compiling out-of-tree kernel modules for kFreeBSD (was Re: Error during compiling kernel module at generating file vnode_if.h.)

[Benjamin Kaduk <kaduk@MIT.EDU>]

[removing the bug from the cc]

On Fri, 17 Jun 2011, Robert Millan wrote:

> 2011/6/17 Benjamin Kaduk <kaduk@mit.edu>:
> > On Fri, 17 Jun 2011, Robert Millan wrote:
> >
> > > I'm wondering if it'd make sense to stop providing kfreebsd-source-*
> > > packages.  Unlike linux-source-*, figuring out how to properly use
> > > this build system is very complicated (e.g. export PATH so that
> > > `awk' is /usr/lib/freebsd/awk).
> >
> > Stock FreeBSD has a 'buildenv' toplevel make target (usually used for
> > cross-compiling with a different TARGET, I think).  I wonder if it could be
> > leveraged to help with this sort of issue.
>
> We have a set of hacks that make kernel of FreeBSD buildable.  The
> problem is that these are only applied in the Debian package.  We
> could move this know-how into a Makefile and include that into
> /usr/src, but TBH I don't think it's worth it.  People who want to rebuild
> kFreeBSD on Debian/GNU world could just apt-get source -b kfreebsd-8
> instead.

This reminds me -- I have been working on-and-off at porting the OpenAFS 
network filesystem to kFreeBSD (it has a Debian package, and I maintain 
the FreeBSD port of it), but it requires a kernel module.  The approach 
that we seem to have historically been taken is roughly "build a kernel, 
and copy the CFLAGS over for the module build", but this is pretty ugly. 
For stock FreeBSD, I can integrate with the bsd.kmod.mk system makefile 
which simplifies things greatly.  Is there a similar standard mechanism by 
which to build an out-of-tree kernel module on Debian/kFreeBSD?

Thanks,

Ben Kaduk