Re: [PATCH -tip] x86: cpu/proc.c adding extended_cpuid_level for /proc/cpuinfo

From: "H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@zytor.com>
To: Borislav Petkov <borislav.petkov@amd.com>
Cc: Jaswinder Singh Rajput <jaswinder@kernel.org>,
	Andrew Morton <akpm@linux-foundation.org>,
	Ingo Molnar <mingo@elte.hu>, x86 maintainers <x86@kernel.org>,
	LKML <linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH -tip] x86: cpu/proc.c adding extended_cpuid_level for /proc/cpuinfo
Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 10:48:35 -0700	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <4A2FF1F3.9050009@zytor.com> (raw)
In-Reply-To: <20090610174223.GA2697@aftab>

Borislav Petkov wrote:
>>
>> I'm not really all that doctrinal about this, but I'd like to get a
>> decent answer to the question "where does it stop, *and why*".  It's a
>> slippery slope, and without a target, it goes on forever.
> 
> I still fail to see a real use case which requires adding that info to
> the kernel and querying CPUID directly is _absolutely_ not an option.
> This is what the decisive argument should be and not some "but we have
> already this and that in there." Otherwise its like painting a broken
> car pink - it's still broken.
> 

Exactly, the question is where does it stop *and why* -- give a coherent
argument why drawing a line at any one particular place makes sense.

	-hpa

-- 
H. Peter Anvin, Intel Open Source Technology Center
I work for Intel.  I don't speak on their behalf.