netdev - Re: [PATCH v3 net-next 1/5] devlink: Add macro for "fw.api" to info

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Date:   Thu, 26 Mar 2020 16:51:39 -0700
From:   Jakub Kicinski <kuba@...nel.org>
To:     Jacob Keller <jacob.e.keller@...el.com>
Cc:     Michael Chan <michael.chan@...adcom.com>,
        Vasundhara Volam <vasundhara-v.volam@...adcom.com>,
        David Miller <davem@...emloft.net>,
        Netdev <netdev@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH v3 net-next 1/5] devlink: Add macro for "fw.api" to
 info_get cb.

On Thu, 26 Mar 2020 16:39:31 -0700 Jacob Keller wrote:
> On 3/26/2020 4:09 PM, Michael Chan wrote:
> > On Thu, Mar 26, 2020 at 1:40 PM Jakub Kicinski <kuba@...nel.org> wrote:  
> >>
> >> On Thu, 26 Mar 2020 17:32:34 +0530 Vasundhara Volam wrote:  
> >>> Add definition and documentation for the new generic info "fw.api".
> >>> "fw.api" specifies the version of the software interfaces between
> >>> driver and overall firmware.
> >>>
> >>> Cc: Jakub Kicinski <kuba@...nel.org>
> >>> Cc: Jacob Keller <jacob.e.keller@...el.com>
> >>> Reviewed-by: Jiri Pirko <jiri@...lanox.com>
> >>> Signed-off-by: Vasundhara Volam <vasundhara-v.volam@...adcom.com>
> >>> Signed-off-by: Michael Chan <michael.chan@...adcom.com>
> >>> ---
> >>> v1->v2: Rename macro to "fw.api" from "drv.spec".  
> >>
> >> I suggested "fw.mgmt.api", like Intel has. What else those this API
> >> number covers beyond management? Do you negotiated descriptor formats
> >> for the datapath?  
> > 
> > To us, "management" firmware usually means firmware such as IPMI that
> > interfaces with the BMC.  Here, we're trying to convey the API between
> > the driver and the main firmware.  Yes, this main firmware also
> > "manages" things such as rings, MAC, the physical port, etc.  But
> > again, we want to distinguish it from the platform management type of
> > firmware.
> >   
> 
> Documentation for "fw.mgmt":
> 
> fw.mgmt
> -------
> 
> Control unit firmware version. This firmware is responsible for house
> keeping tasks, PHY control etc. but not the packet-by-packet data path
> operation.
> 
> To me, platform management would need a new name, as the term "fw.mgmt"
> has already been used by multiple drivers.

Right, we already have:

fw.ncsi                                                                         
-------                                                                         
                                                                                
Version of the software responsible for supporting/handling the                 
Network Controller Sideband Interface.


Maybe something more broad is needed there, but let's keep mgmt's
meaning. I know this may not fit existing vendor nomenclature, but
that's kind of the point, we're trying to have common Linux naming..