Messages in this thread | | | Date | Tue, 15 Jul 2008 05:06:22 +0200 | From | Rene Herman <> | Subject | Re: [GIT *] Allow request_firmware() to be satisfied from in-kernel, use it in more drivers. |
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On 15-07-08 04:39, Linus Torvalds wrote:
> On Mon, 14 Jul 2008, David Miller wrote: >> They states that it was being done on a technical basis rather >> than being predominantly a legal one. > > No. > > Yes, the original reason for request_firmware() was obviously very much > partly legal. > > HOWEVER. > > Once you have a model that is required (for whatever reasons) for some > drivers, we're much better off using the _same_ model for all drivers, > whether it is necessary for legal reasons for those other drivers. > > Put this way: if you do a distro, you _need_ to support firmware loading > anyway. And once you do that, it's just annoying how some drivers then do > something odd and special for the same thing, for no real good reason.
There's little alternative infrastructure in declaring a static array of unsigned char though.
Yes, it still makes sense to make everyone use request_firmware() if only because these other drivers now all of a sudden have a more accessible way of updating their firmwares, but David's objective is legal here.
Which is fine.
But the very clear _technical_ objection about this not providing for keeping modules and their firmware together for those that really do want it to be that way was not at all addressed. Note, this while still using request_firmware(), just at the option of the kernel builder with the firmware compiled into the module. Right now, this allows the firmware to be compiled into the vmlinux only which makes fairly little sense if the driver itself is a module.
Rene.
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