We are proud to announce the availability of Red Hat Satellite 6.1. This new version of Satellite includes several security features, introduces new management capabilities related to containers and many other enhancements.

Improved Security

Errata Management Enhancements

Enhanced errata management refines the organization and applicability of security, bug, and enhancement patches. Improved reporting enables organizations to easily identify which hosts are affected and quickly respond to vulnerabilities such as Shellshock, Heartbleed, and GHOST. For more information on Red Hat Satellite 6.1 and errata management, visit https://access.redhat.com/articles/1446123

OpenSCAP

Satellite 6.1 provides a standardized approach to maintaining the security of enterprise systems, based upon a series of standards defined by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). This includes automatically verifying the presence of patches, checking system security configuration settings, and examining systems for signs of compromise. The OpenSCAP feature is supported as a “technology preview” for this release. For more information on Red Hat Satellite and OpenSCAP, visit https://access.redhat.com/articles/1438123

Content ISOs for Disconnected Environments

Satellite 6.1 offers the download of Content ISOs within the Red Hat Customer Portal. This allows the transport of Red Hat content into disconnected or air-gapped environments where the Satellite cannot access the Red Hat Content Delivery Network. For more information on Red Hat Satellite and content ISOs for disconnected environments, visit https://access.redhat.com/articles/1375133

Container Management

Satellite 6.1 introduces new management capabilities related to containers that enables organizations to rapidly deploy container based applications. With Satellite, users can easily manage, version and deploy container-based content (similar to how Satellite interacts with RPMs & Puppet content). For more information on Red Hat Satellite and containers, visit
https://access.redhat.com/blogs/1169563/posts/1448083

Provisioning Enhancements

Discovery Enhancements

Satellite’s discovery functionality allows automatic bare-metal discovery of unknown nodes on the provisioning network, simplifying the provisioning process. New nodes self-register to Satellite and upload their hardware facts.Based upon a rules-based syntax defined by the administrator, Satellite can determine what type of system to provision. For example, a system that reports a large amount of memory or is of a specific hardware model can be provisioned as a database server. For more information on Red Hat Satellite 6.1 and discovery, visit https://access.redhat.com/blogs/1169563/posts/1420443

Multiple Network Support

Satellite 6.1 includes enhancements to better provision systems with complex networking requirements. Previously, complex interfaces, such as VLANs, Bonds, & Aliased interfaces needed to be set up post-provisioning. Satellite 6.1 includes newer provisioning templates & workflows which enable the setup of these interfaces when the systems are initially provisioned, meaning faster, easier setup with fewer errors.

Isolated Capsule

The Red Hat Satellite Capsule Server, which is a key component of large Red Hat Satellite installations, features a number of communication improvements in Red Hat Satellite 6.1. These enhancements better isolate and streamline the communication between the managed host, Capsule Server, and Satellite Server. This means a more secure environment, and enables the administrator to more easily deploy Red Hat Satellite Capsule in their environments. For more information on Red Hat Satellite and isolated Capsules, visit https://access.redhat.com/articles/1447533

General Enhancements

Subscription management

Satellite 6.1 allows users to better report on their inventory and consumption of Red Hat and custom products. Users can easily export reports of their subscription usage, making it easier to satisfy internal and regulatory compliance requirements.

For organizations with multiple administrators and customers, Satellite 6.1 enables each tenant to manage their own subscriptions. This enables the Satellite (and associated infrastructure) to be used in a multi-tenant manner, supported by the delegation of system and subscription management via role-based access control (RBAC).

Improved stability, reliability and scalability

Satellite 6.1 has had a number of bugfixes which improve the stability, reliability and scalability of the product. Red Hat Satellite Engineering has addressed numerous bug fixes and customer requested enhancements.

Tech Preview of Red Hat Access Insights (RHAI)

Red Hat Access Insights is an automated, opt-in service that quickly identifies key risks to stability, security, or performance in Red Hat Enterprise Linux or Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform deployments. Red Hat Access Insights highlights specific stability, performance and security issues, and provides clear recommendations as to how an administrator can address them.

Improved and enhanced documentation

In addition to the typical documentation updates that come with a new release, Red Hat has added new documentation.

• A new administration guide focused solely on Puppet https://access.redhat.com/site/documentation/en-US/Red_Hat_Satellite/6.1/html/Puppet_Guide/index.html.
• Coming soon! A new reference architecture for Standard Operating Environment (SOE) is expected within 60 days of GA.