Re: [PATCH] API for true Random Number Generators to add entropy (2.6.11)

[Jeff Garzik <jgarzik@pobox.com>]

David McCullough wrote:
> Jivin Jeff Garzik lays it down ...
>
> > On Thu, Mar 24, 2005 at 02:27:08PM +1000, David McCullough wrote:
> >
> > > Hi all,
> > >
> > > Here is a small patch for 2.6.11 that adds a routine:
> > >
> > > 	add_true_randomness(__u32 *buf, int nwords);
> > >
> > > so that true random number generator device drivers can add a entropy
> > > to the system.  Drivers that use this can be found in the latest release
> > > of ocf-linux,  an asynchronous crypto implementation for linux based on
> > > the *BSD Cryptographic Framework.
> > >
> > > 	http://ocf-linux.sourceforge.net/
> > >
> > > Adding this can dramatically improve the performance of /dev/random on
> > > small embedded systems which do not generate much entropy.
> >
> > We've already had hardware RNG support for a while now.
> >
> > No kernel patching needed.
>
>
> Are you talking about /dev/hw_random ?  If not then sorry I didn't see it :-(
>
> On a lot of the small systems I work on,  /dev/random is completely
> unresponsive,  and all the apps use /dev/random,  not /dev/hw_random.
>
> Would you suggest making /dev/random point to /dev/hw_random then ?

All the apps are supposed to use /dev/random, so that's correct.

For Hardware RNGs, userspace rngd daemon obtains entropy, checks it 
(mainly checking for hardware failures), and then stuffs entropy into 
the kernel random device.   http://sf.net/projects/gkernel/

On the "to do" list is making rngd directly generate entropy use 
'xstore' on VIA CPUs, rather than going kernel -> userland -> kernel.

Also, there are other entropy daemons floating about.  I think there is 
one that obtains noise from an audio device.

	Jeff



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