStack Block Storage (Cinder) Backup API offers new functionality that allows for the export and import of backup service metadata. While the ability to back up data already exists in the API, the Icehouse release introduces the ability to include the Cinder database metadata, which is critical for data restoration in the event of a disaster recovery.

Enhanced Networking Plugins
The new Modular Layer 2 (ML2) plugin for OpenStack Networking (Neutron) in Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform 5 beta now eases the addition of new Layer 2 networking technologies and continues to provide support for existing plugins, including Open vSwitch. The new ML2 plugin also enables Single Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV) PCI passthrough, which improves network performance by enabling traffic to bypass the software switch layer. This is important for customers with heterogeneous network environments who want to mix plugins for networking systems.

Additionally, there is now an OpenDaylight driver for the ML2 plugin, enabling communication between Neutron and OpenDaylight to help create a solid foundation for NFV (Network Functions Virtualization) technologies.

Easing Enterprise OpenStack Deployments with New Installation and Configuration Enhancements
The full GA release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform 5 will also introduce an improved, robust OpenStack installer for those making their way to an OpenStack cloud. The new installer, expected to debut in the upcoming RHEL-OSP 5.0 GA, will integrate through a plugin for Foreman. The Foreman open source project gives system administrators the power to easily automate repetitive tasks, quickly deploy applications, and proactively manage servers, on-premises or in the cloud, this new installer will greatly simplify the initial OpenStack deployment and ensure the healthy development of a complete OpenStack infrastructure. Features will include a simple step-by-step “wizard-style” graphical user interface (GUI) that will guide users through the deployment process and installation complexities.

Click here access or learn more about the beta version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform 5.0.