Hasty Briefsbeta

The Linux Kernel Looks to "Bite the Bullet" in Enabling Microsoft C Extensions

13 days ago
  • #Kernel
  • #Microsoft
  • #Linux
  • Linux kernel may enable Microsoft C Extensions via -fms-extensions compiler flag.
  • Patches in kbuild-next likely to be submitted for Linux 6.19 kernel merge window.
  • Microsoft C Extensions allow non-standard C/C++ constructs, useful for anonymous struct/union inclusion.
  • Past attempts to enable -fms-extensions failed, but current patches have momentum.
  • Rasmus Villemoes argues for enabling -fms-extensions for 'prettier code' and stack space savings.
  • Linus Torvalds appears supportive of the change for Linux 6.19.
  • Second patch ensures -fms-extensions is applied to CPU architectures with custom CFLAGS.
  • Some developers may oppose Microsoft C behavior in the Linux kernel.