Re: Defining the kernel/user space interface [LWN.net]

Re: Defining the kernel/user space interface

Posted Oct 2, 2003 11:34 UTC (Thu) by larryr (guest, #4030)
In reply to: Defining the kernel/user space interface by cpeterso
Parent article: Defining the kernel/user space interface

I think as a practical matter the interface(s) between the kernel and user processes is much more than just the system calls. My guess for why there is resistance to documenting things is if a documented interface changes, users will feel more justified complaining about it than if it was an undocumented feature; and conflicts between the real behavior of an interface and its documented behavior would be perceived as a "bug".

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Re: Defining the kernel/user space interface

Posted Oct 2, 2003 14:28 UTC (Thu) by elanthis (subscriber, #6227) [Link]

And, of course, the interfaces *shouldn't* change. A properly designed interface can present a long-lasting stable API/ABI while still allowing the hackers to rearrange everything under the scenes (the biggest reason I've heard so far for not keeping a stable ABI).