linux/Documentation/ABI
Linus Torvalds 3c29548f87 Merge branch 'next-integrity' of git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/jmorris/linux-security
Pull integrity updates from James Morris:
 "This contains a mixture of bug fixes, code cleanup, and new
  functionality. Of note is the integrity cache locking fix, file change
  detection, and support for a new EVM portable and immutable signature
  type.

  The re-introduction of the integrity cache lock (iint) fixes the
  problem of attempting to take the i_rwsem shared a second time, when
  it was previously taken exclusively. Defining atomic flags resolves
  the original iint/i_rwsem circular locking - accessing the file data
  vs. modifying the file metadata. Although it fixes the O_DIRECT
  problem as well, a subsequent patch is needed to remove the explicit
  O_DIRECT prevention.

  For performance reasons, detecting when a file has changed and needs
  to be re-measured, re-appraised, and/or re-audited, was limited to
  after the last writer has closed, and only if the file data has
  changed. Detecting file change is based on i_version. For filesystems
  that do not support i_version, remote filesystems, or userspace
  filesystems, the file was measured, appraised and/or audited once and
  never re-evaluated. Now local filesystems, which do not support
  i_version or are not mounted with the i_version option, assume the
  file has changed and are required to re-evaluate the file. This change
  does not address detecting file change on remote or userspace
  filesystems.

  Unlike file data signatures, which can be included and distributed in
  software packages (eg. rpm, deb), the existing EVM signature, which
  protects the file metadata, could not be included in software
  packages, as it includes file system specific information (eg. i_ino,
  possibly the UUID). This pull request defines a new EVM portable and
  immutable file metadata signature format, which can be included in
  software packages"

* 'next-integrity' of git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/jmorris/linux-security:
  ima/policy: fix parsing of fsuuid
  ima: Use i_version only when filesystem supports it
  integrity: remove unneeded initializations in integrity_iint_cache entries
  ima: log message to module appraisal error
  ima: pass filename to ima_rdwr_violation_check()
  ima: Fix line continuation format
  ima: support new "hash" and "dont_hash" policy actions
  ima: re-introduce own integrity cache lock
  EVM: Add support for portable signature format
  EVM: Allow userland to permit modification of EVM-protected metadata
  ima: relax requiring a file signature for new files with zero length
2018-01-31 13:07:35 -08:00
..
obsolete This is the bulk of GPIO changes for the v4.15 kernel cycle: 2017-11-14 17:23:44 -08:00
removed rfkill: Remove obsolete "claim" sysfs interface 2016-02-24 09:04:24 +01:00
stable Char/Misc patches for 4.15-rc1 2017-11-16 09:10:59 -08:00
testing Merge branch 'next-integrity' of git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/jmorris/linux-security 2018-01-31 13:07:35 -08:00
README docs: fix locations of several documents that got moved 2016-10-24 08:12:35 -02:00

This directory attempts to document the ABI between the Linux kernel and
userspace, and the relative stability of these interfaces.  Due to the
everchanging nature of Linux, and the differing maturity levels, these
interfaces should be used by userspace programs in different ways.

We have four different levels of ABI stability, as shown by the four
different subdirectories in this location.  Interfaces may change levels
of stability according to the rules described below.

The different levels of stability are:

  stable/
	This directory documents the interfaces that the developer has
	defined to be stable.  Userspace programs are free to use these
	interfaces with no restrictions, and backward compatibility for
	them will be guaranteed for at least 2 years.  Most interfaces
	(like syscalls) are expected to never change and always be
	available.

  testing/
	This directory documents interfaces that are felt to be stable,
	as the main development of this interface has been completed.
	The interface can be changed to add new features, but the
	current interface will not break by doing this, unless grave
	errors or security problems are found in them.  Userspace
	programs can start to rely on these interfaces, but they must be
	aware of changes that can occur before these interfaces move to
	be marked stable.  Programs that use these interfaces are
	strongly encouraged to add their name to the description of
	these interfaces, so that the kernel developers can easily
	notify them if any changes occur (see the description of the
	layout of the files below for details on how to do this.)

  obsolete/
  	This directory documents interfaces that are still remaining in
	the kernel, but are marked to be removed at some later point in
	time.  The description of the interface will document the reason
	why it is obsolete and when it can be expected to be removed.

  removed/
	This directory contains a list of the old interfaces that have
	been removed from the kernel.

Every file in these directories will contain the following information:

What:		Short description of the interface
Date:		Date created
KernelVersion:	Kernel version this feature first showed up in.
Contact:	Primary contact for this interface (may be a mailing list)
Description:	Long description of the interface and how to use it.
Users:		All users of this interface who wish to be notified when
		it changes.  This is very important for interfaces in
		the "testing" stage, so that kernel developers can work
		with userspace developers to ensure that things do not
		break in ways that are unacceptable.  It is also
		important to get feedback for these interfaces to make
		sure they are working in a proper way and do not need to
		be changed further.


How things move between levels:

Interfaces in stable may move to obsolete, as long as the proper
notification is given.

Interfaces may be removed from obsolete and the kernel as long as the
documented amount of time has gone by.

Interfaces in the testing state can move to the stable state when the
developers feel they are finished.  They cannot be removed from the
kernel tree without going through the obsolete state first.

It's up to the developer to place their interfaces in the category they
wish for it to start out in.


Notable bits of non-ABI, which should not under any circumstances be considered
stable:

- Kconfig.  Userspace should not rely on the presence or absence of any
  particular Kconfig symbol, in /proc/config.gz, in the copy of .config
  commonly installed to /boot, or in any invocation of the kernel build
  process.

- Kernel-internal symbols.  Do not rely on the presence, absence, location, or
  type of any kernel symbol, either in System.map files or the kernel binary
  itself.  See Documentation/process/stable-api-nonsense.rst.