Message-Id: <60bc6e36dd7cdc96b74ed1904355bf334263bc9c.1510840787.git-series.knut.omang@oracle.com>
Date:   Thu, 16 Nov 2017 18:01:44 +0100
From:   Knut Omang <knut.omang@...cle.com>
To:     linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org
Cc:     Knut Omang <knut.omang@...cle.com>,
        Jonathan Corbet <corbet@....net>,
        Mauro Carvalho Chehab <mchehab@...nel.org>,
        Åsmund Østvold <asmund.ostvold@...cle.com>,
        John Haxby <john.haxby@...cle.com>,
        Kees Cook <keescook@...omium.org>,
        Mickaël Salaün <mic@...ikod.net>,
        Håkon Bugge <haakon.bugge@...cle.com>,
        linux-doc@...r.kernel.org
Subject: [PATCH 4/7] Documentation: Add documentation for the new P= Makefile option

Signed-off-by: Knut Omang <knut.omang@...cle.com>
Reviewed-by: Håkon Bugge <haakon.bugge@...cle.com>
Reviewed-by: Åsmund Østvold <asmund.ostvold@...cle.com>
Reviewed-by: John Haxby <john.haxby@...cle.com>
Signed-off-by: Knut Omang <knut.omang@...cle.com>
---
 Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst          |   1 +-
 Documentation/dev-tools/run-checkpatch.rst | 105 ++++++++++++++++++++++-
 2 files changed, 106 insertions(+)
 create mode 100644 Documentation/dev-tools/run-checkpatch.rst

diff --git a/Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst b/Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst
index a81787c..b678a3a 100644
--- a/Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst
+++ b/Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ whole; patches welcome!
 
    coccinelle
    sparse
+   run-checkpatch
    kcov
    gcov
    kasan
diff --git a/Documentation/dev-tools/run-checkpatch.rst b/Documentation/dev-tools/run-checkpatch.rst
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c72f818
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Documentation/dev-tools/run-checkpatch.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,105 @@
+.. Copyright 2017 Knut Omang <knut.omang@...cle.com>
+
+Makefile support for systematic checkpatch testing
+==================================================
+
+The scripts/checkpatch.pl script is able to detect a lot of syntactic and
+semantic issues with the code, and is also constantly evolving and detecting
+more. In an ideal world, all source files should adhere to whatever rules
+imposed by checkpatch.pl with all bells and whistles enabled, in a way that
+checkpatch can be run as a reflex by developers (and by bots) from the top level
+Makefile for every changing source file. In the real world however there's a
+number of challenges:
+
+* Sometimes there are valid reasons for accepting violations of a checkpatch
+  rule, even if that rule is a sensible one in the general case.
+* Some subsystems have different restrictions and requirements for checkpatch.
+  (Ideally, the number of subsystems with differing restrictions and
+  requirements will diminish over time.)
+* Similarly, the kernel contains a lot of code that predates checkpatch, or at
+  least some of the newer rules, and we would like checkpatch to evolve without
+  requiring the need to fix all issues detected with it in the same commit.
+* On the other hand, we want to make sure that files that are checkpatch clean
+  (to some well defined extent, such as passing checkpatch with checks only for
+  certain important types of issues) keep being so.
+
+This is the purpose of supplying the option ``--ignore-cfg checkpatch.cfg`` to
+``scripts/checkpatch.pl``. It will then look for a file named ``checkpatch.cfg``
+in the current directory or alternatively in the directory of the source
+file. If that file exists, checkpatch parses a set of rules from it, and use
+them to determine how to invoke checkpatch for a particular file. The kernel
+Makefile system supports using this feature as an integrated part of compiling
+the code.
+
+The ignore configuration file
+-----------------------------
+
+The ignore configuration file can be used to set policies and "rein in"
+checkpatch errors piece by piece for a particular subsystem or driver.
+The the following syntax is supported::
+
+	# comments
+	line_len <n>
+	except checkpatch_type [files ...]
+	pervasive checkpatch_type1 [checkpatch_type2 ...]
+
+The ``line_len`` directive defines the upper bound of characters per line
+tolerated in this directory. The ``except`` directive takes a checkpatch type
+such as for example ``MACRO_ARG_REUSE``, and a set of files that should not be
+subject to this particular check type.  You can run ``scripts/checkpatch.pl
+--list-types`` to see what types that are available. The ``pervasive`` directive
+disables the listed types of checks for all the files in the directory.  The
+``except`` and ``pervasive`` directives can be used cumulatively to add more
+exceptions.
+
+Running checkpatch from make
+----------------------------
+
+You can run checkpatch subject to rules defined in ``checkpatch.cfg`` in the
+directory of the source file by using "make P=1" to run checkpatch on all files
+that gets recompiled, or "make P=2" to run checkpatch on all source files.
+
+A make variable ``PF`` allows passing additional parameters to
+checkpatch.pl. You can for instance use::
+
+	make P=2 PF="--fix-inplace"
+
+to have checkpatch trying to fix issues it finds - *make sure you have a clean
+git tree and carefully review the output afterwards!* Combine this with
+selectively enabling of types of errors via changes to the local
+``checkpatch.cfg``, and you can focus on fixing up errors subsystem or driver by
+driver on a type by type basis.
+
+By default checkpatch will skip all files in directories without a
+checkpatch.cfg file when invoked with the --ignore-cfg parameter.  This is to
+allow builds with P=2 to pass even for subsystems that has not yet done anything
+to rein in checkpatch errors. At some point when all subsystems and drivers
+either have fixed all checkpatch errors or added proper checkpatch.cfg files,
+this can be changed.
+
+To force checkpatch to run a full run in directories without a checkpatch.cfg
+file as well, use::
+
+	make P=2 PF="--req-ignore-cfg"
+
+If you like to see all the warnings and errors produced by checkpatch, ignoring
+any checkpatch.cfg files, you can use::
+
+	make -k P=2 PF="--no-ignore-cfg"
+
+or for a specific module directory::
+
+	make -k P=2 M=drivers/infiniband/core PF="--no-ignore-cfg"
+
+with the -k option to ``make`` to let it continue upon errors.
+
+Ever tightening checkpatch rules
+--------------------------------
+
+Commit the changes to checkpatch.cfg together with the code changes that fixes a
+particular type of issue, this will allow automatic checkpatch testing. This way
+we can ensure that new errors of that particular type do not inadvertently sneak
+in again! This can be done at any subsystem or module maintainer's discretion
+and at the right time without having to do it all at the same time.
+
+Before submitting your changes, verify that "make P=2" passes with no errors.
-- 
git-series 0.9.1

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