On: Terminal app can now run full graphical Linux apps in the latest Android Canary

[pjmlp]

For starters, the microkernel like driver model, where classical Linux drivers are considered legacy, since Android 8 all modern drivers run on their own processes (Java or C++) and talk with the kernel via Android IPC, known as Binderized HAL.

https://source.android.com/docs/core/architecture/hal/archiv...

https://source.android.com/docs/core/architecture/hal

Processes are sandboxed, in which app gets its own user id, everything that Google considers not a public API gets blacklisted, via a mix of LinuxSE and seccomp.

Native executables are not allowed per se on userspace, native code outside system processes has to always be a shared object loaded into the Zygote process fork, which takes the init role on Android. There are ways to launch executables, but they are frowned upon.

https://source.android.com/docs/core/runtime/zygote

Android is quite stright in memory consumption, an application that is seen as misbehaving gets killed without remorses.

For all details, you can go from here https://source.android.com/docs/core/architecture/kernel

[anthk → pjmlp]

Modern distros supports binder too. In the reverse, you can run Waydroid, which is an Android userland under a Wayland distro.

On native executables and such, file and objdump once I installed clang under termux to compile a simple binary tells me otherwise.

[pjmlp → anthk]

I bet you didn't install Termux from the PlayStore.

What matters is how an Android device as bought on a random shop as consumer behaves, not how one can hack around Android and AOSP.

[anthk → pjmlp]

Install it from F-Droid. If you are advanced enough to run Terminal bound software, using PlayStore is not the developers' fault.

[charcircuit → anthk]

It is the developers fault for Termux's architecture not being aligned with Android's app model.

[pjmlp → anthk]

Thus my point is made, should have placed the bet.

[Hackbraten → anthk]

TIL that binderfs is a mainline kernel feature now,

Back when I used Waydroid, I had to use an out-of-tree module picked from the Anbox project. I have stopped using Waydroid but good to know that binderfs is a thing!

[charcircuit → pjmlp]

This reply doesn't address why a container would be unable to work due to "heavy modification."

[seabrookmx → charcircuit]

Containers are native executables (with cgroup rules sprinkled on top). If Android does not let you call exec in the traditional way then you have a problem.

Also you're moving the goalpost with this comment a bit. My original comment says "may benefit from" being run under a "vanilla" kernel, as opposed to saying it would be completely non-functional under Android's kernel.