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I can answer: safe read/write from a simple system call can be "easy." Safe read from the network, possible but no longer easy. Safe call to ioctl, which can li
by jdcarter 10y ago
I can answer: safe read/write from a simple system call can be "easy." Safe read from the network, possible but no longer easy. Safe call to ioctl, which can literally do anything with any device driver... is a "safe" version of that even possible?
- kazinator 10y agoioctl is a marshaling mechanism that can represent a library API of almost unlimited proportions and variety. A safety wrapper basically has to target the specific functions, rather than ioctl itself. That has happened within Unix, with some library functions having originated as wrappers around ioctls.
- tedunangst 10y agoIf we're expanding the set of possible bugs to "the kernel can do anything and overwrite anything", then it doesn't matter what language you use.