从网络上找到一点有关linux-gate.so.1的资料，英文的一个email，比较简单，相信会对大家理解有帮助。详细的见本blog的另一篇文章：what is linux-gate.so.1.
原文地址：[url]http://www.uwsg.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/0306.2/0674.html[/url]
摘录如下内容：

From: David Mosberger ([email]davidm@napali.hpl.hp.com[/email])
Date: Wed Jun 18 2003 - 14:12:21 EST

Both x86 and ia64 now provide a dynamically shared object (DSO) for
system call purposes (e.g., to speed up system calls and for signal
trampoline/sigreturn purposes). At the moment, the names of these
DSOs are different:

    x86: linux-vsyscall.so.1
    ia64: linux-gate.so.1

I think there is some value in using the same name on all platforms
that support such a DSO. vsyscall makes no sense for ia64, since
there are no virtual syscalls (instead, ia64 linux provides a fast
system call convention which, when coupled with light-weight system
call handlers, provide full syscall semantics at more or less the
speed of virtual system calls).

Not surprisingly, I like the name "linux-gate", since that is really
what this DSO is all about: it's a gateway between user and kernel
space. However, if this name isn't appropriate for x86, perhaps we
can find another name which will be acceptable to everybody.

I already checked with Roland McGrath (cc'd), and he agrees that a
common name would be good and said that he doesn't care about the
particular name that will be used.

Does anyone have any strong feelings about this? If not, I plan to
submit a patch to rename the x86 DSO to linux-gate.so.1.

Thanks,
    --david
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