Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S1758703AbZANFqU (ORCPT ); Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:46:20 -0500 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S1753926AbZANFqK (ORCPT ); Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:46:10 -0500 Received: from mx2.mail.elte.hu ([157.181.151.9]:39266 "EHLO mx2.mail.elte.hu" rhost-flags-OK-OK-OK-OK) by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S1752835AbZANFqJ (ORCPT ); Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:46:09 -0500 Date: Wed, 14 Jan 2009 06:45:56 +0100 From: Ingo Molnar To: Bodo Eggert <7eggert@gmx.de> Cc: "H. Peter Anvin" , Linux Kernel Mailing List , Thomas Gleixner , Al Viro , Alain Knaff Subject: Re: The policy on initramfs decompression failure Message-ID: <20090114054556.GB11153@elte.hu> References: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.18 (2008-05-17) X-ELTE-VirusStatus: clean X-ELTE-SpamScore: -1.5 X-ELTE-SpamLevel: X-ELTE-SpamCheck: no X-ELTE-SpamVersion: ELTE 2.0 X-ELTE-SpamCheck-Details: score=-1.5 required=5.9 tests=BAYES_00 autolearn=no SpamAssassin version=3.2.3 -1.5 BAYES_00 BODY: Bayesian spam probability is 0 to 1% [score: 0.0000] Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org List-ID: X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Content-Length: 1288 Lines: 32 * Bodo Eggert <7eggert@gmx.de> wrote: > If the initrd is not decompressed successfully, [...] No, that's not the issue - i think hpa's description was misleading in that respect. This is not some sort of corruption. I have hit this pointless panic during testing: there was nothing wrong with either the initrd or the system, the bzImage simply did not include the right decompressor .config option to even read the initrd. The analogue is if i booted a kernel with CONFIG_MODULES disabled. I do it all the time, it always worked without problems and the initrd with modules in it cannot be interpreted in any sane way CONFIG_MODULES - still it works just fine because the initrd is uninteresting as far as the modules go. So basically now the kernel has regressed in its bzImage utility: "oh, i dont have a decompressor for the initrd. PANIC!". And that is a step backwards. Unless you use bzImage i dont think you can really appreciate this argument. I would not mind a warning message though, that bit makes sense. Ingo -- To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/