crypto_rng_generate(9)

💫 crypto_rng_generate(9) — the kernel API manual, but make it make sense

okay so bestie, welcome to the kernel API manual page for crypto_rng_generate(9). yes it's a real kernel thing. yes i'm gonna explain it. no you don't have to be scared. 🫶

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✨ NAME ✨

crypto_rng_generate — get random number 🔥

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

int crypto_rng_generate (struct crypto_rng *tfm , const u8 *src ,
unsigned int slen , u8 *dst , unsigned int dlen );

like, that's the whole vibe. one function. five args. no cap. ✨

✨ ARGUMENTS ✨

• tfm — the cipher handle 💅 this is your main character, the thing that actually knows which random number generator you're talking to.
• src — an input buffer holding additional data. it's allowed to be NULL, so if you got nothing to add, that's lowkey fine 🍓
• slen — length of that additional data.
• dst — the output buffer that will hold the random numbers. this is the one you actually care about 👑
• dlen — length of the output buffer.

✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

so what does it do? it fills the caller-allocated buffer with random numbers, using the random number generator referenced by the cipher handle. that's it. that's the whole job. 🦋

the way that it just... hands you randomness. iconic honestly.

quick reminder bestie: you allocate the buffer, not the function. dst comes from you, dlen is how big it is, and the RNG attached to tfm does the filling. that's the deal 💖

✨ RETURN ✨

• 0 — function was successful 🎉 slay.
• < 0 — an error occurred 😭 (note it's strictly less than zero, not just "nonzero", okay? keep that detail, it's giving precision.)

✨ SEE ALSO ✨

go read these next, i promise they're relevant 🧚:

• Kernel file ./include/crypto/rng.h struct rng_alg(9)
• crypto_stdrng_get_bytes(9)
• Random number generator API(9)
• crypto_alloc_rng(9)
• crypto_rng_alg(9)
• crypto_free_rng(9)
• crypto_rng_get_bytes(9)
• crypto_rng_reset(9)
• crypto_rng_seedsize(9)

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and that's the page!! 💜 this little beauty lives in ./include/crypto and the whole thing is dated October 2026 — so like, from the future or whatever, we stan a timeless classic 🌈⭐ bye bestie, go generate some entropy! 🎀💅