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#1 2018-11-26 20:40:01

Condor
Member
Registered: 2017-12-01
Posts: 54

Does dm-crypt/LUKS encryption cancel out the benefits of F2FS?

I'm trying to grasp a specific detail around dm-crypt/LUKS and the overlying file system. In my specific case, I plan to install Arch on an USB flash drive and use F2FS for the partition(s). The USB flash drive will travel a lot and is prone to loss or casual theft, thus encryption is desirable. My preference is a dm-crypt/LUKS setup.

Now, F2FS has some specific design details to work nicely with flash memory in terms of speed and wear (levelling).

  • Suppose one would combine F2FS with dm-crypt/LUKS, will those benefits be cancelled out by the underlying cryptographic layer?

  • Will dm-crypt/LUKS alter the otherwise optimized access (by F2FS) to the flash drive?

  • Or is the crypto layer fully transparent with the exception that all read and written bits undergo decryption or encryption, respectively?

After writing down the above questions, I realized these considerations are probably true for any file system and its specific optimizations living on top of dm-crypt. The cryptsetup FAQ hints at “a direct 1:1 mapping between encrypted  and decrypted sectors” in section 2.4. I'm not sure if it constitutes an answer to my questions, though.

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