Btrfs Slated To Make Use Of New Mount API In Linux 6.8

Coming up for the Linux 6.8 kernel the Btrfs file-system is preparing to make use of the newer Linux file-system mounting API.

The "new" mount API has been part of mainline for a while now - EXT4 switched to it at the end of 2021, for example - as a set of system calls to replace Linux's former single system call for creating/changing mounts. The new API avoids overloading a single system call and allows for providing more control over the mount. The mount API is described by Christian Brauner in this 2020 OSS EU presentation:

Brauner a few months ago sent out a set of patches for working on adapting Btrfs to make use of this new mount API while Josef Bacik also worked on this support too and that implementation is now what's on track for mainlining in Linux 6.8.

Queued into the Btrfs kernel development tree's for-next branch as of last week is the code for switching Btrfs over to using the new mount API and in turn stripping out the old mount code. More context for those interested can be found in the prior mailing list series.

The Linux 6.8 merge window should be opening up around the end of the calendar year.