[ofa-general] Re: [PATCH] installer: update kernel symbol versions

[Yosef Etigin]

Michael S. Tsirkin wrote:
>>Quoting Yosef Etigin <yosefe at voltaire.com>:
>>Subject: Re: [PATCH] installer: update kernel symbol versions
>>
>>>Because, these are part of another package, touching them is wrong.
>>>External modules will have to solve it in some other way.  It should be possible
>>>- it's all just scripts, for the most part.  For example, for all I care, build
>>>script for external module can catenate ofed and kernel symvers, build and then
>>>split them back. Already better than OFED doing permanent changes.
>>>
>>
>>The problem is that this is not applicable for old kernels.
> 
> 
> Why not?
> This should be applicable to all kernels with a bit of work.
> 
> 
>>Anyone using rhas4 must change his version anyway.
> 
> 
> version of what?
> 
Sorry, i meant 'versions'
> 
>>Another method:
>>The kernel-ib-devel will provide a patch that a user can apply to his
>>Module.symvers, to update it with the new versions.
> 
> 
> No, I don't think we can call that a solution.
> Anyway, I just looked at kernel 2.6.9, and I see there:
> scripts/Makefile.modpost:symverfile := $(objtree)/Module.symvers
> So it seems that just by setting
> symverfile=mysymverfile
> on makefile command line you should be able to force it to pick
> a symbol version file from an alternate location.
> 
> In any case, this is something that *the external module*
> should do, not OFED itself.
> 

The method you suggest overrides the default symvers location. This does
not enable using a file that is effectively appended to the original one,
as in new kernels. The user will have to do the work anyway.

Why shouldn't this step be a part of OFED?

--Yossi