Re: kern/34507: bge(4) doesn't contribute to the rnd pool

[Michael van Elst <mlelstv%serpens.de@localhost>]

The following reply was made to PR kern/34507; it has been noted by GNATS.

From: Michael van Elst <mlelstv%serpens.de@localhost>
To: "Greg A. Woods; Planix, Inc." <woods%planix.ca@localhost>
Cc: gnats-bugs%NetBSD.org@localhost, bad%bsd.de@localhost
Subject: Re: kern/34507: bge(4) doesn't contribute to the rnd pool
Date: Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:27:33 +0100

 On Sun, Feb 24, 2008 at 01:07:28PM -0500, Greg A. Woods; Planix, Inc. wrote:
 > 
 > Is there any simple flag that can be checked to see if interrupts are  
 > currently polled or not?
 
 The 'polling' is an effect of the interrupt mitigation features.
 When the packet rate is too high, you will get evenly spaced interrupts
 at the configured maximum interrupt rate.
 
 Other chips aren't that different and this is one reason why
 network devices make a bad entropy source. The other is that
 you could attack this entropy source from the outside.
 
 -- 
                                 Michael van Elst
 Internet: mlelstv%serpens.de@localhost
                                 "A potential Snark may lurk in every tree."