Greg K-HApr 23
After 25+ years of kernel development, I was finally forced to touch `mm/` and it was due to a nommu "issue":
https://lore.kernel.org/lkml/2026042334-acutely-unadorned-e05c@gregkh/

As @axboe said the other day, we aren't expecting a box of chocolates:

https://lore.kernel.org/r/[email protected]

but these past weeks have made me feel like someone owes a few of us kernel developers a bunch of whisky at the very least...
[PATCH] mm/gup: honour FOLL_PIN in NOMMU __get_user_pages_locked() - Greg Kroah-Hartman

Show threadJens AxboeApr 23
@gregkh I'll take a whisky over a box of chocolates anyway ;-)
Show threadJens AxboeApr 23

@gregkh Actually I can buy my own, what I'd really like is for us to kill nommu. It has zero reason to exist, and it's largely untested garbage.

Forget the booze, that's what I want.

Show threadAnisseApr 23
@axboe @gregkh something @ljs would most likely agree with πŸ™‚ cc @vbabka
Show threadJens AxboeApr 23
@Aissen @gregkh @ljs @vbabka As any sane person should! Honestly, I'm hope this will be the silver lining to the slew of mostly garbage LLM bug reports - yank the old and untested code from the kernel, not just nommu.
Show threadAnisseApr 23
@axboe @gregkh @ljs @vbabka yes, I did read https://lwn.net/Articles/1068928/ ; it does seem bittersweet though.
Kernel code removals driven by LLM-created security reports

There are a number of ongoing efforts to remove kernel code, mostly from the networking subsyst [...]

LWN.net
Show threadHarry (Hyeonggon) Yoo
@Aissen @axboe @gregkh @ljs @vbabka

bittersweet because people report bugs on features they don't use rather than fixing them and stepping up to help?
Apr 23 at 1:54pmWeb
Show threadJens AxboeApr 23
@hyeyoo @ljs @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen That's not bittersweet, that's just laziness. So much easier to run LLMs on code and report issues they often don't even understand, than it is to write a patch.These people don't care about the code, that's not why they are reporting the issues.
Show threadHarry (Hyeonggon) YooApr 23
@axboe @ljs @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen

it's really sad that people do that.
what do these people care then?
Show threadJens AxboeApr 23
@hyeyoo @ljs @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen "Look I found a bug, how great am I"
Show threadljsApr 23

@axboe @hyeyoo @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen if they can't explain it in detail themselves, then said reports should be dismissed imo

I mean there's a blurry line when you yourself confirm the report I guess.

But no credit unless you can explain it all, in detail.

Sloppers rarely respond much after you ask this kind of stuff :)

Show threadHarry (Hyeonggon) YooApr 23
@axboe @ljs @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen

oh geez, that's not adding much value to the project :/
Show threadljsApr 23
@hyeyoo @axboe @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen harry say fuck
Show threadHarry (Hyeonggon) YooApr 23
@ljs @axboe @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen

funk!
Show threadPetr TesaΕ™Γ­kApr 23

@hyeyoo @axboe @ljs @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen But it's adding a dominance signal!

Signal Standard Action Comment
───────────────────────────────────────────────────
SIGDOMINANCE Instinct Shriek Social dominance.
Chest-drumming may
be also accepted
in some domains.

*** SHRIEK! ***

Show threadHarry (Hyeonggon) YooApr 23
@ptesarik @axboe @ljs @vbabka @gregkh @Aissen

see my dominance signal, a claude subscription!
Show threadAnisseApr 23
@hyeyoo @axboe @ljs @vbabka @gregkh I was mostly commenting on the context of network drivers being removed. A modern distro kernel ships those old unmaintained drivers and would allow retro-computing with 3com 3c589 card. Maybe the term isn't well chosen, but Linux got the reputation of having so many drivers, maintained for so long. But every good thing must come to an end.
Show threadJens AxboeApr 23
@Aissen @hyeyoo @ljs @vbabka @gregkh The retro argument is quite typical. Someone should setup a retro tree and maintain it, those drivers and nommu (and 486 support!) can live there. There's zero reason to keep purely retro support in the kernel imho - if it hasn't been sold in products in decades, it need not be in the mainline tree.
Show threadAnisseApr 23

@axboe @hyeyoo @ljs @vbabka @gregkh That seems to be the plan on Jacub's side. https://github.com/linux-netdev/mod-orphan

Note: I'm not arguing against any removal, I'm not crazy enough to take on this type of maintenance. I was just commenting on the feeling.

GitHub - linux-netdev/mod-orphan: Linux networking modules removed from the kernel due to lack of maintenance and high bug count

Linux networking modules removed from the kernel due to lack of maintenance and high bug count - linux-netdev/mod-orphan

GitHub
Show threadJens AxboeApr 23
@Aissen @hyeyoo @ljs @vbabka @gregkh This is the way. Nothing is free, have the people that want to use it pay the cost. The kernel people have enough to do without maintaining hardware they don't even have.
Show threadljsApr 23

@Aissen @axboe @hyeyoo @vbabka @gregkh yeah I get it but it holds us back.

These things have VERY REAL impact on development and maintenance.

And when you've broken the nommu build by mistake for the 100th time you get tired of it...