A patch by Linus Torvalds improved Linux kernel performance by 2.6%.

There is really no introduction needed to Linus Torvalds founder of Linux and git.

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Recently, he did a patch to kernel which saw its performance increased by 2.6%. Let’s see in detail what he did and how does that improve the performance.

This was achieved by optimizing a function called copy_from_user(), which is responsible for copying data from user space to kernel space.

Here’s a detailed notes:-

• Picture this: You’ve got a super safe door with lots of locks to keep the bad guys out. This is similar to the old code with the barrier_nospec() function — very secure, but it takes time to open.
• Linus Torvalds came up with a smart way to keep the door secure with fewer locks. He used a technique called “pointer masking” which works like a special key that fits in the right lock. This allows the door to open faster while maintaining its security.
• This tiny tweak made the computer roughly 2.6% quicker when handling multiple tasks at once. It’s…