linux-kernel - Re: linux kernel without file system

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Date:	Thu, 15 Jan 2009 16:34:06 +0100
From:	Enrico Weigelt <weigelt@...ux.de>
To:	linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org
Subject: Re: linux kernel without file system

* Alan Cox <alan@...rguk.ukuu.org.uk> wrote:

Hi,

> > Is there a way to access devices that does not require a file-system ?
> 
> No: but you can run with just your own programs and bits needed loaded
> off an initial ramdisk or a romfs image.

Well, it (IMHO) depends on what you call a filesystem. If you're 
talking about something that stores files (= byte streams with
some assigned name) on some medium, you *could* come around this
(in theory, no idea if it really makes sense): put everything you
need into one big static executable, let the bootloader load it
before the kernel is started (just like initrd ?) and hack up
the kernel to get that damn thing started. 

BUT: it you're talking about the VFS stuff - it's a fundamental
building block of the OS, required in many many places (from 
socket operations to kernel runtime config, ...) - if you *really*
want an OS w/o VFS, you better look at certain embedded-specific
OS'es ;-P

BTW: I'd really like to see much more things handled through the
filesystem (eg. networking API through some /net filesystem, like
on Plan9 ;-p) and let the dozens of syscalls, nelink socket, etc, 
etc die out.

cu
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