The Linux Crypto API for user applications
May 11, 2023 2:00PM
If you run your software on Linux, the Linux Kernel itself can satisfy all your cryptographic needs! In this post we will explore Linux Crypto API for user applications and try to understand its pros and cons...
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The quantum state of a TCP port
March 20, 2023 1:00PM
Kernel
Linux
Deep Dive
If I navigate to https://blog.cloudflare.com/, my browser will connect to a remote TCP address from the local IP address assigned to my machine, and a randomly chosen local TCP port. What happens if I then decide to head to another site?...
The Linux Kernel Key Retention Service and why you should use it in your next application
November 28, 2022 2:57PM
Linux
Kernel
Deep Dive
Many leaks happen because of software bugs and security vulnerabilities. In this post we will learn how the Linux kernel can help protect cryptographic keys from a whole class of potential security vulnerabilities: memory access violations....
Assembly within! BPF tail calls on x86 and ARM
October 10, 2022 2:00PM
Kernel
Deep Dive
We have first adopted the BPF tail calls when building our XDP-based packet processing pipeline. BPF tail calls have served us well since then. But they do have their caveats...
Missing Manuals - io_uring worker pool
February 04, 2022 1:58PM
Kernel
Linux
Deep Dive
Chances are you might have heard of io_uring. It first appeared in Linux 5.1, back in 2019, and was advertised as the new API for asynchronous I/O. Its goal was to be an alternative to the deemed-to-be-broken-beyond-repair AIO, the “old” asynchronous I/O API...
March 04, 2021 12:00PM
Conntrack turns a blind eye to dropped SYNs
We have been dealing with conntrack, the connection tracking layer in the Linux kernel, for years. And yet, despite the collected know-how, questions about its inner workings occasionally come up. When they do, it is hard to resist the temptation to go digging for answers....