ldm_validate...tition_table(9)

📦 version 7.3.1, in nixpkgs unstable

💅 ldm_validate_partition_table(9) — the Kernel API Manual, bestie edition

okay so picture this: it's a Kernel API Manual page, and the star of the show is ldm_validate_partition_table. yes that's a long name. no we're not shortening it. she earned it. ✨

🌸 NAME 🌸

ldm_validate_partition_table — literally just here to figure out whether bdev might be a dynamic disk. that's it. that's the whole job. 🎀

🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

bool ldm_validate_partition_table (struct parsed_partitions *state );

💖 ARGUMENTS 💖

  • state — the partition check state, which includes the device holding the LDM Database. she's carrying the context for the whole operation, and honestly? main character energy. 👑

✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

so here's the vibe: this function provides a weak test to decide whether the device is a dynamic disk or not. not a strong test. not a definitive test. a weak one. it's giving "first date, just getting a feel for things" rather than "we're getting married." 💀

what it actually does is look for an MS-DOS-style partition table that contains at least one partition of type 0x42 (formerly SFS, now used by Windows for dynamic disks). that's the little fingerprint she's checking for. 🕵️‍♀️

N.B. the only possible error can come from read_part_sector, and that's only likely to happen if the underlying device is strange. and if that IS the case — capital I capital S — we should return zero to let someone else try. don't be a hero. pass the baton. 🫶

🔥 RETURN 🔥

nothing documented here, bestie. the section exists, the section is empty, and we respect her silence. 🙈

👑 SEE ALSO 👑

Kernel file ./block/partitions/ldm.c, plus the whole friend group:

like, the whole ldm_* squad showed up. we love a supportive ecosystem. 🌈

🎀 sign-off 🎀

and that's the page!! brought to you by the source ./block/partitions, dated October 2026, filed under ldm_validate...tition_table(9) (yes the title got truncated in the middle, we don't know why either, the kernel works in mysterious ways 💀). stay validating, stay weak-testing, and remember: if the device is strange, return zero and let someone else try. periodt. 💜🦋

📦 where this page comes from