Linux-kernel mailing list archive 1999-23,: Re: 2.3 wish: integrate pcmcia into mainstream kernel

# Re: 2.3 wish: integrate pcmcia into mainstream kernel

Riley Williams (rhw@MemAlpha.CX)
Sun, 6 Jun 1999 00:05:25 +0100 (GMT)

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Hi Hans.

>> The fancy larger initrd, *if* it's too large for 8MB, is only
>> needed for the latest boot-from-cdrom systems anyway.

> How about compressing all files in an initrd image individually
> and storing them in memory in compressed form? Should be easy as
> long as the image is read-only. I don't know if a read-write
> image is needed.

Even that much shouldn't be necessary, as tar can extract individual
files from an archive, so all that's needed is to have a compressed
tarball with all the relevant drivers in it, and have the install
script do something like the following...

Q> NEEDED=`get-required-driver-list`
Q> mkdir -p /lib/modules/`uname -r`
Q> cd /lib/modules/`uname -r`
Q> tar xzf /dev/initrd $NEEDED

...where `get-required-drivers-list` is whatever is required to list
the drivers needed for a particular install, and /dev/initrd points to
what's currently the initial ramdisk, but which would become a tarball
in this scheme.

Basically, this would replace the initrd with a tarball from which
only those files needed for a particular install would be extracted
into ramdisk, the rest staying in the boot image.

Best wishes from Riley.

+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| There is something frustrating about the quality and speed of Linux |
| development, ie., the quality is too high and the speed is too high, |
| in other words, I can implement this XXXX feature, but I bet someone |
| else has already done so and is just about to release their patch. |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
* ftp://ftp.MemAlpha.cx/pub/rhw/Linux
* http://www.MemAlpha.cx/kernel.versions.html

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