Re: [PATCH] bnx2: update bnx2-mips-09 firmware to bnx2-mips-09-6.2.1b

[Eric Dumazet <eric.dumazet@gmail.com>]

On Wed, 2012-08-08 at 08:49 +0200, Willy Tarreau wrote:
> Hi Eric,
> 
> On Wed, Aug 08, 2012 at 08:27:52AM +0200, Eric Dumazet wrote:
> > On Wed, 2012-08-08 at 08:17 +0200, Willy Tarreau wrote:
> > 
> > > 
> > > Well, if the drivers provided with the kernel don't work out of the box
> > > anymore, maybe we should also move them to a separate repository. All it
> > > is going to do otherwise is to cause invalid bug reports because users
> > > don't understand why using the latest driver does not work.
> > > 
> > > That way it would be clear that an in-kernel driver has to be self-sustaining
> > > to be maintainable, otherwise it has nothing to do there.
> > 
> > People compiling their own kernels are supposed to be able to handle
> > this problem themselves.
> > 
> > If not, they can use a distro.
> 
> But similarly, people who compile their own kernels are also supposed to
> be able to retrieve up-to-date drivers from another tree. I know many
> people who use the intel NIC drivers from sf.net and (less) other ones
> using myricom's drivers for instance.
> 
> I don't really see the value of keeping in the tree drivers that don't
> work out of the box, if it's only causing issues and bug reports.

Only the firmware is in a separate git tree, called linux-firmware, that
about all kernel developers are aware of.

The drivers themselves are in linux tree, and they are generally in
quite good shape, because of that.