I needed to add a custom System Request (Sys Req or SysRq) to a linux kernel some time ago. While doing so, I dug deep into how it works and I thought I’d make a quick post about it. Here is a good SuperUser answer about what a SysRq is. You may also know about SysRq via REISUB. This post has three parts: how to raise a SysRq, how SysRq works (looking into kernel code), and how to add your own SysRq.
  • hydroptic@sopuli.xyz
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    21 days ago

    Huh, I never actually gave any thought to how the SysRq key works. Interesting thing to learn after all these decades, heh

    • jet@hackertalks.comEnglish
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      21 days ago

      https://lwn.net/Articles/296738/

      Unix internals is a great book! If you haven’t had an occasion to read it, I can’t recommend it highly enough. Similar to design of the BSD operating system, it goes into the internal data structures, but most importantly the rationale

      • hydroptic@sopuli.xyz
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        21 days ago

        I actually don’t know nearly enough about OS design, and I’ve been toying with the idea of learning more for like 20 years now but never manage to get around to it. How’s that book hold up, considering it was (apparently?) published in '96? I’d assume a lot of the basics are still the same, and since it’s a book about the “evolution” of UNIX the historical parts will still be interesting in any case

        • jet@hackertalks.comEnglish
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          21 days ago

          The design of the BSD operating system is more narrative friendly, easier to read just for fun

          Unix internals keeps getting updates, but is far more technically applied. And probably easier to become outdated.

          From a philosophy perspective both books are great but if you could only read one I would recommend the BSD book. I know the Linux kernel and the BSD kernel have divergent development, but as far as posix structures are concerned they’re pretty similar

          • Juno@beehaw.org
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            21 days ago

            I’ll set aside a whole day for you to talk about me not liking Linus tech tips if you like.

            Let’s dive deep!

            • UlrikHD@programming.devEnglish
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              21 days ago

              Please refrain from harassing our users, keep whatever argument you have contained to the thread it started. Following and harassing users across communities/instances is not tolerated.

              You will only be given a temporary ban of one week from our instance, but if it continues after that it will changed to a permanent ban.

          • hydroptic@sopuli.xyz
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            21 days ago

            The BSD book does seem interesting from a historical perspective, BSD is one of Ye Olden UN*X distros after all. Thanks for the recommendations! I think I’ll try to get my hands on a dead trees version of the BSD book.

            Oh and did you specifically mean “The Design and Implementation of the 4.4BSD Operating System”? Looks like there’s one for FreeBSD as well

            • jet@hackertalks.comEnglish
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              21 days ago

              Yes that’s the book, though I read a older version initially.

              I haven’t read the free BSD version, I wonder if there’s a Linux version? That would be interesting too

            • A Basil Plant@lemmy.world
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              21 days ago

              Operating Systems: Three Easy Pieces by Remzi H. Arpaci-Dusseau & Andrea C. Arpaci-Dusseau (University of Wisconsin-Madison) is an excellent book and used by many universities worldwide. Extremely well written and it’s one of the only textbooks I’ve ever completed from start to end.

              It’s also completely free: https://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~remzi/OSTEP/

              • hydroptic@sopuli.xyz
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                21 days ago

                Ooo nice, thank you for the tip.

                I wonder where I could get a physical version. Somewhere other than Amazon that is, they do have it but I’d like to avoid them if at all possible because, well, Amazon. I searched Adlibris which is a Nordic online bookstore but they didn’t have it, unfortunately.

                I’m a fan of physical books nowadays. I read e-books for a few years but I felt like I didn’t remember what I read nearly as well as I do if I read an actual paper book, and apparently there’s actually some empirical evidence for this being a wider phenomenon

                • jet@hackertalks.comEnglish
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                  21 days ago

                  100% I’m in the same boat.

                  I looked into various print on demand services with binding, but they always were more hassle than just printing everything at home

  • jet@hackertalks.comEnglish
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    21 days ago

    I love abusing sigusr1 and 2. Absolutely no confusion or shooting myself in the foot in 3 months when I forget what I did… No sir

    • Juno@beehaw.org
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      21 days ago

      Let’s talk about how I don’t like Linus tech tips again. I know your can’t wrap your mind around me having my own opinion and posting one sentence about it

      THIS IS MUCH BETTER

      • ahto@discuss.tchncs.de
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        21 days ago

        Yeah you’re really showing them how you have the moral high ground by following them to other posts and harassing them there… ???

          • hydroptic@sopuli.xyz
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            21 days ago

            You’re behaving like an unhinged stalker, though.

            We all get it, you have an axe to grind with jet, but like maybe keep it to private messages then? What’s the point with following them around and spewing this stuff on completely unrelated communities?

            • Juno@beehaw.org
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              21 days ago

              He gave me a long bit of the opposite of what I asked for. I owe him the same attention.

          • ahto@discuss.tchncs.de
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            21 days ago

            You were talking about them not being able to comprehend the fact that you have your own opinion, so that was my guess.

    • Juno@beehaw.org
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      21 days ago

      What happened? You don’t want to talk anymore? I thought you wanted to endlessly engage.