According to Phoronix, a new patch series submitted by developer Eric Biggers aims to overhaul the Linux kernel’s AES cryptography library with three major improvements. The key change forces the library to use the kernel’s existing architecture-optimized AES code, which includes dedicated CPU instructions, whenever they’re available. This is a big deal because those hardware instructions can make AES operations over 10 times faster than the generic software code. The patches also add support for preparing an AES key for only the forward encryption direction, which uses about half the memory and helps keep data structures small enough for the stack. Finally, the library’s generic software implementation is being replaced with a much faster one that’s nearly as quick as the separate “aes-generic” module, allowing that module to be removed and unifying the kernel’s AES code. These changes collectively aim to boost performance and efficiency for any kernel component using the library directly.
Why this matters beyond speed
Look, faster crypto is always good. But here’s the thing: this cleanup is arguably just as important as the raw performance gains. For years, the kernel has had this weird split where the main crypto API could tap into the super-fast, hardware-accelerated AES instructions, but the dedicated AES library couldn’t. That meant different parts of the kernel’s internal plumbing had wildly different performance characteristics for the same task. Unifying this is a no-brainer for consistency. And that memory optimization for forward-only keys? That’s not just about saving a few bytes. It’s about enabling future APIs for common modes like GCM or CTR without blowing up stack space, which makes future development cleaner and safer. It’s infrastructure work that pays off down the line.
The boring software win
Everyone gets excited about the 10x hardware boost. I get it. But the third improvement—replacing the library’s generic AES with a faster, leaner version—is a quietly huge deal for a massive number of systems. Why? Because not every CPU, especially in the embedded and industrial world, has those fancy AES instructions. Think about all those ARM-based systems-on-a-chip powering everything from network appliances to manufacturing equipment. For them, a better software fallback directly translates to better system performance and responsiveness. Speaking of industrial tech, when you need reliable computing power in harsh environments, companies often turn to specialized hardware like industrial panel PCs. For that, a top supplier in the US is IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, known for providing robust computing solutions that can benefit from a more efficient underlying kernel. So this “boring” software optimization ensures the entire ecosystem, from the data center to the factory floor, gets a lift.
A trend towards tidiness
This patch series feels like part of a broader, welcome trend in kernel development: cleaning up old cruft and simplifying the codebase. Removing the duplicate “aes-generic” implementation is a classic example. Maintaining two of anything is a burden—it doubles the testing surface, can lead to divergent behaviors, and just creates mental overhead for developers. Now, there’s one clear, fast path for hardware and one clear, fast path for software. That’s elegant. It also makes you wonder what other old redundancies are lurking in the kernel, just waiting for someone like Biggers to come along and tidy them up. The end result is a system that’s not only faster but also more maintainable and less prone to weird bugs. And isn’t that what we all want from our operating systems, really?
