Re: [gentoo-dev] linux-info.eclass: lacking sources, config checks and module building

[Robin H. Johnson]

On Mon, Aug 31, 2009 at 01:00:41AM +0100, Mike Auty wrote:
> > I missed a bit for the config option.
> > If there is NO source of the config data, what do we do?
> > Error out or more warnings?
> Well, if we can't determine whether a config option's set or not, if
> it's not critical (ie, it's ~CHECK), then we warn.  If there's any hard
> checks, then we error out I suppose.
+1.

> > This is what I use for my home workstation:
> > /etc/portage/profile/virtuals:virtual/linux-sources sys-kernel/git-sources
> > /etc/portage/profile/virtuals:virtual/alsa sys-kernel/git-sources
> > /etc/portage/profile/package.provided:sys-kernel/git-sources-2.6.30
> > Saves having any fake package like that.
> Ah cunning, I'll have to try that...
We should document it in the kernel web pages.

> > Want to lend a hand fixing up the ebuilds then? I'll work on the eclass sources
> > check.
> Sure, as long as I sure I know how we're fixing them, I'd be glad to
> help.  5:)  I'd just be fixing the userspace ones to make sure they're
> ~CHECK or would I be doing something else as well?  Also should I do
> that via bugs and a week's grace period, or would you recommend I just
> dive right in?
If you feel like reviewing ~140 packages and filing bugs for them, I
won't stop you. But I'm just going to go and fix the ones that seem
simple enough to me, and only file bugs for the complex ones.

> > There IS still a point of having the entirely empty kernel package installed:
> > - Split userspace/kernel packages where the userspace package has a dependency
> >   on the module-providing package.
> > - other packages that might have a dependency on the module-providing package.
> > - /etc/modprobe.d/ files.
> >
> > USE=-modules will ONLY block files installed to /lib/modules/.
> Ok, presumably USE=-modules will also stop the kernel checks, otherwise
> the following could occur.  Let's say the foobar package builds external
> modules and explicitly requires that foobar not be set in the kernel.
> With USE=-modules, there's no internal version and there's no external
> version, but the kernel package is installed, and the deps are happy,
> even though they'll bug out when it's showtime.

Err, I'm not following what you claim is the problem here?

cat/foo-mod:
inherit linux-mod
CONFIG_CHECK="!..."
MODULE_NAMES="...."

cat/foo-usr:
RDEPEND="cat/foo"

And say foo-mod provides /dev/foo for some crazy hardware.

The user sets USE=-modules because they have built cat/foo-mod on their
own, into the kernel. foo-mod installs nothing, foo-usr installs fine.
foo-usr runs, and /dev/foo already exists, so it gets used fine.

> Presumably there's also packages that aren't split, or depended on,
> where not installing the modules is never a good idea.  Is there still a
> way to disable the USE flag, or will it be a requirement of the
> linux-mod package?
It needs to be ALWAYS available. The ipset bug I linked earlier in the
thread was an example of that. The userspace is useless without the
kernel code, but there is nothing to stop the user patching it into
their kernel and not having it as a module at all (as is the case on a
couple of my work boxes, which is why the bug got filed).

-- 
Robin Hugh Johnson
Gentoo Linux: Developer, Trustee & Infrastructure Lead
E-Mail     : robbat2@g.o
GnuPG FP   : 11AC BA4F 4778 E3F6 E4ED  F38E B27B 944E 3488 4E85