Re: The possibility of vms opening up?

Larry Kilgallen wrote:
In article <1152100090.638589.133370@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "geletine" <adaviscg1@xxxxxxxxxxx> writes:
Main, Kerry wrote:

2. If a security patch does get released, at the local level, who
ensures the patch does not break clustering, forward-backward
compatibility or other specific configs like an older version of the OS
? The responsibility for testing and ensuring OS compatibility with all
of the other OS and layered product patches falls on the shoulder of the
local IT person. For some shops with very knowledgeable technical staff,
that may be acceptable.

If you look at the linux kernel for instance, all fixes are released in
patches and support the older kernels for backward compatibility.

The issue is not the _intentions_ regarding compatibility.

The question was "who ensures the patch does not break...". The
average single contributor does not have the resources to test a
patch in all environments, particularly on large SMP machines with
particular hardware devices. In some cases we are talking machines
that cost in excess of a million dollars.

Normally the patches for Linux are kept back a few days, such that the kernel developers at the vendors can test them. No that does leave room for an exhaustive test, but nobody can test all possibilities, e.g., HP does not have the resources for testing VMS on all platforms in all configurations either. In particular they do not have the resources to test VMS in all possible combinations of hardware and software.
.

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