Linux 5.4 Features Are Huge From exFAT To New GPUs To Enabling Lots Of New Hardware

[GizmoChicken]

Indeed. we should call it GPLv3. oh wait.. XD

I think Torvalds already has expressed his opinion regarding this, and basically it comes to 'please send your code contribution and enjoy the party'.

Yep. Torvalds has stated that GPL v3 violates everything that GPLv2 stands for.

[starshipeleven]

As good as a lot of that is, 5.4 also looks to be the "you ain't gonna root that phone anymore" kernel that Google has been after.

More people posting random bullshit.

Is it so hard to understand that the kernel lockdown does jackshit to user-to-root privilege escalation?

[starshipeleven]

That would be a real shame. One of the reasons I prefer Android to iOS is the ability to root easily and retain root.

"root easily" is not really a good thing. Malware can root your phone just as easily.

[skeevy420]

More people posting random bullshit.

Is it so hard to understand that the kernel lockdown does jackshit to user-to-root privilege escalation?

Does jackshit to what? to assist with user-to-root; to prevent user-to-root?

[starshipeleven]

Just look at FS-VERITY, DM-VERITY, and LOCKDOWN and ask yourself this:

Are those going to make rooting phones easier or harder?

Lockdown is mostly irrelevant. The other two are of course very important in making sure none tampers with system partition. Afaik already used for years in Samsung phones at least.
This means that rooting is going to not be "permanent" but something that must be re-applied at boot.

On some phones the unlocking process wipes a DRM partition that then cripples the capabilities of the camera and other parts of the SOC. It's very common on Sony and LG phones.

Afaik the DRM is only for playback of copyrighted content. Could you tell where you read that this screws with camera and the SoC?

I mean I know custom firmwares can have issues on camera and other parts of the SoC, but that's because these devices are controlled by blob drivers and you can't always just keep using them as-is if you update the kernel and the OS. This is completely tangential to DRM partitions and kernel features.

All these new kernel features are going to increase the difficulty to do that

Are you assuming decent Android kernels aren't locked down like that already? Even fucking Ubuntu has their own version of Lockdown since 3 years at least.

That said, Lockdown and FS/DM Verity do not prevent root from cloning a partition with dd, and neither Lockdown nor FS/DM Verity do shit to prevent rooting. Exploits happen in userland RAM, and the fact that you can't write to system partitions don't matter for shit as the OS is a firmware so it is static. Each time it boots the "rooting" app will run and exploit the same vuln.

I'm not sure what tree you are barking up to.

These new "features" are going to

just standardize what Android was doing already and didn't stop shit.

What's the point of being GPL compliant if the end user can't make use of it?

GPL does not entitle you to complete hardware ownership, it never did. GPL entitles you to access to the source code.

The GPLv2 needs an updated clause about hardware freedom along the line of "if your hardware requires GPL software to function, the end-user should be allowed to freely modify, install, replace, remove, whatever the GPL software used".

It's called GPLv3, and Torvalds has already said he is NOT going that path with Linux.

These let them have their cake and eat it too by using the Linux kernel to turn an OS into an unchangeable binary firmware blob by restricting users' freedoms in how they use their hardware that they purchased.

Nah, the issue is that the hardware requires blobs to run at all, so you can't port much in many cases.

Losing the DRM partition is not really something most people will lose sleep over.

They also further entrench "buy to upgrade" by making it even harder to fully unlock and root our devices for long term use

They were never meant to be easily rooted. If you can root them then any other application can, that's bad security, period.

Unlocking the bootloader is another matter alltogether, and is completely unrelated. Embedded devices are like that, they treat you like a moron and are usually designed to be used by the general populace, it's not wrong per-se.

The manufacturers can be kind and allow you to unlock (or be sloppy and allow you to crack the bootloader), but you are still hacking a device that was never created to respect your freedom to begin with, and therefore not helping the cause.

You should buy hardware that was designed to respect the user if you need even a phone that does (I'm so far beyond pissed off at the Android custom ROM scene that I really don't care anymore and just treat it as a communication device).

[starshipeleven]

Does jackshit to what? to assist with user-to-root; to prevent user-to-root?

Why not both?
Rooting does not need kernel access, you are exploiting OS vulnerabilities (Android), not kernel vulnerabilities (Linux).

[edwaleni]

That would be a real shame. One of the reasons I prefer Android to iOS is the ability to root easily and retain root.

More trusted apps in Android (like financial and trading) are checking for root status and denying use because of it.

Having rooted several in my life, the value gained by rooting is slowly diminishing. Everyone has their own take, I am just finding it less valuable than it was.

Besides, no one would give a roots ass what my GUID says I do or where I go. My use is spread out over so many different devices and OS'es, it would be like trying to put a broken windshield back together after the pieces were tossed in the ocean. A massive waste of time.

[Templar82]

Having rooted several in my life, the value gained by rooting is slowly diminishing. Everyone has their own take, I am just finding it less valuable than it was.

I'm inclined to agree, about the only thing I need root access for now is AdAway which modifies the hosts file.
But I guess I could do that through ADB rather than on the device anyway.

[tildearrow]

Just look at FS-VERITY, DM-VERITY, and LOCKDOWN and ask yourself this:

Are those going to make rooting phones easier or harder?

Consider this:

On some phones the unlocking process wipes a DRM partition that then cripples the capabilities of the camera and other parts of the SOC. It's very common on Sony and LG phones.

What sucks is these can be great in the hands of end-users wanting to harden our systems; they're just ripe for abuse by "evil corporations" to use free software to make proprietary, locked-down hardware which literally pisses on the spirit of the Free Software Movement and the Open Source Movement.

Is there any real reason why? Do they really enjoy torturing us this?

(by the way, thanks for the information. Not going to buy a Sony/LG phone from now on)

[archkde]

I'm inclined to agree, about the only thing I need root access for now is AdAway which modifies the hosts file.
But I guess I could do that through ADB rather than on the device anyway.

Off-topic: you can try Blokada, which achieves ad blocking through a local fake VPN, no root required.