[Hwcert-announce-list] Red Hat Hardware Certification Test Suite (hwcert-client-1.5.9-28) Beta Package Available

[Engineering Partner Management]

Greetings Red Hat Partners,

We are pleased to announce the availability of the Red Hat Hardware 
Certification Test Suite Beta (hwcert-client-1.5.9-28) for testing 
purposes with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.x releases.

The Red Hat Hardware Certification Test Suite Beta package 
(hwcert-client-1.5.9-28) is *not* an official release and should be 
*not* used for Red Hat Enterprise Linux certification submissions. The 
current Red Hat v7 Hardware Test Suite (v7-1.5-33) should continue to be 
used for official Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.x certifications.

The Red Hat Hardware Certification Test Suite Beta is available at the 
following location:

ftp://partners.redhat.com/a166eabc5cf5df158922f9b06e5e7b21/hwcert/RHEL5/hwcert-client/1.5.9/


Highlights of the hwcert-client-1.5.9-28 test suite beta include:

* The test suite name is changed from v7 to hwcert-client.

* The hwcert-client-1.5.9-28 package only supports Red Hat Enterprise 
Linux 5.x releases. This continues the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 
version-specific test suite split introduced with v7-1.6 for Red Hat 
Enterprise Linux 6.x.

* The command "hwcert" (/usr/bin/hwcert) is introduced as the new 
default command. This command will attempt to complete any outstanding 
tests to certify the system while avoiding duplicate testing. This 
command behaves similarly to the previous "v7 certify" command.

* The hwcert-server-1.5 package is now deprecated. Test servers are 
standardized on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 and are required to use the 
hwcert-server-1.6 package.

* The "plan" step is automated in the hwcert command and does not need 
to be manually run.

* A new package called "hwcert-client-info" is added. This package 
contains product release information, including kernel versions, that 
can be used by the test suite in environments where the the Red Hat 
partner FTP server cannot be reached to retrieve the latest product 
information.

* The results RPMs data format is now deprecated. Results RPMs are no 
longer built during the "submit" step.

* The previous manual "v7" command behavior is migrated to the 
"hwcert-backend" command.

* Due to bug #957553, the kdump and reboot tests do not complete properly.

* New hwcert-{arch} and hwcert-{data} images are provided on:

ftp://partners.redhat.com/a166eabc5cf5df158922f9b06e5e7b21/hwcert/RHEL5/fv-images/

The FV guest images here are identical to those used with previous v7 
releases. The hwcert-data image is a beta image containing the beta test 
suite hwcert-client-1.5.9-28.el5 for the RHEL5 + Xen based FV guest images.


The hwcert-client-1.5.9-28 package has been tested against Red Hat 
Enterprise Linux 5.9 on the x86, x86_64, ppc64, and s390x architectures. 
If you encounter any problems, please file bugs against the 'Red Hat 
Hardware Certification Program' product in Red Hat Bugzilla 
(https://bugzilla.redhat.com).


Changelog between v7-1.5.33 and hwcert-client-1.5.9-28:

   872434 - pccard: Traceback if no PC Card plugged into the slot
   916358 - The xml should be updated to include RHEL5.9 GA kernel
   918737 - v7 tracebacks when <partner-server> is empty or missing
   918741 - [1.5] FEAT: ship kernelinfo.xml in it's own package
   919498 - FEAT: change the test suite command set to attempt to ...
   919499 - FEAT: deprecate results rpm building code
   920737 - hwcert-client 1.5.9 fv_tests fail - naming inconsistencies
   921224 - hwcert-client 1.5.9 R6 syntax error in kdump test
   921227 - FEAT: Rename v7 to hwcert-backend
   921236 - FEAT: address prompting quirks from 'hwcert' command
   921585 - hwcert-client 1.5.9 should not include a server package
   923199 - kdump reboot fills console output asking for deleting ...
   947961 - INFO: traceback when check rpm package
   951676 - need %obsoletes v7
   952829 - adding reboot test causes traceback
   955759 - plan on xen kernel errors with NameError: global name ...
   956323 - 1.5 fv_* test traceback

Known Issues list for hwcert-client-1.5.9-28:

   957557 - hwlatdetect fails to import
   957553 - hwcert-backend continue fails with traceback


We value your ongoing participation in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 
development, testing, and certification efforts. Thank you for your 
continued partnership. If you have any questions or comments, please do 
not hesitate to contact your Partner Manager or Technical Account Manager.

Regards,

The Red Hat Hardware Certification Team