Re: [PATCH v2] Re: WAN: new PPP code for generic HDLC

Jeff Garzik [off-list ref] writes:

	I guess it should go into 2.6.25, not sure about "stable"
	series. I will appreciate any feedback, review and/or test
	results.

Right. Perhaps I should care a bit more about the stable series...

At the time of the posting 2.6.25-rc6 had already been released, which
seems like an inappropriate time for all that new code, which has been
given so little exposure to real world testing.

Sure.

Certainly your original message said PPP panics, but without even
minimal testing how do we know that your new code doesn't have equally
problematic issues?

Well, there was something like "minimal testing", and it doesn't panic
100% like the old code does. But the probability that it won't work
correctly is quite high.

IOW: the new version is certainly better than the old one, though it's
not the normal quality (in terms of testing) I'd like to see.

So quite honestly a CONFIG_BROKEN patch might indeed be more
appropriate since generic HDLC works with Frame Relay at least...

Actually Frame Relay and other protocols are not affected, the PPP
patch doesn't change them a bit, it's a different module. The new code
only affect PPP protocol.

I'm fine with the Kconfig patch, actually I'm not sure what is better
at this time - a known broken module marked as such or a new module
with some small chances that it will crash the machine and with much
bigger chances that it won't work with a certain PPP implementation on
the other end.

Something like that?
Untested :-)

Signed-off-by: Krzysztof Halasa <khc@pm.waw.pl>

--- a/drivers/net/wan/Kconfig
+++ b/drivers/net/wan/Kconfig

@@ -150,9 +150,13 @@ config HDLC_FR
 
 config HDLC_PPP
 	tristate "Synchronous Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) support"
-	depends on HDLC
+	depends on HDLC && BROKEN
 	help
 	  Generic HDLC driver supporting PPP over WAN connections.
+	  This module is currently broken and will cause a kernel panic
+	  when a device configured in PPP mode is activated.
+
+	  It will be replaced by new PPP implementation in Linux 2.6.26.
 
 	  If unsure, say N.