We are excited to announce the general availability of OpenNebula 6.10 “Bubble” Beta 1, the first beta version of 6.10, intended for testers and developers to try the new features. All new functionality is present in this release, and only bug fixes will be implemented between this release and the final 6.10 version. Please check the known issues before submitting an issue through GitHub. Also, note that being a development version, there is no migration path from the previous stable version (6.8.x) nor a migration path to the final stable version (6.10.0). A list of open issues can be found in the GitHub development portal.

OpenNebula 6.10 “Bubble” is the sixth stable release of the OpenNebula 6 series. This release includes major improvements in backups and substantial updates to our Sunstone User Interface.

Key Highlights of OpenNebula 6.10

1.  Upgraded Backup Features

Building on the valuable feedback from our customers and users since OpenNebula 6.8, we’ve made several advancements in our backup capabilities:

• Incremental backups: now based on snapshots for greater efficiency.
• In-place restores: simply replace the disk of the VMs you wish to restore.
• Selective disk restore: restore a single disk without altering or impacting the others associated with the virtual machine during the process.
• Custom backup locations: define specific backup locations per datastore to address storage issues effectively.

2.   Enhanced PCI Passthrough

We’re mastering our support for PCI passthrough, with ongoing refinements expected in the near future. This includes:

• Generic device attach/detach: streamline the process without needing to destroy and recreate VMs.
• Expanded GPU support: increased flexibility with GPUs and virtual GPUs, reflecting the growing importance of this feature.

3.   Poweroff and Suspend Recovery

OpenNebula 6.10 enables recovery operations for VMs that are poweroff or suspended, improving operational resilience.

4.   Multi-Tenancy Developments

We’ve introduced a number of changes to facilitate multi-tenancy:

• Generic quotas: set and manage your own disk quotas, moving beyond predefined limits.
• Restricted attributes: new restrictions for images and Virtual Networks ensure finer control.

5.   Integration with New Linux Distributions

OpenNebula 6.10 now includes both Ubuntu 24 and Debian 12, broadening its compatibility with modern Linux environments.

Spotlight on the Modernized Sunstone Web User Interface

We’re thrilled to introduce the fully-featured FireEdge Sunstone within OpenNebula 6.10:

• FireEdge Sunstone overview: a reference to the backend server supporting this Sunstone frontend. It will eventually serve other web interfaces, such as OneProvision Graphical User Interface. Once the transition is complete, this interface will be known simply as Sunstone.
• Legacy Ruby Sunstone: will remain in LTS for three more years without new additions. Future enhancements will be exclusive to the new interface.
• Feature parity achieved: FireEdge Sunstone matches all the functionality of Ruby Sunstone, making it a ready replacement for your end users and administrators.
• Modern technologies: built with a Node.js server, React framework, and Guacamole for VNC, RDP, and SSH connectivity via console. Websockets ensure dynamic adjustments of resources in the interface.
• What’s ahead: with a modern code base, we can now more effectively elevate the look, feel, and user experience of FireEdge Sunstone—an evolution that was challenging to achieve with the older Ruby Sunstone code.

You can review the complete list of changes in OpenNebula 6.10 here.

Conclusion

As always, OpenNebula 6.10 is named after a Nebula—the Bubble Nebula (Caldwell 11). This H II region emission nebula, located in the constellation Cassiopeia, is known for the “bubble” created by the stellar wind from the massive, young star SAO 20575.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who supports the project. OpenNebula’s success is thanks to its vibrant community.

Get involved by joining our forum, participating in discussions, and contributing to future releases. Your engagement helps us drive innovation and improve the OpenNebula experience for everyone.

🇪🇺 Part of the new functionality in OpenNebula 6.10 “Bubble” has been funded by the following innovation projects: SovereignEdge.Cognit (Grant Agreement 101092711), through the European Union’s Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Programme; OneEdge5G (Grant Agreement TSI-064200-2023-1), supported by the Spanish Ministry for Digital Transformation and Civil Service through the UNICO I+D 6G Program, co-funded by the European Union–NextGenerationEU through the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF); OneNextGen (Grant Agreement UNICO IPCEI-2023-003), supported by the Spanish Ministry for Digital Transformation and Civil Service through the UNICO IPCEI Program, co-funded by the European Union–NextGenerationEU through the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).