From da073283ec7656f34b1180f736fefcf604cdf4c4 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Thomas Schwinge Date: Thu, 7 Oct 2010 00:01:25 +0200 Subject: open_issues/benefits: New. --- open_issues/benefits.mdwn | 86 ++++++++++++++++++++++ ...implementing_hurd_on_top_of_another_system.mdwn | 2 + 2 files changed, 88 insertions(+) create mode 100644 open_issues/benefits.mdwn (limited to 'open_issues') diff --git a/open_issues/benefits.mdwn b/open_issues/benefits.mdwn new file mode 100644 index 00000000..da1248c8 --- /dev/null +++ b/open_issues/benefits.mdwn @@ -0,0 +1,86 @@ +[[!meta copyright="Copyright © 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc."]] + +[[!meta license="""[[!toggle id="license" text="GFDL 1.2+"]][[!toggleable +id="license" text="Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this +document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or +any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant +Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license +is included in the section entitled [[GNU Free Documentation +License|/fdl]]."]]"""]] + +[[!tag open_issue_documentation]] + +What are the benefits of a native GNU/Hurd system, now that Linux et al. can do +so much (think [[hurd/translator]]s: FUSE, [[hurd/subhurd]]s: User-Mode-Linux, +etc.). + +It is possible to begin [[implementing_Hurd_on_top_of_another_system]], but... + +IRC, #hurd, August / September 2010 + + ArneBab: but Neal and I were not happy with that alone. We were + looking for deeper improvements to the system, for, I think, sound reasons. + That is what brought us to the L4/Coyotos technologies + ArneBab: as you are writing a kernel in user space, you can still do + kernel improvements there + ArneBab: if you take it very far, you end up with a kernel that runs + Linux in user space (just flip the two) for the drivers + ArneBab: that is what the L4 people did with the DDE + +([[DDE]]) + + ArneBab: so, with these different cuts, there are different + opportunities. on the one end, you can run Linux as normal and get some of + the Hurd features such as translators in some programs. At the other end, + you can do whatever you want and run some linux code for the drivers or none + at all. + ArneBab: one of the big questions then becomes: at which point can + the advantages offered by the Hurd be realized? + ArneBab: and that's not entirely clear to me + when I worked on this with Neal, we pushed further and further into + need-to-change-everything land + while the current efforts on the Hurd seem to be more equivalent to + the could-run-it-in-userspace-on-top-of-Linux camp + marcusb: for that I think we need a way to move towards them step by + step. Would it be possible to get the advantages of better resource + allocation with a Viengoos in userspace, too? + and when that is stable, just switch over? + ArneBab: I don't know. I suspect these people will know before us: + http://lxc.sourceforge.net/ + something like implementing flip points: flip Linux with Hurd to Hund + with Linux. Flip Mach with L4 to L4 with Mach. + lxc sounds interesting. + note that these efforts address security concerns more than other + concerns + so they will get isolation long before sharing is even considered + but some of the issues are the same + once you allow malware to do what it wants, it's a small step to also + allow the user to what he wants :) + it kinda looks like hacking it where it doesn’t really fit again… + there I ask myself when the point comes that doing a cleaner design + offsets the popularity + they are pushing more and more stuff into userspace + which is a good thing (to me) + it’s hard to clearly describe how, but even though I like having more + stuff in userspace, the way it is bolted onto Linux doesn’t feel good for me. + FUSE is cool, but if I use it, I am at a disadvantage compared to a + non-fuse user + while in the Hurd, these additional options are on eqal footing. + ArneBab: are they pushing more and more into user space? I don't + think so. I see more of the reverse, actually + or maybe both + FUSE, lxd and scheduling in userspace move to userspace + well, KMS moved to the kernel + to avoid flickering when switching between X and the console? + marcusb: Do you experience FUSE lxc and such being secondclass in + Linux, too, or is that just a strange feeling of me? + marcusb: and that splits the users into those who can get stuff into + the kernel and those who can only work in userspace – which I don’t really + like. + That’s one more advantage of the Hurd: eqal footing for all (except + the Mach hackers, but they have a very limited terrain) + ArneBab: but UML kernel module is minimal, and Linus didn't have a + principled objection to it (but just wanted a more general solution) + ArneBab: as a side note, although people keep complaining, the linux + kernel seems to be growing steadily, so getting stuff into the kernel doesn't + seem too hard. 8-O diff --git a/open_issues/implementing_hurd_on_top_of_another_system.mdwn b/open_issues/implementing_hurd_on_top_of_another_system.mdwn index ea06da44..a3e367ce 100644 --- a/open_issues/implementing_hurd_on_top_of_another_system.mdwn +++ b/open_issues/implementing_hurd_on_top_of_another_system.mdwn @@ -61,3 +61,5 @@ IRC, #hurd, August / September 2010 the point is, that if you don't care for kernel improvements, and are sufficiently happy with the translator stuff, it's not hard to bring the Hurd to Linux or BSD + +(Continue: [[benefits]].) -- cgit v1.2.3