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>Number: 60455
>Category: kern
>Synopsis: Module auto-load appears to be totally useless
>Confidential: no
>Severity: serious
>Priority: medium
>Responsible: kern-bug-people
>State: open
>Class: sw-bug
>Submitter-Id: net
>Arrival-Date: Fri Jul 17 15:50:00 +0000 2026
>Originator: Jason Thorpe
>Release: 11.99.7
>Organization:
Retrogrouches R Us
>Environment:
NetBSD icarus 11.99.7 NetBSD 11.99.7 (PHAETHON1) #136: Fri Jul 17 07:47:48 PDT 2026 [email protected]:/Users/thorpej/NetBSD/current/src/sys/arch/hb68k/compile/PHAETHON1 hb68k
>Description:
While working on a new NetBSD port, I am striving to make the standard kernel as small as is reasonably feasible given that it is a resource-constrained machine (68010 CPU, 8MB base RAM).
I decided to fully embrace the MODULAR idea, trimming the kernel config down to the bare minimum of pseudo-devices and only the FFS file system.
I was successfully able to load the "if_sl" module at boot (the system does not yet have a working Ethernet interface).
But auto-loading the "ptyfs" module then file systems were being mounted totally blew up in my face, for two reasons:
- auto-loading is apparent configured off-by-default. No matter, that can be changed easily enough, even at run-time.
- securelevel appears to be blocking auto-load. This is the real problem, rending auto-loading totally useless.
>How-To-Repeat:
Attempt to auto-load an FS module during boot without the INSECURE option.
>Fix:
There is a kauth listener that grants auto-load, but secmodel_securelevel seems to be overriding it? Maybe it shouldn't do that. At the very least, the modules documentation should mention that auto-load is totally useless unless running INSECURE.