Re: [RFC] x86 ELF bootable kernels/Linux booting Linux/LinuxBIOS

From: H. Peter Anvin (hpa@zytor.com)
Date: Mon Feb 04 2002 - 11:26:28 EST


Werner Almesberger wrote:

  [...lots of good stuff...]

>
> Worse yet, the file-based interface kind of conveys the promise that
> the preloader is actually not necessary. This creates an incentive to
> keep things that way, so more and more policy will have to be added
> to the kernel, simply because externalizing it would shatter that
> cute "loader-less" image.
>

  [...]

>
> So, while a file-based interface looks cool, I think a "thin"
> memory-based interface will serve us better in the long run.
>

I agree with this sentiment. As far as the filebased interface implying
it is self-contained/loaderless, we can just look at this thread as well
as Linux history -- the boot sector in a Linux kernel is basically
useless and doesn't even work on a lot of hardware today, yet people are
still refusing to deprecate it "because it's so convenient"...

        -hpa

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This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu Feb 07 2002 - 21:00:35 EST