Re: [gentoo-dev] limiting the number of virtual consoles in user mode linux

[Georgi Georgiev]

On 09/07/2003 at 20:54:35(-0700), Anupam Kapoor used 1.3K just to say:
> Sven Vermeulen <swift@g.o> writes:
>
> > On Wed, Jul 09, 2003 at 01:22:38PM -0700, Anupam Kapoor wrote:
> > [...]
> >> i am not sure i understand how it is related to spawning multiple
> >> consoles during system boot.
> >
> > I'm not sure, but I believe that the following commands will create the vc's
> > (which is not what you want):
> >
> >                    echo -ne "\033(K" > /dev/vc/${x}
> > or
> >                    echo -ne "\033(K" > /dev/tty${x}
> > in /etc/init.d/consolefont (in case you don't have consolechars)
> >
> > By delimiting ${x} to the number of VC's you want you make sure that the
> > kernel only starts that number of xterms when loading the UML...
> i think the consoles are created by devfsd, with :
> MAKEDEV /dev/vc/XXX c 4 ....
> or some such.
>
> i think 'echo' does not create any devices.

No, it doesn't. 

However, I see a few misunderstandings about terms "creating" the device, and
"creating" the console. I am not sure that I am calling them correctly either.
In fact I am pretty sure, I am calling things the wrong way, but I'll try to
explain what I mean anyway, so it shouldn't really matter.

I have device files numbered 0 to 63 in /dev/vc/. These are the devices that
are either created by devfs or by MAKEDEV. Their number is fixed when compiling
the kernel (I guess).

However, pressing Alt+F7 when X is not running would do nothing here, since the
/dev/vc/7 device has not been used ever. Another example. Pressing Alt+Right
arrow (when using the vc/1 console) would in turn switch to vc/2, vc/3... vc/6,
vc/1, vc/2 etc... I.e. it switches between the "created consoles". Now try to
do
	
	echo "something" > /dev/vc/7

Alt + Right would now switch over this new console as well.

The above is simply my observation. Terminology may be wrong, some other stuff
may be wrong, but the overall idea is correct I hope.

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