Decode kernel panic from QR Code photo (gist.github.com)

37 points by modinfo 2 days ago

16 comments:

by jolmg 13 hours ago

For context, kernel panics seem to sometimes be encoded as a URL in the QR code by distros. The panic text is encoded as a numeric parameter. For example:

  https://jexposit.fedorapeople.org/drm-panic/#?a=x86_64&v=6.17.0-rc2+&z=64016708045408584681305161836175901065787789727173061004041671633088591186286363786562987653814347942450168430510852681524688435157911241621365859153819732690406649525043247774110913752991389170560320455163781439079986337356710273501164645667555084821480237326301207073831710176482850121513079951455217310046422632328303510474264780788030301611164774573122018172510304672562667379831349924441560360997679573341401750485619388375493[... many more digits]
That's from the QR code image at:

https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/t/f45-change-proposal-d...

This script is to decode such kernel panics without needing to provide it to an external service.

In the particular URL example, the panic is not necessarily sent to a server, because it's in a URL fragment (`#`), but still.

by userbinator 8 hours ago

The panic text is encoded as a numeric parameter.

This script is to decode such kernel panics without needing to provide it to an external service.

WTF. A solution for an entirely self-inflicted problem.

by jolmg 7 hours ago

> self-inflicted

Distro developers and user are separate people. Also, a person viewing the QR code is not necessarily the owner of the panicked system.

by userbinator 8 hours ago

I hope this is Windows-inspired satire. If I get a kernel panic I want something I can actually read.

by kouosi 8 hours ago

It's been there for like 2 years (6.12 iirc) so it is not satire it is real.

by natas 15 hours ago

I think that's a really good idea! Would love to see this upstream

by bri3d 14 hours ago

It is? This is drm-panic qr codes from Linux 6.12. It’s a neat feature but I’m not sure why this random implementation is particularly interesting.

by theowaway213456 14 hours ago

Can't a phone decode a QR code natively? I don't even get what it does

by 14 hours ago
[deleted]
by hamandcheese 13 hours ago

If you decode it and open the link, you are potentially leaking data to whoever controls the domain of the URL.

by creatonez 7 hours ago

It's a possibility, but it's not how these kernel panic viewer websites are currently implemented. They do the decoding on the clientside, with the data stored in the URL fragment, which is not sent to the server by default.

Still good to have alternative implementations, though. The Javascript could be silently stealing the URL fragment on only specific requests, so there's no real way to audit it to be sure.

by catlifeonmars 13 hours ago

Link previews even! Just paste it into a group chat and everyone’s message clients will happily issue a GET request.

by charcircuit 9 hours ago

That's not how it works. The chat app requests the link preview and caches it.

by ErroneousBosh 9 hours ago

This sounds like the panicky adverts from 20-odd years ago "YOUR COMPUTER IS LEAKING YOUR IP ADDRESS!!11!!""2!!2!!"

by catlifeonmars 13 hours ago

You can decode a QR code by hand. It’s usually not worth your while but it’s understandable.

by kzrdude 11 hours ago

This is about a second step of decoding.

Qr -> URL -> Panic Log

Data from: Hacker News, provided by Hacker News (unofficial) API