> 2. Create sysctl to turn on/off readlink() return behavior. This sysctl
>    "proc.pid.magiclinks" (or something) defaults to 0, and is inherited
>    across fork and exec. If proc.pid.magiclinks==0, readlink returns the
>    translated path; if ==1 then it returns the raw path.

who is expected to toggle this sysctl?
users, or applications?

> 3. In the long term, move the whole mess to namei(), deprecate magiclinks.
>    and rename the magiclinks mount option magicnames.

i guess magicnames have its own weirdness...
foreign filesystem/tarballs, remote files, etc.
good luck. :-)

YAMAMOTO Takashi