The future of 32-bit linux support

 An interesting article was posted on LWN.net on linux support for 32-bit systems. https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/1035727/4837b0d3dccf1cbb/ 

"Arnd Bergmann started his Open Source Summit Europe 2025 talk with a clear statement of position: 32-bit systems are obsolete when it comes to use in any sort of new products."

This statement doesn't really make a lot of sense for embedded developers that plan to use no more than 64-128MB. Systems that use only a tiny fraction of the linux kernel and drivers.

"Currently the kernel is able to support 32-bit systems with up to 16GB of installed memory. Such systems are exceedingly rare, though, and support for them will be going away soon. There are a few 4GB systems out there, including some Chromebooks. Systems with 2GB are a bit more common. Even these systems, he said, are "a bit silly" since the memory costs more than the CPU does. There are some use cases for such systems, though. Most 32-bit systems now have less than 1GB of installed memory. The kernel, soon, will not try to support systems with more than 4GB." 

This is another odd statement, which doesn't seem to really matter. Memory once cost much more (before the 2000s), so if it it costs more than the CPU, then it's not really a big deal if the premium is on something else, such as legacy support, or power consumption.