Messages in this thread | | | Date | Mon, 21 Feb 2000 11:00:01 -0500 | From | Richard Guy Briggs <> | Subject | Re: Userland encrypted filesystem that root cannot access. |
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On Mon, Feb 21, 2000 at 09:00:32AM +0000, Glenn McGrath wrote: > Im just a bit out of my depth here, but would it be possible to have > encrypted memory ? > Like the physical memory is encrypted but it is mapped to virtual memory > which is unencrypted, to get to this secure virtual memory, you would > have to use a special encryption module. > This may narrow the security risk to how the encryption module behaves > within the kernel. > I though of this when remember ages ago there was "ram doubler" software > for other operating systems that compressed memory, they allowed > programs to reside in memmory in compresed form.
Right, except that that compressed RAM is decompressed whenever it is used in a working space or in cache. The same would have to be true of the encrypted RAM, a small amount of it would be decrypted in RAM whenever it is being used and so root would be able to copy those bits that are decrypted and re-assemble it later, if root didn't find the key cached in RAM first.
> Like i said, im out of my depth, maybe this would be just shifting the > problem, i hope im not just demonstrating my ignorance.
It doesn't hurt to be creative and ask questions...
> Thanks > > Glenn McGrath > > "H. Peter Anvin" wrote: > > > > Grendel wrote: > > > > > > > > While mounted? No. Root has access to the entire machine and > > > Why not? Just never decrypt data on fs read. Feed the client with encrypted > > > data and leave it to them to decrypt it. > > > > > > > Then it's not an encrypted **FILESYSTEM**. Application level encryption > > is a whole other matter. Even so, root can intercept the client process > > and read the data out of its memory. > > > > -hpa > > > > - > > To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in > > the body of a message to majordomo@vger.rutgers.edu > > Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/ > > - > To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in > the body of a message to majordomo@vger.rutgers.edu > Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/
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