Re: Bug#61065: Adam Di Carlo: Re: Bug#61065: Need /dev/md0 for boot/install RAID support in root.bin
On Mon, 3 Apr 2000, Adam Di Carlo wrote:
> Please retain the CC to debian-boot because I think this is of general
> interest.
>
> > I haven't made packages for 2.2.14 because the patches after 2.2.11
> >aren't "official" (in the sense that they aren't distributed through
> >ftp.kernel.org, at least). Now that there is demand and the patches have
> >been found stable, it probably would be good to make packages. I could
> >build and upload them this weekend if Mike doesn't insist to take the task.
>
> Ok, I'll let you and Mike hash this out.
Mike certainly will not stand in the way of PAK's doing a 2.2.14 patch
set! I honestly don't know what the story is with kernel.org, but I can
tell you that the current patch package would be better off withdrawn.
Official or not, the kernel.org patches from August 1999 are (1) less
stable than the unofficial patches when applied to the old kernel source,
and (2) definitely unstable (to kernel panic) when applied to the new
kernel source.
If we are going to do a kernel RAID patch at all, I strongly believe it
should be based on the unofficial series from Ingo Molnar which actually
works and appears to be stable when used with the 2.2.14 kernel source.
It is Ingo's version which is being merged into the mainstream 2.3.x
kernel source, so that has as much of an official imprimatur as anything.
This still does not solve the issue of how to make a floppy boot set for
installing a root fs onto RAID, but having a kernel image with the RAID
patches applied would be extremely helpful to that effort. Such a boot
set would need, I think, (1) a patched kernel, (2) /dev/md? device nodes
in root.bin, (3) the raidtools2 binaries on root.bin, (4) an updated Lilo,
(5) modifications to the installation program so that it knows /dev/md?
devices could be mkfs'ed and mounted onto /target. Exactly how a raidtab
file would be created and the mkraid tool from raidtools2 would be run is
not clear to me, but that might be something that could be done in some
easy way.
I am certainly willing to help in any way I can, but there is no point to
my getting in PAK's way, either.
-- Mike
Reply to: