Re: [PATCH] fix flags length in net 9p

[Adrian Bunk <bunk@kernel.org>]

On Thu, May 01, 2008 at 02:26:00PM -0700, Daniel Walker wrote:
> 
> On Thu, 2008-05-01 at 14:19 -0700, Andrew Morton wrote:
> > On Thu, 1 May 2008 17:08:05 -0400 (EDT)
> > Steven Rostedt <rostedt@goodmis.org> wrote:
> > 
> > > Some files in the net/9p directory uses "int" for flags. This can
> > > cause hard to find bugs on some architectures. This patch converts the
> > > flags to use "long" instead.
> > 
> > gargh.
> > 
> > > This bug was discovered by doing an allyesconfig make on the -rt kernel
> > > where checks are done to ensure all flags are of size sizeof(long).
> > 
> > I was about to suggest that we do something like that...
> > 
> > I wonder how messy it is.  I long ago lost the ability to follow the
> > convolutions in include/linux/spinlock*.h :(  gotta patch?
> 
> The check that's in -rt for this uses BUILD_BUG_ON(), and it's extremely
> cryptic when there is a failure .. Most people will be baffled why the
> build stopped. If a check went into mainline it should at least give you
> some sort of idea what's happening ..

A cryptic compile error is _much_ better than a hard to find runtime 
error.

> Daniel

cu
Adrian

-- 

       "Is there not promise of rain?" Ling Tan asked suddenly out
        of the darkness. There had been need of rain for many days.
       "Only a promise," Lao Er said.
                                       Pearl S. Buck - Dragon Seed