The Linux Foundation identified Ricardo Neri’s July 26, 2020 change, “x86/cpufeatures: Add enumeration for SERIALIZE instruction,” as the Linux kernel’s millionth commit. That ordinal depends on a specific counting method: the Foundation combined a converted BitKeeper history with Linus Torvalds’ repository history and identified the merge where the total passed one million.
Who made the millionth Linux kernel commit?
The author was Ricardo Neri of Intel. The Linux Foundation’s September 30, 2020 account names his commit, “x86/cpufeatures: Add enumeration for SERIALIZE instruction”, as the millionth under its method. The commit is dated July 26, 2020.
The change added enumeration support for the SERIALIZE instruction: it let the kernel identify the processor feature. The Foundation associated the instruction at the time with Intel’s then-forthcoming Sapphire Rapids and Alder Lake microarchitectures; that was 2020 context, not a statement about their present status.
How did the Linux Foundation count to one million?
“Millionth” is not an ordinal independent of how repository history is assembled. The Foundation’s count included an older BitKeeper repository converted to Git, then tracked the commit count in Linus Torvalds’ repository to find the merge at which their combined history crossed the threshold.
#1 Best Overall
- Count the converted historical repository. The Foundation said the BitKeeper history converted to Git contained 63,428 commits.
- Find the needed count in Linus Torvalds’ repository. Subtracting 63,428 from 1,000,000 gives 936,572. The Foundation looked for a merge at which Torvalds’ repository had reached at least that many commits.
- Locate the crossing merge. At merge
92c59e126b21fd212195358a0d296e787e444087, the Foundation’s example count was 936,456—116 short of 936,572. At the next merge,2f3fbfdaf77f3ac417d0511fac221f76af79f6fc, it was 937,105. - Identify the commit that crossed the threshold. The Foundation reported a combined total of 1,000,533 at the crossing merge and named commit
85b23fbc7d88f8c6e3951721802d7845bc39663d, authored by Neri, as the millionth.
The 936,572 figure is the target for Linus Torvalds’ repository after accounting for the 63,428 historical commits. The reported total of 1,000,533 is the combined count at the crossing merge, so it is higher than one million.
When did the commit and merge happen?
The Foundation’s account dates Neri’s commit to Sunday, July 26, 2020, and the crossing merge to Monday, August 3, 2020. Those are different events: the commit was authored first, then became part of the history at the merge where the combined count passed the threshold.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What does “millionth commit” mean here?
It means the commit the Linux Foundation’s stated history and counting convention places at the million mark—not a universal label guaranteed to hold under every possible way of combining or counting repository history. The distinction matters because the identification depends on including the converted BitKeeper commits and counting through Linus Torvalds’ merges.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →
