From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S1757303Ab2HHHAb (ORCPT ); Wed, 8 Aug 2012 03:00:31 -0400 Received: from mail-bk0-f46.google.com ([209.85.214.46]:49431 "EHLO mail-bk0-f46.google.com" rhost-flags-OK-OK-OK-OK) by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S1751873Ab2HHHA3 (ORCPT ); Wed, 8 Aug 2012 03:00:29 -0400 Subject: Re: [PATCH] bnx2: update bnx2-mips-09 firmware to bnx2-mips-09-6.2.1b From: Eric Dumazet To: Willy Tarreau Cc: David Miller , albcamus@gmail.com, chris@arachsys.com, mchan@broadcom.com, linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org, stable@vger.kernel.org In-Reply-To: <20120808064959.GB15255@1wt.eu> References: <20120713130405.GS13885@arachsys.com> <20120807.225800.1450928472652058111.davem@davemloft.net> <20120808061758.GA15255@1wt.eu> <1344407272.28967.214.camel@edumazet-glaptop> <20120808064959.GB15255@1wt.eu> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" Date: Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:00:23 +0200 Message-ID: <1344409223.28967.217.camel@edumazet-glaptop> Mime-Version: 1.0 X-Mailer: Evolution 2.28.3 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org List-ID: X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org 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.