Re: AFFS fixes v1

From: david ellison (dellison@x-stream.co.uk)
Date: Sat Apr 01 2000 - 13:00:09 EST


----- Original Message -----
From: Alexander Viro <viro@math.psu.edu>
To: Nicholai Benalal <nicholai@chello.se>
Cc: Dave Jones <dave@denial.force9.co.uk>; Linux Kernel Mailing List <linux-kernel@vger.rutgers.edu>; Linux/m68k <linux-m68k@lists.linux-m68k.org>; Linux/APUS <linux-apus@sunsite.auc.dk>
Sent: Friday, March 31, 2000 12:51 AM
Subject: Re: AFFS fixes v1

:
:
: On Fri, 31 Mar 2000, Nicholai Benalal wrote:
:
: > Hello Alexander
: >
: > Den 31-Mar-00, skrev Alexander Viro:
: >
: > AV> The bottom line: AFFS design is a festering pile of dung and attempts to
: > AV> make it look like UNIX filesystem only made it uglier. Judging by
: > AV> dejanews search, AmigaOS itself doesn't handle it well. Hell knows what
: > AV> had stopped them from replacing it with decent filesystem - with the
: > AV> thing outside of kernel it wasn't that hard to do... Damnit, FAT is not
: > AV> so braindead compared to that abortion.
: > AV>

Ok, well the only nearest Unix/Linux patch of filesystem for the amiga is Multi-user fastfile system. It patches the existing affs, although since I believe there is no more development for it for some years now. It does allow user protection of files and login/logout for file management. Though protection from outside attacks is not really what its main use is for.

I use it with my Linux partition, it reads and write perfectly and as far as I can tell. It reads the file attributes perfectly and I have not had a problem. Yes the Amiga file system is old and it did seem to derive from Unix. Its not as bad as FAT, although some would say Im biased. We do need support for the newer file system in 3.5 AOS. Also possible another patch or upgrade to handle a multiuser or better file attribute system. I could not do without user rights on files in the Amiga after using Linux. Its a shame no-one thought about the same on FAT/32.

Its pap I know, but if some-one hacks my amiga and manages to get in through the Miami IP filter (Im sure its possible). Then the multiuser sys will give them some trouble. Also nothing is impossible, less damage can be done than in the pc's current filesystems (I cannot speak for w2k). The pc's answer to user right protection is filing users files in a different directory. If some-one gains access to my pc. Without file permissions in place, I feel anyone without logging as that user. Could browse my pc and go anywhere and take/delete anything. Maybe I'm wrong, but I doubt it.

So without babbling on further, with multiuser in place. A VERY old FS is still more secure than todays or perhaps 98's existing windows equivelant.

Kind regards, Dave.

:.˛mkabzwmb˛mbz_^nrzh&zvy杶ii



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