Re: [PATCH] API for true Random Number Generators to add entropy (2.6.11)

Andi Kleen
2005-03-29T15:03:32Z

On Tue, Mar 29, 2005 at 02:17:24AM -0500, Jeff Garzik wrote:
> Andi Kleen wrote:
> >BTW what do you do when the FIPS test fails? I dont see a good fallback
> >path for this case.
>
> If the FIPS test fails, do the obvious: don't feed that data to the
> kernel (and credit entropy), and possibly stop using the hardware RNG

This will just cause hangs; basically it is a DOS.

> under a human has intervened.
>
> This is not rocket science. The fallback path is "use software", which
> is what most users do right now anyway.

Just that use software does not work on a headless machine sitting
in a rack with not much disk IO.

-Andi