diff --git a/init/Kconfig b/init/Kconfig
index f763762..7656623 100644
--- a/init/Kconfig
+++ b/init/Kconfig
@@ -916,6 +916,15 @@
 
 endif # MODULES
 
+config INIT_ALL_POSSIBLE
+	bool
+	help
+	  Back when each arch used to define their own cpu_online_map and
+	  cpu_possible_map, some of them chose to initialize cpu_possible_map
+	  with all 1s, and others with all 0s.  When they were centralised,
+	  it was better to provide this option than to break all the archs
+	  and have several arch maintainers persuing me down dark alleys.
+
 config STOP_MACHINE
 	bool
 	default y