> thomasz@hostmaster.org wrote:
> >
> > > Some hours ago we had a discuss on Linux security, here at the University.
[SNIPPED]
> > > NT before I've hopefully never used it :) But the idea is great. The fact
> >
> > This is a required feature for C2 level security certification.
> > Microsoft used to use the Ctrl-Alt-Del combo in Windows NT because
it triggers an unmaskable interrupt.
It can't trigger an unmaskable interrupt. There are no such wires
going from the keyboard controller to the CPU. The Ctl-Alt-Del
sequence is simply a group of very ordinary scan-codes. When
the Del scan-code occurs, the keyboard driver (or the BIOS code)
checks to see if a previous scan-code sequence was Ctl and Alt.
If so, it does whatever the programmer wants. It can be readily
trapped and, in fact, every imbeded OS I've written that uses
PC Hardware, either ignores the sequence or performs an orderly
shutdown.
M$ probably used Ctl-Alt-Del because it was "cute". "See, I am
a powerful Operating System, you can't kill me like DOS..."
Of course that was before Netscape showed everybody how <grin>!
Cheers,
Dick Johnson
***** FILE SYSTEM WAS MODIFIED *****
Penguin : Linux version 2.1.131 on an i686 machine (400.59 BogoMips).
Warning : It's hard to remain at the trailing edge of technology.
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