RE: [ PATCH ] RFC: Search and load drivers automatically fromusb-storage media

[<Sandeep_K_Shandilya Dell com>]

Hello John

Your point about using this technique to mask non-free software is a
good one, yes it is possible to do it. But then the same could be
achieved in other ways too. I think what is good for the end customer is
what open source is all about.

Regards,
Sandeep.

-----Original Message-----
From: anaconda-devel-list-bounces redhat com
[mailto:anaconda-devel-list-bounces redhat com] On Behalf Of John
Summerfield
Sent: Friday, March 28, 2008 6:17 AM
To: Discussion of Development and Customization of the Red Hat Linux
Installer
Subject: Re: [ PATCH ] RFC: Search and load drivers automatically
fromusb-storage media

Sandeep_K_Shandilya Dell com wrote:

>>> I'm not sure that DELL would provide full support for RHEL, or even 
>>> the kernel, on one of its servers.
>>>
>>> And if you think I'm difficult, go to debian.org and read some of 
>>> the
> 
>>> discussions about non-free bits in the kernel!
>>>
> <sandeep>
> This is not about free and non-free stuff, that is a differnet topic.

I've been having trouble discovering just what I would be getting should
I buy a Dell server, and your technique could well be used to mask
non-free software.

I've been using Linux for about ten years now, and I've become
accustomed to doing things a certain way. I become uncomfortable when a
vendor wants to do things differently, and I really do not like
phone-home software.

> This a
> method to solve a problem that customers have.

To further clarify things in my mind, I went to Dell.au's website and
chose a server we might conceivably buy where I work. I settled on a
Poweredge R300.

Then I went to the support page and found me a download for RHEL5. I'm
actually running Scientfic Linux 5 on my desktop, so it's a fair
comparison. I figure that what I find on the website's probably about
what I'd be getting from Dell for that system.

I then tried to investigate the package's contents. It was tricky, my
enquiries were about this successful.
09:16 [summer numbat ~]$ rpm -qp
downloads/sg-3\[1\].5.34dell-1dkms.noarch.rpm  --scripts
09:16 [summer numbat ~]$

That is, no output. So I tried to test installing it:
09:16 [summer numbat ~]$ sudo rpm -i --test
downloads/sg-3\[1\].5.34dell-1dkms.noarch.rpm
Password:
error: File not found by glob:
downloads/sg-3[1].5.34dell-1dkms.noarch.rpm
09:18 [summer numbat ~]$

Okay, a bug in rpm. I did better when I renamed the file:

09:19 [summer numbat ~]$ rpm -qlip sg.rpm
Name        : sg                           Relocations: (not
relocatable)
Version     : 3.5.34dell                        Vendor: (none)
Release     : 1dkms                         Build Date: Wed Jun 13 
23:40:10 2007
Install Date: (not installed)               Build Host: berlin-4-hem
Group       : System/Kernel                 Source RPM: 
sg-3.5.34dell-1dkms.src.rpm
Size        : 84574                            License: Unknown
Signature   : (none)
Packager    : DKMS <dkms-devel lists us dell com>
Summary     : sg 3.5.34dell dkms package
Description :
Kernel modules for sg 3.5.34dell in a DKMS wrapper.
/usr/src/sg-3.5.34dell
/usr/src/sg-3.5.34dell/sg-3.5.34dell-mktarball.dkms.tgz
09:19 [summer numbat ~]$

So if I understand you correctly, this is pretty much what you'd be
putting in the driver storage.

I unpacked the rpm using rpm2cpio and find both a prebuilt kernel
module, and what looks to be the source to recreate it.

In this case we have a standard GPL-licenced Linux driver, with a
one-line Dell patch.

I suppose the system was certified at RHEL5.0. If it worked with RHEL5.0
then I don't see the need for RHEL5.0 drivers in usb-storage, unless RH
declined to accept the patch, so I suppose that it was certified with
this patch in place and that I'd need it to install RHEL5.0 and maybe
CentOS5.0 and SL5.0.

Supposing my suppositions are all well-founded, then it would be good to
have the driver in USB storage, I'm very good at losing CDs, and even
without that skill, where I work most of our computers are three years
old before we get them (but then, in such a case, it would be reasonable
to expect not to need the Dell driver).

I'm still not keen on the idea of DKMS, it'd rather not be expected to
maintain a C compiler on a server.

I would prefer a yum repo at Dell, together with instructions for
pinning so one gets only the Dell bits from Dell, but getting the
updates from RH etc would be even better.

-- 

Cheers
John

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