Re: ioperm(2): confusing terminology

[Alejandro Colomar <alx@kernel.org>]

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Oops; I've fixed the mailing list address now.


Cheers,
Alex

> Date: 2026-09-13 00:24:17+0200
> From: Alejandro Colomar <alx@kernel.org>
>
> Hi astian,
> 
> > Date: 2026-09-12 22:00:57+0000
> > From: astian <astian@memeware.net>
> >
> > ioperm(2) says:
> > 
> >   int ioperm(unsigned long from, unsigned long num, int turn_on);
> > 
> >   ioperm() sets the port access permission bits for the calling thread
> >   for num bits starting from port address from.  If turn_on is nonzero,
> >   then permission for the specified bits is enabled; otherwise it is
> >   disabled. [...]
> > 
> > The use of "bits" here is confusing/sloppy.
> > 
> > ioperm is supposed to enable or disable permission to access IO ports
> > for the calling thread.  In this API, the "permission bit" (singular) is
> > really "turn_on": 0 to disable access, non-zero to enable.  However this
> > description refers also "num bits starting from port address from" and
> > "the specified bits".  That seems to suggest that IO ports somehow refer
> > to "bits" and this API controls access permission to them, which is
> > bewildering.
> > 
> > Searching around I have seen that other versions of this manpage used to
> > say "bytes" instead of "bits", which is only slightly less bewildering.
> > Ports/addresses in the IO space refer neither to bits nor to bytes per
> > se, they are an abstract interface, like a syscall number/index.
> > (Architecturally, in some cases, these indices may in fact map to
> > processor registers which may in fact be portions of a contiguous
> > internal memory, so in some cases one could correctly say that the ports
> > refer to "bytes" in such memory, but this is obviously all very
> > low-level and microarchitecture-specific.  I think being aware of such
> > details actually makes this description more confusing.)
> > 
> > Apparently the reason for this confusing description is that for Linux
> > ioperm is a syscall and the kernel implements this syscall using a
> > bitmap with 1 bit (permitted/denied) for each port, in a contiguous
> > sequence.  See ksys_ioperm in "arch/x86/kernel/ioport.c".
> > 
> > Thus "num bits starting from port address from" actually refers to the
> > bits of that bitmap: the bits [from, from+num) are set according to
> > turn_on.
> > 
> > This kind of implicit reference to implementation details is wicked.
> > 
> > Suggested change:
> > 
> >   ioperm() sets the calling thread's access permission for num ports
> >   starting from port address from.  If turn_on is nonzero, then
> >   permission for the specified ports is enabled; otherwise it is
> >   disabled. [...]
> 
> Hmmm, sounds reasonable.  Do you want to send a patch?  Or should
> I write it?  (I don't mind; just asking in case you want to do it.)
> 
> > PS: Oh, also, maybe the title should say "set input/output port
> > permissions" instead of "set port input/output permissions".
> 
> Same here.
> 
> BTW, the manual page also says:
> 
>      This  call  is  mostly for the i386 architecture.  On many
>      other architectures it does not exist or will  always  re‐
>      turn an error.
> 
> Is this still true?
> 
> Another issue:
> 
>      EIO    (on PowerPC) This call is not supported.
> 
> Is this really true?  Where this is not supported, I expect ENOSYS.
> 
> And yet another thing: should we document the parameters as being
> uintptr_t instead of unsigned long?  They are the same exact type
> always, AFAIK.  Or is there any system where they aren't?  If they are
> the same, uintptr_t will better document that they are addresses.
> 
> 
> Have a lovely night!
> Alex
> 
> -- 
> <https://www.alejandro-colomar.es>



-- 
<https://www.alejandro-colomar.es>

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