netdev - Re: [PATCH 0/2] net: ethernet: Remove the 8390 network drivers

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Date:   Mon, 9 Aug 2021 13:57:24 +0200
From:   Geert Uytterhoeven <geert@...ux-m68k.org>
To:     Michael Schmitz <schmitzmic@...il.com>
Cc:     Cai Huoqing <caihuoqing@...du.com>,
        "David S. Miller" <davem@...emloft.net>,
        Jakub Kicinski <kuba@...nel.org>,
        Arnd Bergmann <arnd@...db.de>, Jason Gunthorpe <jgg@...pe.ca>,
        netdev <netdev@...r.kernel.org>,
        Linux Kernel Mailing List <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH 0/2] net: ethernet: Remove the 8390 network drivers

On Sun, Aug 8, 2021 at 12:50 AM Michael Schmitz <schmitzmic@...il.com> wrote:
> a number of the 8390 drivers are still in active use on legacy
> architectures. These drivers get occasional updates (not just bugfixes,

Exactly.

> but support for 'new' network cards - I have a patch to add X-Surf 500
> support somewhere in the pipline).

According to the picture on [1], the X-Surf 500 is from 2018.
The ASIX AX88796B[2] it is based on seems to be readily available,
so new designs may still use the "obsolete" 8390.

[1] https://icomp.de/shop-icomp/en/produkt-details/product/x-surf-500.html
[2] https://www.asix.com.tw/en/product/EmbeddedEthernet/1-Port_Ethernet/AX88796B

> Am 08.08.2021 um 02:56 schrieb Cai Huoqing:
> > commit <0cf445ceaf43> ("<netdev: Update status of 8390 based drivers>")
> > indicated the 8390 network drivers as orphan/obsolete in Jan 2011,
> > updated in the MAINTAINERS file.
> >
> > now, after being exposed for 10 years to refactoring and
> > no one has become its maintainer for the past 10 years,
> > so to remove the 8390 network drivers for good.
> >
> > additionally, 8390 is a kind of old ethernet chip based on
> > ISA interface which is hard to find in the market.

Gr{oetje,eeting}s,

                        Geert

-- 
Geert Uytterhoeven -- There's lots of Linux beyond ia32 -- geert@...ux-m68k.org

In personal conversations with technical people, I call myself a hacker. But
when I'm talking to journalists I just say "programmer" or something like that.
                                -- Linus Torvalds