GoKawiilSystemd Adds Optional Rust Support for New Leaf Programs
Systemd's Git repository now allows individual systemd programs, rather than core library code, to be written in Rust as an alternative to C. The first beneficiary is a planned systemd-keyring-setup utility, which handles provisioning keyrings and enrolling X.509 certificates into dm-verity, fs-verity, and BPF keyrings during boot, though that component itself hasn't merged yet.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The project is not porting existing C code to Rust, and all Rust components still require C linkage and build via Meson rather than Cargo, suggesting a cautious, incremental approach rather than a wholesale language shift. This positions systemd to gain memory-safety benefits for new security-sensitive components like keyring provisioning without disrupting its vast existing C codebase. The option remains toggleable (default auto), indicating maintainers are hedging against distros or environments not yet ready for Rust toolchains.
- Systemd now supports writing new leaf programs in Rust, not core libraries.
- A new systemd-keyring-setup tool in Rust will handle certificate enrollment into kernel keyrings during boot.
- Rust support is optional, uses Meson instead of Cargo, and compiled binaries are about 60% larger than C equivalents.
Source: linux.slashdot.org — Posted, 2026-10-26
Published there as: “Systemd Merges Support for Rust Programs”
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