Re: 2.5 IDE Whitepaper?

[Alan Cox <alan@lxorguk.ukuu.org.uk>]

On Thu, 2002-08-22 at 00:32, Jeff Garzik wrote:
> PAUL BENNETT wrote:
> > I am looking for documentation regarding the 2.5 IDE rewrite.  For example: 
> > What are the goals for 2.5.  What is the implementation plan?  What were the
> > problems in 2.4, and how will they be fixed in 2.5, etc?
> 
> <chuckle>  I wish :)
> 
> I imagine it will happen like most things happen, Linus describes his 
> ideas and goals and wishes in a few lkml posts, and eventually something 
> like it happens :)

I can try, my working list approximates this (ignoring the 2.5
porting/block I/O stuff which is a chapter in itself)

Phase #1 (mostly complete)
	Merge Andre's current code [DONE]
	Remove all the bogus code from the PCI drivers [90% DONE]
	Move all the drivers seperate from the core code [DONE]
	Migrate the PCI drivers to a registration API and allow insmod
	Fix bugs arising from the first bits of phase 1

Phase #2 
	Deal with insmod of a device currently running as legacy
	Fix up the locking ready to allow rmmod of a pci driver
	Allow rmmod and hotplug at the controller level

Phase #3
	Complete splitting setup-pci functions into smaller bits of code
	and replace deep magic and callbacks with functions called from
	each driver. Get all the if device==foo out of the PCI code 	paths

Phase #4
	Do something about the ide_register/unregister end of the world
	and legacy chipset stuff. The PPC folks may tackle this in
	advance
	Get us to the point we can foo = ide_attach(); ide_remove(foo) 	
	for arbitary interfaces
	
And then (when the setup is turned the right way out and not before)
begin looking at turning the actual block I/O engine the right way out.
(That is driver calls helpers not midlayer and magic)

That should allow us to keep solid stable IDE along the way.