v50.0

This release has been tracked in [v50.0
group](https://github.com/orgs/cloud-hypervisor/projects/6/views/6?filterQuery=release%3A%22Release+50%22)
of our [roadmap project](https://github.com/orgs/cloud-hypervisor/projects/6/).

Configurable Nested Virtualization Option on x86_64
---------------------------------------------------

The `nested=on|off` option has been added to `--cpu` to allow users
to configure nested virtualization support in the guest on x86_64
hosts (for both KVM and MSHV). The default value is `on` to maintain
consistency with existing behavior. (#7408)

Compression Support for QCOW2
-----------------------------

QCOW2 support has been extended to handle compression clusters based on
zlib and zstd. (#7462)

Notable Performance Improvements
--------------------------------

Performance of live migration has been improved via an optimized
implementation of dirty bitmap maintenance. (#7468)

Live Disk Resizing Support for Raw Images
-----------------------------------------

The `/vm.resize-disk` API has been introduced to allow users to resize block
devices backed by raw images while a guest is running. (#7476)

Developer Experience Improvements
---------------------------------

Significant improvements have been made to developer experience and
productivity. These include a simplified root manifest, codified and
tightened Clippy lints, and streamlined workflows for `cargo clippy` and
`cargo test`. (#7489)

Improved File-level Locking Support
-----------------------------------

Block devices now use byte-range advisory locks instead of whole-file
locks. While both approaches prevent multiple Cloud Hypervisor instances
from simultaneously accessing the same disk image with write
permissions, byte-range locks provide better compatibility with network
storage backends. (#7494)

Logging Improvements
--------------------

Logs now include event information generated by the event-monitor
module. (#7512)

Notable Bug Fixes
-----------------

* Fix several issues around CPUID in the guest (#7485, #7495, #7508)
* Fix snapshot/restore for Windows Guest (#7492)
* Respect queue size in block performance tests (#7515)
* Fix several Serial Manager issues (#7502)
* Fix several seccomp violation issues (#7477, #7497, #7518)
* Fix various issues around block and qcow (#7526, #7528, #7537, #7546,
  #7549)
* Retrieve MSRs list correctly on MSHV (#7543)
* Fix live migration (and snapshot/restore) with AMX state (#7534)

Contributors
------------

Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to our release:

* Anatol Belski <anbelski@linux.microsoft.com>
* Anirudh Rayabharam <anrayabh@microsoft.com>
* Bo Chen <bchen@crusoe.ai>
* Changyuan Lyu <changyuanl@google.com>
* Chengyu Fu <chengyu.fu@linux.alibaba.com>
* Connor Brewster <cbrewster@hey.com>
* Demi Marie Obenour <demiobenour@gmail.com>
* Eugene Korenevsky <ekorenevsky@aliyun.com>
* Julian Stecklina <julian.stecklina@cyberus-technology.de>
* Matt Moriarity <matt@mattmoriarity.com>
* Muminul Islam <muislam@microsoft.com>
* Oliver Anderson <oliver.anderson@cyberus-technology.de>
* Pascal Scholz <pascal.scholz@cyberus-technology.de>
* Philipp Schuster <philipp.schuster@cyberus-technology.de>
* Praveen K Paladugu <prapal@linux.microsoft.com>
* Rob Bradford <rbradford@rivosinc.com>
* Sebastien Boeuf <seb@rivosinc.com>
* Songqian Li <sionli@tencent.com>
* Stefan Nürnberger <stefan.nuernberger@cyberus-technology.de>
* Thomas Prescher <thomas.prescher@cyberus-technology.de>
* Wei Liu <liuwe@microsoft.com>