At the end of every Linux kernel development cycle, the merge window opens for the next release, in this case, Linux 4.17. Now, two weeks later, the merge window is closed, and public testers can start downloading, compiling, and installing the upcoming Linux 4.17 kernel on their favorite GNU/Linux distributions. As this is a development version, it’s not recommended for deployment in production machines. Linux kernel 4.17 doesn’t look to be a big release, and it won’t include any major new features, according to Linus Torvalds, which teased the Linux community with the future release of the Linux 5.0 kernel series.