linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH v2 01/39] Documentation/x86: Add CET description

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Date:   Mon, 3 Oct 2022 12:35:54 -0700
From:   John Hubbard <jhubbard@...dia.com>
To:     Bagas Sanjaya <bagasdotme@...il.com>,
        Rick Edgecombe <rick.p.edgecombe@...el.com>
CC:     <x86@...nel.org>, "H . Peter Anvin" <hpa@...or.com>,
        Thomas Gleixner <tglx@...utronix.de>,
        Ingo Molnar <mingo@...hat.com>, <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
        <linux-doc@...r.kernel.org>, <linux-mm@...ck.org>,
        <linux-arch@...r.kernel.org>, <linux-api@...r.kernel.org>,
        Arnd Bergmann <arnd@...db.de>,
        Andy Lutomirski <luto@...nel.org>,
        Balbir Singh <bsingharora@...il.com>,
        Borislav Petkov <bp@...en8.de>,
        Cyrill Gorcunov <gorcunov@...il.com>,
        Dave Hansen <dave.hansen@...ux.intel.com>,
        Eugene Syromiatnikov <esyr@...hat.com>,
        Florian Weimer <fweimer@...hat.com>,
        "H . J . Lu" <hjl.tools@...il.com>, "Jann Horn" <jannh@...gle.com>,
        Jonathan Corbet <corbet@....net>,
        Kees Cook <keescook@...omium.org>,
        Mike Kravetz <mike.kravetz@...cle.com>,
        Nadav Amit <nadav.amit@...il.com>,
        Oleg Nesterov <oleg@...hat.com>, Pavel Machek <pavel@....cz>,
        Peter Zijlstra <peterz@...radead.org>,
        Randy Dunlap <rdunlap@...radead.org>,
        "Ravi V . Shankar" <ravi.v.shankar@...el.com>,
        Weijiang Yang <weijiang.yang@...el.com>,
        "Kirill A . Shutemov" <kirill.shutemov@...ux.intel.com>,
        <joao.moreira@...el.com>, John Allen <john.allen@....com>,
        <kcc@...gle.com>, <eranian@...gle.com>, <rppt@...nel.org>,
        <jamorris@...ux.microsoft.com>, <dethoma@...rosoft.com>,
        Yu-cheng Yu <yu-cheng.yu@...el.com>
Subject: Re: [PATCH v2 01/39] Documentation/x86: Add CET description

On 9/29/22 20:41, Bagas Sanjaya wrote:
...
> The documentation above can be improved (both grammar and formatting):
> 
> ---- >8 ----
> 
> diff --git a/Documentation/x86/cet.rst b/Documentation/x86/cet.rst
> index 6b270a24ebc3a2..f691f7995cf088 100644
> --- a/Documentation/x86/cet.rst
> +++ b/Documentation/x86/cet.rst
> @@ -15,92 +15,101 @@ in the 64-bit kernel.
>   
>   CET introduces Shadow Stack and Indirect Branch Tracking. Shadow stack is
>   a secondary stack allocated from memory and cannot be directly modified by
> -applications. When executing a CALL instruction, the processor pushes the
> +applications. When executing a ``CALL`` instruction, the processor pushes the

It's always a judgment call, as to whether to use something like ``CALL`
or just plain CALL. Here, I'd like to opine that that the benefits of
``CALL`` are very small, whereas plain text in cet.rst has been made
significantly worse. So the result is, "this is not worth it".

The same is true of pretty much all of the other literalizing changes
below, IMHO.

Just so you have some additional input on this. I tend to spend time
fussing a lot (too much, yes) over readability issues, so this jumps
right out at me. :)

thanks,
-- 
John Hubbard
NVIDIA