Live data from Hacker News

Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

techcrunch.com

161–170 of 304 posts

Re: Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

#162
post #41

Am I paraphrasing this correctly: > Microsoft-branded ARM microcontrollers running an embedded linux distribution. Microsoft rolls out security updates over Azure to reduce the risk of the device becoming part of a botnet. It sounds great.

It does. But, it's also pretty surreal for those of us that worked through the anti-linux Microsoft of the 90's. Windows subsystem for Linux, and initiatives like this are a real confirmation that MS finally "gets it". Right tool for the right job. Good for them. It's also a big swing for me in that I trust MS more than Google now to do the right thing. I'd have thought that impossible a couple of decades ago.

Nothing new under the sun https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenix

Re: Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

#163
post #61
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you actually used Windows 10?? The spotlight is squarely on Facebook and it's privacy intrusions right now, but the data collection when you own the OS must be several orders of magnitude larger. Don't be so eager to forgive them. They're not hugging Linux right now because they're a Good Company trying to Do No Evil.

Have you used Windows 10 Server Core, or Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB? There's no data collection in either of those, because they're for serious people. The Home and Pro editions, meanwhile, are effectively "Xbox OS for PCs." They turn your computer into an entertainment appliance run and maintained by Microsoft itself. Of course they collect data, just like there are data-collection agents on all the nodes of your av…

> Have you used Windows 10 Server Core, or Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB? There's no data collection in either of those, because they're for serious people.

How does one, as a non-enterprise, even get W10 Enterprise LTSB? I would, in a heartbeat, but MS wants to shove crapvertising down peoples' throats no matter the cost. And it's logical, given that when the users with money to spend and technical expertise fall out of the advertising eyeball pool, the eyeball pool loses its worth as it will be filled with poor noobs to whom all you can sell is the latest iteration of Candy Crush and snake-oil "antivirus".

Re: Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

#164
post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> After seeing this I think the Amazon AWS/FreeRTOS combo is looking like the better architecture for a node solution. FreeRTOS can run on lowly M3s at 120Mhz, like the LPC2478 Is that supposed to imply linux can't? Or that linux plus a GNU subsystem can't? I've personally run it on a lot lower end hardware than that seems to be.

Oh, it can. I've run ucLinux (MMU-less Linux) on an LPC1788 (Cortex-M3) and it works...okay. Making dynamic libraries work correctly on it is a pain in the ass. It just wasn't worth it at the end and the O/S hogged up most of the processor, RAM, and Flash.

Exactly. I think these end up as good PoCs - and it would be amazing to think of a future where we can run one of the Linux derivatives on a something that was designed with FreeRTOS or equivalent in mind - but it's just not going to happen on a commercial scale in my opinion.

Re: Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

#166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Pro edition ... Of course they collect data There's something fundamentally wrong with that to my mind, given how the Pro release of Windows has always been placed. I should not need to get an Enterprise release to be able to manage my own machine, restrict the phoning home, and control other basic features of my machine used in a professional context. I've no need of 101 features for managing 1,000 desktops and ne…

I was under the impression you can disable all of the telemetry. Is that not the case ? And Pro really refers to Prosumer not Professional.

No you can turn it down from 11 to 5 basically.

Re: Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

#167

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Pro edition ... Of course they collect data There's something fundamentally wrong with that to my mind, given how the Pro release of Windows has always been placed. I should not need to get an Enterprise release to be able to manage my own machine, restrict the phoning home, and control other basic features of my machine used in a professional context. I've no need of 101 features for managing 1,000 desktops and ne…

I was under the impression you can disable all of the telemetry. Is that not the case ? And Pro really refers to Prosumer not Professional.

According to blog posts and articles on tech sites there still is no way to disable all telemetry on windows 10. I don’t use windows for a long time now so I cannot tell myself.

Anyhow, it is /not/ ok for an OS to spy on their users by default - even if you can disable it manually.

Re: Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

#168
post #83
post #52

> Windows IoT runs on microprocessor units (MPUs) which have at least 100x the power of the MCU. > MediaTek is producing the first set of these new MCUs. These are low-powered, single-core ARM-A7 systems that run at 500MHz Er... what kind of hardware is Windows IoT supposed to run on?

They seem either confused about what "MCU" means, or intent on changing the commonly accepted meaning.

I think its a marketing thing. Engineers wouldn't have let this one slide.

My professors at college taught a simple rule of thumb - if it can't run regular Linux it's probably a MCU. Finer print talked about the presence of a MMU being the key differentiator.

I've stuck to that definition so far. Might have to rewire if this gimmick catches on

Re: Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

#169
post #41

Am I paraphrasing this correctly: > Microsoft-branded ARM microcontrollers running an embedded linux distribution. Microsoft rolls out security updates over Azure to reduce the risk of the device becoming part of a botnet. It sounds great.

It does. But, it's also pretty surreal for those of us that worked through the anti-linux Microsoft of the 90's. Windows subsystem for Linux, and initiatives like this are a real confirmation that MS finally "gets it". Right tool for the right job. Good for them. It's also a big swing for me in that I trust MS more than Google now to do the right thing. I'd have thought that impossible a couple of decades ago.

Microsoft is huge. Some parts of Microsoft got it, but some others are still in their old stance.

Re: Microsoft built its own custom Linux kernel for its new IoT service

#170
post #75
post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you used Windows 10 Server Core, or Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB? There's no data collection in either of those, because they're for serious people. The Home and Pro editions, meanwhile, are effectively "Xbox OS for PCs." They turn your computer into an entertainment appliance run and maintained by Microsoft itself. Of course they collect data, just like there are data-collection agents on all the nodes of your av…

Yeah I have to use it for work, the machine has 16 gigs and like 8 gigs are used for MS to spy on me while I'm using it.

Oh yeah, I've heard spying is more memory intensive than running dozens of VMs!
Post reply on HN