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+From: mib@churchy.gnu.ai.mit.edu (Michael I Bushnell)
+Newsgroups: gnu.misc.discuss,comp.os.mach,comp.os.linux.development,comp.os.linux.misc,comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit
+Subject: GNU Hurd Task List and Call for Volunteers
+Followup-To: gnu.misc.discuss
+Date: 18 May 1994 17:54:47 GMT
+Organization: FOO
+Lines: 140
+Message-ID: <MIB.94May18135447@churchy.gnu.ai.mit.edu>
+NNTP-Posting-Host: churchy.gnu.ai.mit.edu
+Xref: usenet.ee.pdx.edu gnu.misc.discuss:7630 comp.os.mach:1434 comp.os.linux.d
+evelopment:9867 comp.os.linux.misc:16767 comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit:5854
+
+
+Now that the Hurd can run (albeit haltingly) on its own, it is
+possible for people who do not have Mach 3.0 single-servers to
+contribute without much trouble. (However, if you don't have a
+single-server, you probably won't be able to use a debugger, but that
+doesn't mean you can't do debugging, right?)
+
+We at the FSF don't have any expertise in setting up Mach 3.0
+machines; the machines that we do development on belong to the Open
+Software Foundation and were set up by them. So one of the things on
+the task list is to organize things so that people (like us and most
+of you) who don't know how to do it can do it. It's not impossible to
+figure out, it's just a pain and a marvelous thing for a volunteer to
+do.
+
+You can get Mach 3.0 from CMU; you get the C library and the Hurd from
+us. You need the soon-to-be-released version 1.07.6 of the C library
+and the latest Hurd snapshot (as well as our special version of MiG)
+from alpha.gnu.ai.mit.edu.
+
+All our work is based upon i386. The Hurd (except for a few programs;
+see the Hurd README file) is machine independent. The C library
+should not be too much trouble to port. Ports and information about
+porting difficulty for either of these are greatly desired.
+
+The Hurd is not yet self-hosting. While you are welcome to fetch the
+code and put things together, it is not likely that you will have a
+useful system right now. But you might be able to do significant work
+(see the task list below). And, even if you can't do significant
+work, I'm interested in hearing about any places where you had
+particular difficulty.
+
+If you want to start on one of these tasks, please let me know so I
+can keep track of volunteers properly. This task list will be updated
+periodically; gnu@prep.ai.mit.edu always has the latest version.
+
+ -mib
+
+GNU Hurd Task List Version 1.0.
+
+If you would like to work on one of these, please contact mib@gnu.ai.mit.edu.
+
+
+Mach 3.0 Work
+
+ o Mach 3.0 comes with CMU makefiles that depend on a drecky environment.
+ It would be very helpful to have makefiles and installation stuff so
+ that it worked well for cross-compilation between systems and used
+ GNU tools.
+
+ o MiG needs to be made able to support cross-compilation.
+
+ o A replacement for MiG that understood C .h files.
+
+ o Bootstrap tools and documentation to help people set up Mach 3.0
+ machines if they already have Linux; if they already have Net BSD;
+ if they don't have anything.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs to provide support for task virtual timers similar
+ in functionality to the Unix ITIMER_PROF and ITIMER_VIRTUAL timers.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs to provide a way for users to do statistical PC
+ profiling similar to the Unix profil system call.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs a facility to automatically send task and thread
+ status on task/thread exit to a port that can only be changed by
+ a privileged user; this would be used to implement process
+ accounting.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs a facility to find out what task is the parent of
+ a given task.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs a facility to find out which pages of a task's
+ address space are in core to implement Unix's mincore call.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs a facility to do msync.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs a replacement for MEMORY_OBJECT_COPY_CALL that
+ works at least for the cases needed in ordinary files. (Write mib if
+ you want to know what the problem is and some ideas about how to
+ solve it.)
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs proxy memory objects. (mib can tell you what these
+ are and why they are important.)
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs a way to do per-task resource counters that are
+ accessible to servers called by the task.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs facilities to implement resource limits of various sorts.
+
+ o Mach 3.0 needs a way to have a thread's CPU time statistics
+ include time spent by servers on its behalf.
+
+ o Of course, free ports are always necessary to machines that don't
+ already have free ports.
+
+ o Much work can be done doing research in how to improve Mach VM
+ performance and timesharing scheduling policy.
+
+
+Hurd work (these are brief descriptions; mib can give more information):
+
+ o We need a translator for /dev.
+
+ o We need a replacement for utmp and wtmp that understands the
+ Hurd `login collection' concept. Programs like who and finger
+ then need to be changed to use this.
+
+ o We need some existing shell programs changed to do Hurd things:
+ like ls, su, fsck, tar, cpio, etc.
+
+ o Some new programs need to be written: login, getty, ps, tools
+ for new filesystem features.
+
+ o Shadow directory translators. (Roland has the beginnings of this.)
+
+ o A system for write, send, talkd and so forth to bleep users;
+ this should be integrated with the utmp replacement above.
+
+ o X.
+
+ o A filesystem for /tmp that uses virtual memory instead of disk.
+
+ o Filesystem implementations (using libdiskfs) for other popular
+ formats, especially the Linux formats as well as MSDOG.
+
+ o Transparent FTP translator.
+
+ o NFS client implementation. You should start with BSD's 4.4 code
+ and support the extensions they support; don't worry about Hurd
+ extensions right now. (The server we want to write ourselves
+ because it will probably involve changing the Hurd interfaces.)
+
+ o A fancy terminal driver that uses readline and supports detach/attach.
+
+--
++1 617 623 3248 (H) | The soul of Jonathan was bound to the soul of David,
++1 617 253 8568 (W) -+- and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.
+1105 Broadway | Then Jonathan made a covenant with David
+Somerville, MA 02144 | because he loved him as his own soul.