Bug#766105: 486 kernel doesn't boot on net4501; CC_STACKPROTECTOR_NONE helps

[Ben Harris <bjh21@bjh21.me.uk>]

Package: linux
Version: 3.16.5-1
Version: 3.16.3-2
Version: 3.2.57-3
Version: linux-2.6/2.6.31-1
Severity: important

Attempting to boot the kernel in linux-image-3.16-3-486 on a Soekris 
Engineering net4501 fails.  With "console=ttyS0 earlyprintk=serial" on the 
kernel command-line, I get the following on the serial console:


Loading Linux 3.16-3-486 ...
Loading initial ramdisk ...
early console in decompress_kernel

Decompressing Linux... Parsing ELF... No relocation needed... done.
Booting the kernel.


No output appears on the console after that.  I'm using grub-pc 
1.99-27+deb7u2, and the BIOS is comBIOS 1.33 (the last one released for 
the net4501).  The net4501 is built around an AMD Élan SC520, which has a 
486 core.

If I recompile the kernel using the following procedure, I get one that 
boots:

$ debian/rules setup
$ make O=debian/build/build_i386_none_486 CC=/usr/lib/ccache/gcc-4.8 menuconfig
  [ disable stack protector (setting CC_STACKPROTECTOR_NONE) ]
$ make -j2 O=debian/build/build_i386_none_486 CC=/usr/lib/ccache/gcc-4.8 bzImage

This suggests that the kernel stack protector is what's causing the 
problem.

The same bug seems to have existed since Debian first enabled the kernel 
stack protector back in 2.6.31.  I've tested the versions listed in the 
pseudo-headers.

--
Ben Harris