Linux 6.1 Finishes Gutting Out The Old a.out Code

Back in 2019 the Linux kernel finally deprecated a.out support for that format superseded by ELF long ago. Since earlier this year kernel developers moved ahead with beginning to remove a.out support, including the old x86 a.out support. Now with Linux 6.1 some lingering remnants of a.out are being cleared away.

Code that landed for the Linux 6.1 merge window finishes removing the a.out support globally. As mentioned the support has been disabled for a while but now some 500 lines of related a.out code can be cleared away.

The a.out file format was used in the pre-ELF days but hasn't been relevant in many years. The a.out file format isn't to be confused with compilers sometimes using the "a.out" file name when none is otherwise specified as those are not in the actual a.out format but rather just an old naming convention artifact.

This merge is what finished clearing away the old a.out remnants in the Linux 6.1 kernel.