Greg Kroah-Hartman, aka Greg KH, is one of the most prolific Linux kernel maintainers in the community. As the stable branch maintainer, he is seen as second-in-command after Linus Torvalds. At the recent Open Source Summit in Vienna, Austria, I had the chance to sit down with KH to discuss topics ranging from the growth of niche communities—like those focused on gaming systems and RISC-V processors—to the long-term sustainability of the Linux maintainer ecosystem.

Balancing the Workload

While Torvalds has voiced concerns about KH juggling too many responsibilities, he remains pragmatic, attributing his efficiency to collaboration and automation. KH mentioned that he shared the workload with Sasha Levin and Lee Jones, particularly on CVE-related tasks, and employed tools like automated email responses to stay productive.

Despite the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT, KH emphasized that email remains the fastest and most effective communication method for kernel development.

Sustaining the Community

The aging Linux maintainer community is a growing concern. KH acknowledged the challenge of sustainability but highlighted the presence of experienced maintainers and the influx of new contributors. He talked about efforts to onboard new contributors through internship programs and initiatives that lower barriers to entry. KH also discussed the need for companies to support maintainers financially and the challenges of funding housekeeping and technical debt cleanup.

In-Person Collaboration

Although most of the kernel community operates remotely, Greg underscored the value of in-person interactions at conferences for resolving intricate technical issues. He recounted his experience at the Rust Kernel conference in Copenhagen, where in-person discussions proved invaluable. While video conferencing has gained traction for technical discussions, KH still finds it less effective than physical meetings.

Resilience Amidst Geopolitical Challenges

Talking about the geopolitical crisis, KH highlighted that open source’s academic nature and commitment to the free flow of information make it resilient to governmental restrictions. He also talked about the importance of digital sovereignty and the role of open source in providing solutions for smaller countries. KH further mentioned the support from European governments for open source projects and the benefits of local ecosystem enrichment.

Guest: Greg Kroah-Hartman
Show: Let’s Talk