{"id":232138,"date":"2026-04-07T06:19:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T10:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/07\/risc-v-xip-linux-feature-being-removed-after-it-keeps-breaking-for-months-at-a-time\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T10:25:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T14:25:15","slug":"risc-v-xip-linux-feature-being-removed-after-it-keeps-breaking-for-months-at-a-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/07\/risc-v-xip-linux-feature-being-removed-after-it-keeps-breaking-for-months-at-a-time\/","title":{"rendered":"RISC-V XIP Linux Feature Being Removed After It Keeps Breaking For Months At A Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

RISC-V XIP Linux Feature Being Removed After It Keeps Breaking For Months At A Time<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.phoronix.com\/news\/RISC-V-XIP-Being-Removed<\/a><\/p>\n

Publish Date: 2026-04-07 06:19:00<\/a><\/p>\n

Source Domain: www.phoronix.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Introduced in Linux 5.13 back in 2021 was eXecute In Place “XIP” support for RISC-V that allows for the kernel image to be executed from ROM. The intent is on allowing the kernel to run from non-volatile storage like NOR flash that is directly addressable by the CPU and to reduce RAM usage. But after RISC-V XIP support is broken for months at a time, the feature is now set to be retired from the mainline kernel.<\/p>\n

Last year RISC-V XIP kernel support was restored after being broken for several Linux kernel versions. It was fixed up only to end up being in a broken state later in the year and is still broken on mainline. With broken RISC-V XIP kernel support persisting for months, it’s clear to the developers the functionality is not being well used or tested.\n<\/p>\n

Nam Cao has authored a patch to just remove the RISC-V XIP support given its recurring broken state. The patch is queued up in RISC-V’s “for-next” Git branch and thus should be part of the upcoming Linux 7.1 merge window.
\n<\/p>\n

\"RISC-V<\/p>\n

Nam Cao explained with that patch:
\n
“XIP has a history of being broken for long periods of time. In 2023, it was broken for 18 months before getting fixed. In 2024 it was 4 months.<\/p>\n

And now it is broken again since commit a44fb5722199 (“riscv: Add runtime constant support”), 10 months ago.\n<\/p>\n

These are clear signs that XIP feature is not being used.\n<\/p>\n

I occasionally looked after XIP, but mostly because I was bored and had nothing better to do.\n<\/p>\n

Remove XIP support. Revert is possible if someone shows up complaining.”<\/p>\n

Especially given RAM constraints in the industry these days, it’s a bit surprising RISC-V XIP wasn’t better leveraged, but alas it can be restored later on if people end up actually using it.
\n
Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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