linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH] random: add blocking facility to urandom

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: <201109071743.16811.sgrubb@redhat.com>
Date:	Wed, 7 Sep 2011 17:43:16 -0400
From:	Steve Grubb <sgrubb@...hat.com>
To:	Jarod Wilson <jarod@...hat.com>
Cc:	Sasha Levin <levinsasha928@...il.com>, "Ted Ts'o" <tytso@....edu>,
	linux-crypto@...r.kernel.org, Matt Mackall <mpm@...enic.com>,
	Neil Horman <nhorman@...hat.com>,
	Herbert Xu <herbert.xu@...hat.com>,
	Stephan Mueller <stephan.mueller@...ec.com>,
	lkml <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH] random: add blocking facility to urandom

On Wednesday, September 07, 2011 05:35:18 PM Jarod Wilson wrote:
> Another proposal that has been kicked around: a 3rd random chardev, 
> which implements this functionality, leaving urandom unscathed. Some 
> udev magic or a driver param could move/disable/whatever urandom and put 
> this alternate device in its place. Ultimately, identical behavior, but 
> the true urandom doesn't get altered at all.

Right, and that's what I was trying to say is that if we do all that and switch out 
urandom with something new that does what we need, what's the difference in just 
patching the behavior into urandom and calling it a day? Its simpler, less fragile, 
admins won't make mistakes setting up the wrong one in a chroot, already has the 
FIPS-140 dressing, and is auditable.

-Steve
--
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/