Bug#626031: debian-kernel-handbook: please support U-Boot format images.

[Hector Oron <hector.oron@gmail.com>]

Hi,

2011/5/8 Martin Michlmayr <tbm@cyrius.com>:
> * Hector Oron <zumbi@debian.org> [2011-05-08 08:10]:
>>   Adding support for U-Boot image format ('uImage' kernel target) in
>>   official kernel packages seem to me the right thing to do, it would

> This was suggested before but there are some reasons why I don't
> believe it will work:
>
>  - We need to hardcode the machine ID into the kernel and the machine
>   ID depends on a particular device, so shipping a uImage rather than
>   a normal kernel file will just make it harder.

I think machine_ID and kernel_format (uImage|vmlinuz|vmlinux) could
easily be fields in the architecture config files (defines).
Having a kernel task that overrides machine ID (when needed) does not
seem to be a complicated task either. OTOH, we
simplify `debian-installer` and `flash-kernel` (where code is
duplicated), plus we avoid to play with create, upgrade, delete
kernel hooks.

>  - Some machines require different uImage settings (load address, etc).
>   For example, the mv2120 doesn't use a normal uImage but a
>   multi-boot uImage.

What's a multi-boot uImage?

Best regards,
-- 
 Héctor Orón  -.. . -... .. .- -.   -.. . ...- . .-.. --- .--. . .-.

PS.- I have just built an uImage for tegra device and linux kernel
have all the needed information,
   why Debian Linux kernel is unable to do the same?

zumbi@ts01:~/linux-2.6.39-rc6$ make uImage
  CHK     include/linux/version.h
  CHK     include/generated/utsrelease.h
make[1]: `include/generated/mach-types.h' is up to date.
  CALL    scripts/checksyscalls.sh
  CHK     include/generated/compile.h
  Kernel: arch/arm/boot/Image is ready
  SHIPPED arch/arm/boot/compressed/lib1funcs.S
  AS      arch/arm/boot/compressed/lib1funcs.o
  LD      arch/arm/boot/compressed/vmlinux
  OBJCOPY arch/arm/boot/zImage
  Kernel: arch/arm/boot/zImage is ready
  UIMAGE  arch/arm/boot/uImage
Image Name:   Linux-2.6.39-rc6
Created:      Sun May  8 09:47:21 2011
Image Type:   ARM Linux Kernel Image (uncompressed)
Data Size:    2147104 Bytes = 2096.78 kB = 2.05 MB
Load Address: 00008000
Entry Point:  00008000
  Image arch/arm/boot/uImage is ready


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