Open-source News

AF_ALG "Nightmare" Being Further Limited In Linux 7.3 With New Sysctl Knob

Phoronix - Tue, 07/07/2026 - 18:24
The Linux kernel's AF_ALG interface was deprecated in Linux 7.2. This interface for letting user-space programs interact directly with the Linux kernel crypto API has proven to be a "massive attack surface" due to a variety of security concerns. With its deprecation in Linux 7.2, some AF_ALG features are already removed and for Linux 7.3 this interface is being further restrained...

"I'll Make The Linux Kernel Mailing List Burn": Prominent LLVM Linux Developer Returns

Phoronix - Tue, 07/07/2026 - 18:15
One of the original developers behind the work to allow the Linux kernel to be compiled using LLVM/Clang as an alternative to the GCC compiler is now back in the saddle working on LLVM Linux support. LLVM/Clang support for building the Linux kernel has been important for improving code portability and addressing GCC'isms, making use of LLVM compiler features not yet found with the GNU toolchain, evaluating the performance between GCC and Clang, and all the more important these days with the Linux kernel Rust integration...

EHEA 10Gb Ethernet Driver Being Retired By IBM As A Relic Of Outdated POWER Hardware

Phoronix - Tue, 07/07/2026 - 17:55
In 2026 it's not too surprising when seeing old PCMCIA and ISA drivers being removed from the mainline Linux kernel source tree and old very low-speed network interfaces, with arguably the most surprising fast being how long they lasted in the mainline kernel. Meanwhile for the upcoming Linux 7.3 kernel, one of the first 10Gb Ethernet drivers is already set for retirement from the mainline Linux kernel...

Microsoft Lands Initial AV1 Encoding Using DirectX 12 + HMFT Within Mesa 26.2

Phoronix - Tue, 07/07/2026 - 08:34
The newest, unexpected addition to the Mesa codebase by Microsoft engineers is contributed accelerated AV1 video encoding on the GPU using a combination of DirectX 12 and the Hardware Media Foundation Transform (HMFT) support that is part of the Windows Media Foundation layer...

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