linux-kernel - Re: [PATCHSET] block,scsi,libata: implement alt

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]

Message-ID: <49FEA127.1000905@kernel.org>
Date:	Mon, 04 May 2009 17:02:47 +0900
From:	Tejun Heo <tj@...nel.org>
To:	Dan Williams <dan.j.williams@...il.com>
CC:	Jeff Garzik <jeff@...zik.org>, linux-ide@...r.kernel.org,
	jens.axboe@...cle.com, linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org,
	linux-scsi@...r.kernel.org, James.Bottomley@...senpartnership.com,
	Mauelshagen@...hat.com, dm-devel@...hat.com
Subject: Re: [PATCHSET] block,scsi,libata: implement alt_size

Dan Williams wrote:
> On Thu, Apr 30, 2009 at 1:00 PM, Jeff Garzik <jeff@...zik.org> wrote:
>> Tejun Heo wrote:
>>> Hello,
>>>
>>> Jeff Garzik wrote:
>>>> <shrug>  I suppose...
>>>>
>>>> It just seems like a nasty hack, but unfortunately I don't see
>>>> anyone stepping up to do it properly -- with a DM device
>>>> automatically layered on top that splits the device into separate
>>>> regions: one block device for the 'regular' area, and one for the
>>>> HPA.
>>> Isn't that more hacky?  I don't know.  All that dm needs to know is
>>> the location of the metadata which is located w.r.t. the end of the
>>> device which might be at a different location if BIOS tried to pull
>>> silly stunts.  So, exporting the size BIOS might have used seems like
>>> a straight forward solution to me.
>> "<shrug> I suppose" is basically a reluctant ack, in the absence of other
>> solutions :)
>>
> 
> Couldn't the "fix" also just be a note to users to disable ignore_hpa
> if they notice that there raid arrays are not assembling correctly?

I don't know.  If it doesn't work automatically, the solution really
isn't worth much.  People generally don't (shouldn't need to) have any
idea what HPA is.  It basically boils down to "Linux doesn't support
RAID".  :-)

Maybe we should just put this issue to the rest and strongly advise
people against BIOS raids.

Thanks.

-- 
tejun
--
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/