Messages in this thread | | | Date | Thu, 5 Jul 2012 15:50:25 -0400 | From | Theodore Ts'o <> | Subject | Re: [PATCH 07/10] random: add new get_random_bytes_arch() function |
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On Thu, Jul 05, 2012 at 11:35:12AM -0700, Linus Torvalds wrote: > > If "get_random_bytes()" doesn't use the hw rng when it exists, it is > broken. It's that simple. >
It is using the HW RNG when it exists; it will ultimately call xfer_secondary_pool, which will mix in inputs from the hw rng. So we do get all of the security of the HW RNG. Currently all of the callers of the get_random_bytes() have to accomodate the fact that the HW RNG might not be there (on non-Intel architectures if nothing else), so get_random_bytes() can't be used in any hot paths as it is.
So we *are* using the hw rng; we're just not using it to the exclusion of anything else.
- Ted
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