On Sat Dec 5 03:11:09 EST 2009, s...@nipl.net wrote: > > the standard way of passing file descriptors is by fork/exec. > > this allows security is handled by the normal means. > > Erik/others, would you please give some feedback on my idea (a join call which > connects two fds together and disowns them from the process). Passing fds > around does not solve the same problems and has nothing to do with what I > suggested. > > Perhaps this list is not the right place to air "new" or different ideas > related to the implementation of operating systems?
the problem with syscalls is (as we see in linux and before them berkeley), it is realatively easy to think of a special case for which a specialized system call would be just the ticket. the set of all these special cases is quite large. and since the goal of plan 9 is to be a (relatively) general purpose operating system that can be understood by a single person, and well-maintained by a small group, one needs a pretty compelling case for a new system call. further, system calls are by definition tied to the machine the call was made on. system calls live outside the namespace. i would first think about doing this as a kernel file server. but it seems to me there are security concerns. i don't yet see that a compelling case has been made for a new system call or even a kernel fileserver. a real world (working) example and a demonstration of why existing mechanisms fall short would be helpful. - erik
