[Wine] Re: Run linux binaries on Windows

oiaohm
2010-02-07T02:20:41Z

daxue the line project has existed and died.  Now decedent
http://sourceforge.net/projects/winlin/ is also now looks dead.

Even one of the most advanced coders I know of had a crack at it from the
Reactos project as well has had Linux emulation sub tree.  And it is dead too.

The differences between windows and linux are massive.  Problem starts at
fileformat it self.  Windows is PE what is basically a coff file.   Linux is a
ELF.  One big problem.   Coff structs are older than ELF.  ELF has all the
functionality of Coff + extras.   So wine emulating PE not hard since a kind of
PE file can be made inside a ELF file.   Windows emulating ELF nightmare from
hell.

Reactos does have part ELF compatibility.  Basically as much as a NT kernel can
handle.

Please beware that the Reactos developer was skilled enough to alter the NT
kernel if required.   It was getting to major operation to make it work and most
likely break compatibility with windows.  He is still determined to at least get
a fully working posix system on Reactos.   Ok not Linux binary compatibility but
it what seams achievable.

colinux the core of lina and andlinux could still be improved a lot on the
memory management side.  To use dynamic resizing memory.

dexue basically you need another OS kernel to run ELF binary fully.  Because ELF
binaries allow doing things that are forbin under coff like overlapping segments
of the binary.  Linux smallest binary is smaller than the header to define
layout of ELF.   Linux kernel itself is not that heavy thinking memory
management and loader of it will be required to emulate ELF.

Please note that reactos developer today slightly hates my guts for even
suggesting the idea of Linux binaries inside a NT kernel and 4 years have past.
I made the the stupid argument since it worked one way it could work the other.
Basically your argument dexue.