Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S1750940AbVLTShj (ORCPT ); Tue, 20 Dec 2005 13:37:39 -0500 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S1750928AbVLTShj (ORCPT ); Tue, 20 Dec 2005 13:37:39 -0500 Received: from odyssey.analogic.com ([204.178.40.5]:22282 "EHLO odyssey.analogic.com") by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S1750938AbVLTShi convert rfc822-to-8bit (ORCPT ); Tue, 20 Dec 2005 13:37:38 -0500 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7BIT X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft Exchange V6.5.7226.0 In-Reply-To: X-OriginalArrivalTime: 20 Dec 2005 18:36:55.0392 (UTC) FILETIME=[5A3D8E00:01C60594] Content-class: urn:content-classes:message Subject: Re: About 4k kernel stack size.... Date: Tue, 20 Dec 2005 13:36:20 -0500 Message-ID: X-MS-Has-Attach: X-MS-TNEF-Correlator: Thread-Topic: About 4k kernel stack size.... Thread-Index: AcYFlFpHKTVP5LhJQJGtj1SWsq3tCw== References: <20051218231401.6ded8de2@werewolf.auna.net> <43A77205.2040306@rtr.ca> <20051220133729.GC6789@stusta.de> <170fa0d20512200637l169654c9vbe38c9931c23dfb1@mail.gmail.com> <46578.10.10.10.28.1135094132.squirrel@linux1> From: "linux-os \(Dick Johnson\)" To: "Chase Venters" Cc: "Sean" , "Mike Snitzer" , "Adrian Bunk" , "Mark Lord" , "J.A. Magallon" , "Linux-Kernel," , , Reply-To: "linux-os \(Dick Johnson\)" Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Content-Length: 3507 Lines: 74 On Tue, 20 Dec 2005, Chase Venters wrote: > On Tue, 20 Dec 2005, linux-os \(Dick Johnson\) wrote: >> See, isn't rule-making fun? This whole 4k stack- >> thing is really dumb. Other operating systems >> use paged virtual memory for stacks, except >> for the interrupt stack. If Linux used paged >> virtual memory for stacks, the pages would not >> have to be contiguous so dynamic stack allocation >> would practically never fail. But Linux doesn't >> use paged virtual memory for stacks. So, there >> needs to be some rule to control the amount >> of kernel stack allocated to each task when it >> executes a system call. > > Pardon, but why should "Other operating systems use paged virtual memory > for stacks" have anything to do with the design of Linux? Other operating > systems also look for a file called AUTORUN.INF whenever you insert a CD, > and they'll happily run arbitrary code... Sorry, you must be talking about M$ stuff. I wasn't. There are real operating systems that work. They solved a lot of problems by doing things correctly, learning from the mistakes of others. which is great when you're a > motherboard manufacturer providing crappy drivers on a crappy CD with > crappy artwork and you want to play a jingle before slapping a hideous GUI > up in front of your unsuspecting user; or perhaps you're Sony and you want > to hook people's kernel such that you become a sort of media hypervisor. > And this is the most deployed OS in the game... > Also, the M$ __kernel__ doesn't look for any files of any kind except for its page file which is locates without the file-system, BTW. If you have the misfortune of using some contraption that uses M$, just bring up the "Task Manager". Look at the "processes". One of them there, looks for new disks/mounts/etc at 1-second intervals. Can you guess which one? Hint. You can't figure it out from its name! > Linux is a kernel - not a perl script. Programmer laziness is about the > only excuse I've been able to spot in this discussion that has been raised > in support of big stacks. (Perhaps all the arguments against aren't worded > as such; but as far as I've seen they all reduce to it). > A kernel stack is simply an implimentation detail. Somebody made an early decision to use non-paged memory for stacks. From that point one, we have to either live with it or change it. The change doesn't involve size. It involves kind. > If Linux used 4k stacks, we wouldn't have to worry about virtual > memory *or* contiguous allocations. > > - Chase > Cheers, Dick Johnson Penguin : Linux version 2.6.13.4 on an i686 machine (5589.56 BogoMips). Warning : 98.36% of all statistics are fiction. . **************************************************************** The information transmitted in this message is confidential and may be privileged. 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