From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S1754159AbZKUCMn (ORCPT ); Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:12:43 -0500 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S1753866AbZKUCMm (ORCPT ); Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:12:42 -0500 Received: from mail-iw0-f178.google.com ([209.85.223.178]:41727 "EHLO mail-iw0-f178.google.com" rhost-flags-OK-OK-OK-OK) by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S1753852AbZKUCMl convert rfc822-to-8bit (ORCPT ); Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:12:41 -0500 DomainKey-Signature: a=rsa-sha1; c=nofws; d=gmail.com; s=gamma; h=mime-version:in-reply-to:references:from:date:message-id:subject:to :cc:content-type:content-transfer-encoding; b=Fl+Bh4MDMZjhIRNykQgvgoAlhmi0tydNann+cKP7ehi9CgF0muX+lcJU9mPL5xCIxx 6t4Oh+NkMLjz7be7cLqw6QWbYsKKJOJSo0rg4Q9ai5h+P039L6k1LI4yj5EOLjmj7iwF beiJEldmaSPcXQ2TBkL+7RNq51otfNAJczRf8= MIME-Version: 1.0 In-Reply-To: <43e72e890911201338w4c403d51q651afc3638d1739c@mail.gmail.com> References: <43e72e890911201245r4de5b039hb2dd5011dabf2399@mail.gmail.com> <43e72e890911201251t6210ee19n177eaf003a4fffc@mail.gmail.com> <43e72e890911201253obc466c8k2102e04457c48c92@mail.gmail.com> <20091120211837.GA22815@tuxdriver.com> <43e72e890911201338w4c403d51q651afc3638d1739c@mail.gmail.com> From: "Luis R. Rodriguez" Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:12:27 -0800 Message-ID: <43e72e890911201812r6551422bk276bbcaf3179d5cc@mail.gmail.com> Subject: Re: A generic kernel compatibilty code To: "John W. Linville" Cc: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org, linux-wireless , netdev@vger.kernel.org Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8BIT Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org List-ID: X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org On Fri, Nov 20, 2009 at 1:38 PM, Luis R. Rodriguez wrote: > On Fri, Nov 20, 2009 at 1:18 PM, John W. Linville > wrote: >> On Fri, Nov 20, 2009 at 12:53:51PM -0800, Luis R. Rodriguez wrote: >>> On Fri, Nov 20, 2009 at 12:51 PM, Luis R. Rodriguez wrote: >>> > On Fri, Nov 20, 2009 at 12:45 PM, Luis R. Rodriguez wrote: >>> >> Everyone and their mother reinvents the wheel when it comes to >>> >> backporting kernel modules. It a painful job and it seems to me an >>> >> alternative is possible. If we can write generic compatibilty code for >>> >> a new routine introduced on the next kernel how about just merging it >>> >> to the kernel under some generic compat module. This would be >>> >> completey ignored by everyone using the stable kernel but can be >>> >> copied by anyone doing backport work. >>> >> >>> >> So I'm thinking something as simple as a generic compat/comat.ko with >>> >> compat-2.6.32.[ch] files. >>> > >>> > FWIW, I meant a compat-2.6.32.[ch] and compat-2.6.31.[ch] and so on. >>> > All these would link to the compat.ko >>> >>> I supose this could juse be a separate tree with some generic >>> compat.ko module. That might work better. >> >> This is what I would suggest for pursuing this idea.  Perhaps you >> could split-off from compat-wireless, then make that tree depend on >> the new tree (compat-core?)... > > OK thanks, will try that for the next kernel. I've packaged a compat.ko here: git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/mcgrof/compat.git This should be up as soon as the kernel.org synchs. The missing piece would just be to define a common place to put the headers for distributions who want to use external modules which want to use this thing. Luis