random: allow architectures to optionally define random_get_entropy()

Allow architectures which have a disabled get_cycles() function to
provide a random_get_entropy() function which provides a fine-grained,
rapidly changing counter that can be used by the /dev/random driver.

For example, an architecture might have a rapidly changing register
used to control random TLB cache eviction, or DRAM refresh that
doesn't meet the requirements of get_cycles(), but which is good
enough for the needs of the random driver.

Signed-off-by: "Theodore Ts'o" <tytso@mit.edu>
Cc: stable@vger.kernel.org

1 files changed, 14 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/include/linux/timex.h b/include/linux/timex.h
index b3726e61368e..da4c32dbb2aa 100644
--- a/include/linux/timex.h
+++ b/include/linux/timex.h
@@ -64,6 +64,20 @@
 
 #include <asm/timex.h>
 
+#ifndef random_get_entropy
+/*
+ * The random_get_entropy() function is used by the /dev/random driver
+ * in order to extract entropy via the relative unpredictability of
+ * when an interrupt takes places versus a high speed, fine-grained
+ * timing source or cycle counter.  Since it will be occurred on every
+ * single interrupt, it must have a very low cost/overhead.
+ *
+ * By default we use get_cycles() for this purpose, but individual
+ * architectures may override this in their asm/timex.h header file.
+ */
+#define random_get_entropy()    get_cycles()
+#endif
+
 /*
  * SHIFT_PLL is used as a dampening factor to define how much we
  * adjust the frequency correction for a given offset in PLL mode.