linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH] get_maintainer: add support for using an alternate MAINTAINERS file

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Date:	Fri, 16 Oct 2015 12:14:27 +0300
From:	Jani Nikula <jani.nikula@...el.com>
To:	Joe Perches <joe@...ches.com>
Cc:	linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org
Subject: Re: [PATCH] get_maintainer: add support for using an alternate MAINTAINERS file

On Fri, 16 Oct 2015, Joe Perches <joe@...ches.com> wrote:
> On Fri, 2015-10-16 at 11:36 +0300, Jani Nikula wrote:
>> There are large and/or complex subsystems/drivers that have domain
>> experts that should review patches in their domain. One such example is
>> drm/i915. We'd like to be able to document this in a way that can be
>> automatically queried for each patch, so people know who to ping for
>> reviews. This is what get_maintainer.pl already solves.
>> 
>> However, documenting all of this in the main kernel MAINTAINERS file is
>> just too much noise, and potentially confusing for community
>> contributors. Add support for specifying and using an alternate
>> MAINTAINERS file with --maintainers option.
>
> Is this really useful for the community at large?

Probably not.

> This seems like something that might be useful for an
> organization but not others.

It may be useful for several organizations contributing to the kernel.

> Why is specifying whatever is necessary in the existing
> MAINTAINERS file noisy or confusing?

IIUC you can't specify file patterns for specific reviewers within one
entry. I think we'd have to split up the driver entry to several, mostly
duplicated and possibly overlapping entries, with their own designated
reviewers and file patterns. I think that would be noisy and confusing.

Perhaps we could have detailed maintainers files within drivers,
included from the top MAINTAINERS file; however that would be a much
more intrusive change (and definitely beyond my perl cargo culting
skills). I just thought what I proposed here would be a rather harmless
change.

BR,
Jani.

-- 
Jani Nikula, Intel Open Source Technology Center
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