A scorching potato: Linus Torvalds is sick and uninterested in making an attempt to “repair” Linux to work on Intel’s defective processors. In his view, Linux is not damaged, so why ought to he (and different FOSS builders) repair something? Intel is the one with the issues. He vented his ire in a thread lately.
Linux Creator Linus Torvalds lately expressed frustration with change proposals to the Linux kernel which might be solely “required” because of defective {hardware}. Phoronix notes that Torvalds ranted on the Linux kernel mailing record during the last week, saying that buggy {hardware} shouldn’t be Linux’s drawback, suggesting kernel builders simply say “no” and see what the “{hardware} individuals” say.
“I believe this time we push again on the {hardware} individuals and inform them it is *THEIR* rattling drawback, and if they cannot even be bothered to say yay-or-nay, we simply sit tight,” Torvalds mentioned. “As a result of dammit, let’s put the onus on the place the blame lies, and never simply take any random shit from unhealthy {hardware} and say ‘oh, nevertheless it *may* be an issue’ [sic].”
He is additionally sad about kernel commits that deal with theoretical vulnerabilities, particularly these which might be troublesome to implement and have by no means been seen within the wild.
“Actually, I am fairly rattling fed up with buggy {hardware} and fully theoretical assaults which have by no means really proven themselves for use in follow,” he mentioned.
Linus Torvalds Rising Pissed off By Buggy {Hardware} & Theoretical CPU Assaultshttps://t.co/2rvIc14F4D
– Phoronix (@phoronix) October 21, 2024
A part of the issue is that addressing {hardware} faults on the OS degree complicates issues for builders and creates potential compatibility issues with different fault-free {hardware}. An instance can be proposed kernel adjustments that won’t work with Linear Tackle Masking (LAM) on Arrow Lake and Lunar Lake processors, which is what obtained Torvalds fired up within the first place. This function permits consumer area to retailer metadata in some bits of pointers.
In line with Intel Engineer Kirill Shitemov, Intel is changing LAM with LASS (Linear Tackle House Separation), which is safer because it prevents hackers from accessing digital deal with areas throughout consumer/kernel mode. Shitemov indicated that there was presupposed to be a patch that disabled LAM till LASS was prepared for implementation, however the repair “by no means obtained utilized for some cause.”
Since earlier this yr, Intel’s thirteenth and 14th-gen points have brought on complications on many ranges with shoppers, builders, and inside Intel. The corporate has addressed the issues with really helpful BIOS settings and microcode to various levels of success. Couple that with the long-running challenge of Spectre/Meltdown vulnerabilities, which maintain making headlines even six years after their discovery.
The issue, as Torvalds sees it, is that Intel can afford to pay its engineers to deal with its {hardware} points. In the meantime, FOSS builders are unpaid volunteers who’re below growing stress to get Linux engaged on unhealthy {hardware} whereas preserving it bug-free on good {hardware}. So, his frustration is comprehensible. In fact, Torvalds has by no means shied away from telling {hardware} OEMs the place they’ll go.
