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TODO: Difference between revisions

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add more notes to the LUKS article
formatting and such
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** https://cryptpad.fr/pad/#/2/pad/view/v9+28PcpFVoMr4eVf-NpF64Do35ocDL3tQLbaWq2Bfk/
** https://cryptpad.fr/pad/#/2/pad/view/v9+28PcpFVoMr4eVf-NpF64Do35ocDL3tQLbaWq2Bfk/
** NOTES:  
** NOTES:  
*** for a bit of context as to why i wanted to write this in the first place, someone asked me "if i want the best security, how do i setup a LUKS partition?" and based on that question, I assume that just telling them "the defaults are fine" would not be a particularly satisfying answer. so i did my best to research everything, and tried to compile an exhaustive list of reasons why the defaults are ok. i went in assuming that there might be like, some algorithm that has a very strong performance cost for better security, but ultimately concluded, that wasn't really the case . but like , only after trying to understand everything.
*** for a bit of context as to why i wanted to write this in the first place, someone asked me "if i want the best security, how do i setup a LUKS partition?" and based on that question, I assume that just telling them "the defaults are fine" would not be a particularly satisfying answer. so i did my best to research everything, and tried to compile an exhaustive list of reasons why the defaults are OK. i went in assuming that there might be like, some algorithm that has a very strong performance cost for better security, but ultimately concluded, that wasn't really the case . but like , only after trying to understand everything.
*** "a good amount of this information is pulled from [link]" by itself sounds kinda weird, like why should someone read your post instead of just going to that link immediately? perhaps "The [cryptsetup FAQ](...) is a great in-depth resource on all the available security options, but it's pretty long and complex. This post will cover the basics so you can get set up quickly with a reasonably secure system."
*** "a good amount of this information is pulled from [link]" by itself sounds kinda weird, like why should someone read your post instead of just going to that link immediately? perhaps "The [cryptsetup FAQ](...) is a great in-depth resource on all the available security options, but it's pretty long and complex. This post will cover the basics so you can get set up quickly with a reasonably secure system."
*** if your system is starved of entropy, one technique i've seen is to use random.org , eg `curl -Ss <nowiki>https://www.random.org/cgi-bin/randbyte?nbytes=16384&format=f</nowiki> > /dev/random`
*** if your system is starved of entropy, one technique I've seen is to use random.org , e.g. <code>curl -Ss <nowiki>https://www.random.org/cgi-bin/randbyte?nbytes=16384&format=f</nowiki> > /dev/random</code>
**** then you should be able to run any programs that would block on /dev/random
**** then you should be able to run any programs that would block on /dev/random
*** you should define what "post quantum resistant" means if you're going to mention it, imo
*** you should define what "post quantum resistant" means if you're going to mention it, IMO
*** ZFS actually uses an authenticated encryption mode by default (aes-gcm) which is how it can detect tampering. i think this is what you meant, but saying "XTS vulnerabilities can be mitigated with ZFS or BTRFS"  is a little less clear than "XTS has vulnerabilities *under certain threat models*, such as A, B and C [imo if you're going to mention this you should also explain what the vulnerabilities are, you can't just drop this with no context,,,]. If you are concerned about these issues, you should use an authenticated encryption mode like AES-GCM, which is unfortunately not available with LUKS due to the additional space needed for the authentication tags, but can be accomplished with a supporting filesystem such as ZFS."
*** ZFS actually uses an authenticated encryption mode by default (AES-GCM) which is how it can detect tampering. i think this is what you meant, but saying "XTS vulnerabilities can be mitigated with ZFS or BTRFS"  is a little less clear than "XTS has vulnerabilities '''under certain threat models''', such as A, B and C [IMO if you're going to mention this you should also explain what the vulnerabilities are, you can't just drop this with no context]. If you are concerned about these issues, you should use an authenticated encryption mode like AES-GCM, which is unfortunately not available with LUKS due to the additional space needed for the authentication tags, but can be accomplished with a supporting filesystem such as ZFS."
**** i don't remember where i read that " zfs and brtfs will help with the corruption issues of xts " they may not have even been talking about luks directly and i just got cornfused ( it was probably wikipedia )
**** i don't remember where i read that "ZFS and BTRFS will help with the corruption issues of XTS" they may not have even been talking about LUKS directly and i just got confused (it was probably Wikipedia)
*** i guess to expand on this, if you have a good idea of what your target audience is then you should be evaluating everything in the post from that point of view. suppose you are a noob who doesn't know anything about crypto. "XTS has vulnerabilities" and "AES-256 is post quantum" are meaningless to u without further context. maybe the context for those things isn't the point of the post, but in that case u could maybe link to further resources or have some further explanation in footnotes
*** i guess to expand on this, if you have a good idea of what your target audience is then you should be evaluating everything in the post from that point of view. suppose you are a beginner who doesn't know anything about crypto. "XTS has vulnerabilities" and "AES-256 is post quantum" are meaningless to u without further context. maybe the context for those things isn't the point of the post, but in that case u could maybe link to further resources or have some further explanation in footnotes
* A guide on how to use and navigate around the WIKI would be a very good idea
** maybe also a table of contents or something?
** TBH I'm not entirely sure how wikis are usually structured, maybe something to look into
*** from what i can remember offhand, usually the home page has some links to more specific topics, which then link out to other articles
**** probably there *shouldn't* be an orphaned articles
** we could also figure out if we want to have a more "document" focused theme for desktop like maybe [[mediawikiwiki:BlueSpice|BlueSpice]]
*** if we have something less functional than [[mediawikiwiki:BlueSpice|BlueSpice]] though, we'll want to explain in the guide how to change the default user theme if someone is interested in doing editing
* consider whether guide or documentation is a better word to use
** probably i ended up choosing documentation because R&D ( research and documentation ) was kinda cool but TBH it's also a bit confusing, so guides are probably better
*
* Templates
* Templates
** user profile information template (need to flesh out how this will look)
** user profile information template (need to flesh out how this will look)
*** should have matrix account
*** should describe teams they are in and what roles they want to play
*** a description of their skills and interests
** TODO item template? probably to gather information from relevant pages but some TODOs will likely not have a page? dunno, something to think about
** TODO item template? probably to gather information from relevant pages but some TODOs will likely not have a page? dunno, something to think about
** " this page is not yet completed"
** "this page is not yet completed" / "this page is a draft?"
** " this page is a placeholder "
** "this page is a placeholder"
** " this page is an accessory to another? " ( maybe see or see also cover this , idk )
** "this page is an accessory to another?" (maybe see or see also cover this, IDK)

Revision as of 18:40, 19 April 2026

This page is a list of projects currently being worked on and references to relevant information.

  • Write a page describing how matrix works, how it relates to FASSAG, and some client quirks to be aware of.
  • Finish LUKS guide , and probably split it up into simpler and more advanced guides
    • https://cryptpad.fr/pad/#/2/pad/view/v9+28PcpFVoMr4eVf-NpF64Do35ocDL3tQLbaWq2Bfk/
    • NOTES:
      • for a bit of context as to why i wanted to write this in the first place, someone asked me "if i want the best security, how do i setup a LUKS partition?" and based on that question, I assume that just telling them "the defaults are fine" would not be a particularly satisfying answer. so i did my best to research everything, and tried to compile an exhaustive list of reasons why the defaults are OK. i went in assuming that there might be like, some algorithm that has a very strong performance cost for better security, but ultimately concluded, that wasn't really the case . but like , only after trying to understand everything.
      • "a good amount of this information is pulled from [link]" by itself sounds kinda weird, like why should someone read your post instead of just going to that link immediately? perhaps "The [cryptsetup FAQ](...) is a great in-depth resource on all the available security options, but it's pretty long and complex. This post will cover the basics so you can get set up quickly with a reasonably secure system."
      • if your system is starved of entropy, one technique I've seen is to use random.org , e.g. curl -Ss https://www.random.org/cgi-bin/randbyte?nbytes=16384&format=f > /dev/random
        • then you should be able to run any programs that would block on /dev/random
      • you should define what "post quantum resistant" means if you're going to mention it, IMO
      • ZFS actually uses an authenticated encryption mode by default (AES-GCM) which is how it can detect tampering. i think this is what you meant, but saying "XTS vulnerabilities can be mitigated with ZFS or BTRFS"  is a little less clear than "XTS has vulnerabilities under certain threat models, such as A, B and C [IMO if you're going to mention this you should also explain what the vulnerabilities are, you can't just drop this with no context]. If you are concerned about these issues, you should use an authenticated encryption mode like AES-GCM, which is unfortunately not available with LUKS due to the additional space needed for the authentication tags, but can be accomplished with a supporting filesystem such as ZFS."
        • i don't remember where i read that "ZFS and BTRFS will help with the corruption issues of XTS" they may not have even been talking about LUKS directly and i just got confused (it was probably Wikipedia)
      • i guess to expand on this, if you have a good idea of what your target audience is then you should be evaluating everything in the post from that point of view. suppose you are a beginner who doesn't know anything about crypto. "XTS has vulnerabilities" and "AES-256 is post quantum" are meaningless to u without further context. maybe the context for those things isn't the point of the post, but in that case u could maybe link to further resources or have some further explanation in footnotes
  • A guide on how to use and navigate around the WIKI would be a very good idea
    • maybe also a table of contents or something?
    • TBH I'm not entirely sure how wikis are usually structured, maybe something to look into
      • from what i can remember offhand, usually the home page has some links to more specific topics, which then link out to other articles
        • probably there *shouldn't* be an orphaned articles
    • we could also figure out if we want to have a more "document" focused theme for desktop like maybe BlueSpice
      • if we have something less functional than BlueSpice though, we'll want to explain in the guide how to change the default user theme if someone is interested in doing editing
  • consider whether guide or documentation is a better word to use
    • probably i ended up choosing documentation because R&D ( research and documentation ) was kinda cool but TBH it's also a bit confusing, so guides are probably better
  • Templates
    • user profile information template (need to flesh out how this will look)
      • should have matrix account
      • should describe teams they are in and what roles they want to play
      • a description of their skills and interests
    • TODO item template? probably to gather information from relevant pages but some TODOs will likely not have a page? dunno, something to think about
    • "this page is not yet completed" / "this page is a draft?"
    • "this page is a placeholder"
    • "this page is an accessory to another?" (maybe see or see also cover this, IDK)