spum_request_pad(9)

✨ spum_request_pad(9) ✨

okay so this is a page from the Kernel API Manual — yes bestie, we're in kernel land today, and honestly? it's giving cryptography main character energy 💅

🎀 NAME 🎀

spum_request_pad — literally just creates pad bytes at the end of the data. that's the whole vibe. padding. iconic. 🫶

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

void spum_request_pad (u8 *pad_start , u32 gcm_ccm_padding , u32
hash_pad_len , enum hash_alg auth_alg , enum hash_mode auth_mode ,
unsigned int total_sent , u32 status_padding );

returns void, so like… it does the thing and doesn't even brag about it. humble king 👑

🌸 ARGUMENTS 🌸

• pad_start — the start of the buffer where the pad bytes are gonna be written. this is where the magic happens, no cap ✨
• gcm_ccm_padding — length of the GCM/CCM padding, in bytes. we measuring, we precise 📏
• hash_pad_len — number of bytes of padding that extend the data to a full block. gotta fill that block up, it's giving completionist 🧚
• auth_alg — the authentication algorithm. which one? that's between you and enum hash_alg
• auth_mode — the authentication mode. also an enum situation. iykyk
• total_sent — the length that gets inserted at the end of the hash pad. length? inserted? at the end? yes. slay
• status_padding — number of bytes of padding needed to align the STATUS word. alignment is self care, fr fr 💖

💜 DESCRIPTION 💜

so there may be three forms of pad, and we're gonna go through all of them because we don't skip sections in this house 🏠✨

1. GCM/CCM pad — for GCM/CCM mode ciphers, pad to 16-byte alignment. sixteen. not fifteen, not seventeen. sixteen 🔥
2. hash pad — pad to a block length, with a 0x80 data terminator and the size at the end. terminator at the front-ish, size at the end — the way that works out is honestly beautiful 😭
3. STAT pad — to ensure the STAT field is 4-byte aligned. four bytes of pure structure. gorgeous. no notes 💅

bestie note: yes, the description says "STAT pad" and the argument is called status_padding. that's just how it is. we don't question the ancestors 🙈

🦋 SEE ALSO 🦋

all the siblings!! the whole friend group!! go read these too, they're all in the kernel file ./drivers/crypto/bcm/spu.c:

• spum_ns2_ctx_max_payload(9)
• spum_nsp_ctx_max_payload(9)
• spum_response_hdr_len(9)
• spum_hash_pad_len(9)
• spum_gcm_ccm_pad_len(9)
• spum_assoc_resp_len(9)
• spum_aead_ivlen(9)
• spum_hash_type(9)
• spum_digest_size(9)
• spum_create_request(9)
• spum_cipher_req_init(9)
• spum_cipher_req_finish(9)
• spum_xts_tweak_in_payload(9)
• spum_tx_status_len(9)
• spum_rx_status_len(9)
• spum_status_process(9)
• spum_ccm_update_iv(9)
• spum_wordalign_padlen(9)

and that's the page!! 🎀 from ./drivers/crypto/bcm, dated October 2026 — so like, future vibes, but the padding knowledge is timeless 💖✨ go forth and align your STATUS words bestie, you've got this 🌈👑