linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH] VMware balloon: force compiling as a module

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Message-Id: <20100701151835.33874101.akpm@linux-foundation.org>
Date:	Thu, 1 Jul 2010 15:18:35 -0700
From:	Andrew Morton <akpm@...ux-foundation.org>
To:	Dmitry Torokhov <dtor@...are.com>
Cc:	Bruno Prémont <bonbons@...ux-vserver.org>,
	Alexander Clouter <alex@...riz.org.uk>,
	linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org
Subject: Re: [PATCH] VMware balloon: force compiling as a module

On Tue, 29 Jun 2010 09:40:38 -0700
Dmitry Torokhov <dtor@...are.com> wrote:

> On Tuesday, June 29, 2010 09:28:59 am Bruno Pr__mont wrote:
> > On Tue, 29 June 2010 Alexander Clouter <alex@...riz.org.uk> wrote:
> > > Dmitry Torokhov <dtor@...are.com> wrote:
> > > > VMware Tools installer requires the upstream driver to be compiled
> > > > as a module in order to detect its presence and avoid installing
> > > > our own version on top of it. To avoid surprises with 2 versions
> > > > of the driver being installed and fighting with each other, let's
> > > > force the driver to be compiled as a module unless user selects
> > > > CONFIG_EMBEDDED.
> > > 
> > > *barf*
> > > 
> > > This surely is a problem in the installer and not the kernel?  Can you
> > > not nosey around in /sys/class/misc or where-ever your driver appears?
> > > If it does not, then I would probably suggest a patch to your balloon
> > > driver that dumps some details in there, including module version
> > > information.
> > > 
> > > Eugh.
> > 
> > In addition, the installer may check under /sys/module/ for it (as for
> > any/most code that can be built as a module), even for built-in code.
> > (if balloon driver does not show up there when built-in it would be
> > better to get it to show up there)
> > 
> 
> When driver is built-in the only thing exported in /sys/module/XXX are
> module parameters.
> 
> We also need to handle scenario when module is not loaded into the
> kernel.
> 

- check for the /sys/module directory.

- if that failed, modprobe the driver

- if that failed, error out

The patch really is pretty icky.  Adding restrictions to kernel
configuration to work around problems in some installer program?

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