Re: [Xen-devel] [PATCH 4/4] xen kconfig: describe xen tmem in the config menu

[Konrad Rzeszutek Wilk <konrad.wilk@oracle.com>]

On Tue, Jan 24, 2012 at 09:30:15AM +0100, Igor Mammedov wrote:
> On 01/23/2012 07:34 PM, Konrad Rzeszutek Wilk wrote:
> >On Fri, Jan 06, 2012 at 10:43:11AM +0100, Andrew Jones wrote:
> >>Add a description to the config menu for xen tmem.
> >
> >I am not sure what this patch gets us. If this is to minimize the
> >size of the module - so say it gets loaded, but tmem-enabled is
> >not set nor cleancache and we just have it consuming memory - we can do it
> >via returning -ENODEV on the module load.
> 
> But why compile in something that one may never use? At least with this patch
> I'll have a choice to turn it off if I don't need it.

Then this patch is misleading. It should state at the start
what its purpose is. It sounds like adding the description is just
a way for the real purpose of this patch - which is to disable tmem.

> For example when I build hardened kernel, I'd like to turn of all unnecessary
> features for a particular config (i.e. reduce attack surface as much as possible).

The 'tmem' gets turned off if you disable cleancache. Can't you just
disable cleancache in your hardened config?