linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH 12/12] i386 boot: Add an ELF header to bzImage

lists.openwall.net		lists / announce owl-users owl-dev john-users john-dev passwdqc-users yescrypt popa3d-users / oss-security kernel-hardening musl sabotage tlsify passwords / crypt-dev xvendor / Bugtraq Full-Disclosure linux-kernel linux-netdev linux-ext4 linux-hardening linux-cve-announce PHC
Open Source and information security mailing list archives

Hash Suite: Windows password security audit tool. GUI, reports in PDF.

[<prev] [next>] [<thread-prev] [thread-next>] [day] [month] [year] [list]

Date:	Wed, 04 Oct 2006 21:17:21 -0700
From:	"H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@...or.com>
To:	"Eric W. Biederman" <ebiederm@...ssion.com>
CC:	vgoyal@...ibm.com, Andrew Morton <akpm@...l.org>,
	linux kernel mailing list <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
	Reloc Kernel List <fastboot@...ts.osdl.org>, ak@...e.de,
	horms@...ge.net.au, lace@...kratochvil.net, magnus.damm@...il.com,
	lwang@...hat.com, dzickus@...hat.com, maneesh@...ibm.com
Subject: Re: [PATCH 12/12] i386 boot: Add an ELF header to bzImage

Eric W. Biederman wrote:
> "H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@...or.com> writes:
> 
>> Well, it doesn't help if what you end up with for some bootloader is a
>> nonfunctioning kernel.
> 
> I agree.  We need to look at what is happening closely.  
> However just because we have some initial glitches doesn't mean we
> shouldn't give up.
> 
> With grub you can say:
> kernel --type=biglinux /path/to/bzImage
> 
> As I read the code it won't necessarily force the type of kernel image
> grub will use but it will refuse to boot if it doesn't recognize 
> the kernel as the type specified.
> 
> The code for grub is in stage2/boot.c:load_image().  It tries a few
> other formats before it tests for the linux magic number but
> it won't recognize an ELF format executable unless it is a mutliboot
> or a BSD executable.
> 

This isn't just about Grub, though.  There is probably about a dozen 
bootloaders in use on i386, if not more.

	-hpa
-
To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in
the body of a message to majordomo@...r.kernel.org
More majordomo info at  http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html
Please read the FAQ at  http://www.tux.org/lkml/