I really don't understand what change you are suggesting.  Anything
that uses a new API needs to change, and as API is further improved,
then the app will need to change again.  Netlink's saving grace is
that it is easy to add new data members and so support new API in a
forward/backward compatible manner.

That's true, but it'd still mean you have to update all the time, and
perhaps then we'll find out it'd be easier to break the API, etc.?

OTOH, supporting (on both sides) channel contexts doesn't seem so hard
- perhaps something like
 * add chanctx
 * remove chanctx
 * change chanctx config

as hwsim commands, and then we can pretend to add/remove in start/stop
if we have non-chanctx-hwsim?

johannes