Hasty Briefsbeta

D-Bus is a disgrace to the Linux desktop

4 days ago
  • #Linux
  • #D-Bus
  • #Security
  • D-Bus was introduced by GNOME 20 years ago and is considered poorly implemented despite its useful concept.
  • D-Bus allows applications and services to communicate via a shared bus, exposing methods and properties for others to use.
  • The protocol is lenient and unorganized, leading to inconsistent implementations and poor adherence to standards.
  • Documentation for D-Bus is scattered, incomplete, and often ignored by developers.
  • Security in D-Bus is weak, with no proper permissions or rejection mechanisms, making it insecure.
  • Secret storage solutions like kwallet and gnome-keyring are insecure once unlocked, allowing any app to access stored secrets.
  • The author is developing a new bus called hyprtavern to replace D-Bus, focusing on security, strict protocols, and better organization.
  • Hyprtavern includes a secure key-value store (hyprtavern-kv) for secrets, encrypted by default and inaccessible to unauthorized apps.
  • The new bus is designed to be gradually adoptable, with potential for language bindings to ease integration.
  • Initial adoption is planned within the hypr* ecosystem, with wider adoption hoped for in the future.