linux-kernel - Re: Xen is a feature

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Date:	Wed, 3 Jun 2009 01:41:43 +0200 (CEST)
From:	Thomas Gleixner <tglx@...utronix.de>
To:	Steven Rostedt <rostedt@...dmis.org>
cc:	George Dunlap <george.dunlap@...citrix.com>,
	David Miller <davem@...emloft.net>,
	"jeremy@...p.org" <jeremy@...p.org>,
	"mingo@...e.hu" <mingo@...e.hu>,
	Dan Magenheimer <dan.magenheimer@...cle.com>,
	"avi@...hat.com" <avi@...hat.com>,
	"xen-devel@...ts.xensource.com" <xen-devel@...ts.xensource.com>,
	"x86@...nel.org" <x86@...nel.org>,
	"linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org" <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
	Keir Fraser <Keir.Fraser@...citrix.com>,
	"torvalds@...ux-foundation.org" <torvalds@...ux-foundation.org>,
	"gregkh@...e.de" <gregkh@...e.de>,
	"kurt.hackel@...cle.com" <kurt.hackel@...cle.com>,
	Ian Pratt <Ian.Pratt@...citrix.com>,
	"xen-users@...ts.xensource.com" <xen-users@...ts.xensource.com>,
	ksrinivasan <ksrinivasan@...ell.com>,
	"EAnderson@...ell.com" <EAnderson@...ell.com>,
	"wimcoekaerts@...mekes.net" <wimcoekaerts@...mekes.net>,
	Stephen Spector <stephen.spector@...rix.com>,
	"jens.axboe@...cle.com" <jens.axboe@...cle.com>,
	"npiggin@...e.de" <npiggin@...e.de>
Subject: Re: Xen is a feature

On Tue, 2 Jun 2009, Steven Rostedt wrote:
> If we were to break an interface with Dom0 for Xen then we would have a bunch
> of people crying foul about us breaking a defined API. One of Thomas's complaints
> (and a valid one) is that once Linux supports an external API it must always
> keep it compatible. This will hamper new development in Linux if the APIs are
> scattered throughout the kernel without much thought.
> 
> Now here's a crazy solution. Merge the Xen hypervisor into Linux ;-)

Not that crazy as you might think.
 
> Give full ownership of Xen to the Linux community. One of your people could be
> a maintainer. This way the API between Dom0 and the hypervisor would be an internal

s/API/ABI/ :) 

> one. If you needed to upgrade Dom0, you also must upgrade the hypervisor, but that
> would be fine since the hypervisor would also be in the Kernel proper.
> 
> This may not solve all the issues that the x86 maintainers have with the Dom0
> patches, but it may help solve the API one.

In fact it would resolve the ABI problem once and forever as we could
fix hypervisor / dom0 in sync. hypervisor and dom0 need to run in
lock-step anyway if you want to make useful progress aside of
maintaining versioned interfaces which are known to bloat rapidly.

It's not a big deal to set a flag day which says: update hypervisor
and (dom0) kernel in one go.

Thanks,

	tglx
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