dmaengine: dw: move dwc->initialized to dwc->flags
[deliverable/linux.git] / README
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49d86dc9 1 Linux kernel release 4.x <http://kernel.org/>
1da177e4 2
49d86dc9 3These are the release notes for Linux version 4. Read them carefully,
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4as they tell you what this is all about, explain how to install the
5kernel, and what to do if something goes wrong.
6
7WHAT IS LINUX?
8
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9 Linux is a clone of the operating system Unix, written from scratch by
10 Linus Torvalds with assistance from a loosely-knit team of hackers across
11 the Net. It aims towards POSIX and Single UNIX Specification compliance.
1da177e4 12
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13 It has all the features you would expect in a modern fully-fledged Unix,
14 including true multitasking, virtual memory, shared libraries, demand
15 loading, shared copy-on-write executables, proper memory management,
16 and multistack networking including IPv4 and IPv6.
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17
18 It is distributed under the GNU General Public License - see the
19 accompanying COPYING file for more details.
20
21ON WHAT HARDWARE DOES IT RUN?
22
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23 Although originally developed first for 32-bit x86-based PCs (386 or higher),
24 today Linux also runs on (at least) the Compaq Alpha AXP, Sun SPARC and
620034c8 25 UltraSPARC, Motorola 68000, PowerPC, PowerPC64, ARM, Hitachi SuperH, Cell,
4f4e2dc3 26 IBM S/390, MIPS, HP PA-RISC, Intel IA-64, DEC VAX, AMD x86-64, AXIS CRIS,
ad29fff8 27 Xtensa, Tilera TILE, AVR32, ARC and Renesas M32R architectures.
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28
29 Linux is easily portable to most general-purpose 32- or 64-bit architectures
30 as long as they have a paged memory management unit (PMMU) and a port of the
31 GNU C compiler (gcc) (part of The GNU Compiler Collection, GCC). Linux has
32 also been ported to a number of architectures without a PMMU, although
33 functionality is then obviously somewhat limited.
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34 Linux has also been ported to itself. You can now run the kernel as a
35 userspace application - this is called UserMode Linux (UML).
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36
37DOCUMENTATION:
38
39 - There is a lot of documentation available both in electronic form on
40 the Internet and in books, both Linux-specific and pertaining to
41 general UNIX questions. I'd recommend looking into the documentation
42 subdirectories on any Linux FTP site for the LDP (Linux Documentation
43 Project) books. This README is not meant to be documentation on the
44 system: there are much better sources available.
45
46 - There are various README files in the Documentation/ subdirectory:
47 these typically contain kernel-specific installation notes for some
48 drivers for example. See Documentation/00-INDEX for a list of what
49 is contained in each file. Please read the Changes file, as it
50 contains information about the problems, which may result by upgrading
51 your kernel.
52
53 - The Documentation/DocBook/ subdirectory contains several guides for
54 kernel developers and users. These guides can be rendered in a
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55 number of formats: PostScript (.ps), PDF, HTML, & man-pages, among others.
56 After installation, "make psdocs", "make pdfdocs", "make htmldocs",
57 or "make mandocs" will render the documentation in the requested format.
1da177e4 58
2af238e4 59INSTALLING the kernel source:
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60
61 - If you install the full sources, put the kernel tarball in a
3047bcc5 62 directory where you have permissions (e.g. your home directory) and
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63 unpack it:
64
1913c6f4 65 xz -cd linux-4.X.tar.xz | tar xvf -
b39f72fe 66
5b4285fb 67 Replace "X" with the version number of the latest kernel.
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68
69 Do NOT use the /usr/src/linux area! This area has a (usually
70 incomplete) set of kernel headers that are used by the library header
71 files. They should match the library, and not get messed up by
72 whatever the kernel-du-jour happens to be.
73
49d86dc9 74 - You can also upgrade between 4.x releases by patching. Patches are
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75 distributed in the xz format. To install by patching, get all the
76 newer patch files, enter the top level directory of the kernel source
77 (linux-4.X) and execute:
88f7a642 78
1913c6f4 79 xz -cd ../patch-4.x.xz | patch -p1
1da177e4 80
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81 Replace "x" for all versions bigger than the version "X" of your current
82 source tree, _in_order_, and you should be ok. You may want to remove
83 the backup files (some-file-name~ or some-file-name.orig), and make sure
84 that there are no failed patches (some-file-name# or some-file-name.rej).
a20e3a79 85 If there are, either you or I have made a mistake.
1da177e4 86
49d86dc9 87 Unlike patches for the 4.x kernels, patches for the 4.x.y kernels
6ad44229 88 (also known as the -stable kernels) are not incremental but instead apply
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89 directly to the base 4.x kernel. For example, if your base kernel is 4.0
90 and you want to apply the 4.0.3 patch, you must not first apply the 4.0.1
91 and 4.0.2 patches. Similarly, if you are running kernel version 4.0.2 and
92 want to jump to 4.0.3, you must first reverse the 4.0.2 patch (that is,
93 patch -R) _before_ applying the 4.0.3 patch. You can read more on this in
7f65e924 94 Documentation/applying-patches.txt
6ad44229 95
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96 Alternatively, the script patch-kernel can be used to automate this
97 process. It determines the current kernel version and applies any
98 patches found.
99
3773b454 100 linux/scripts/patch-kernel linux
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101
102 The first argument in the command above is the location of the
103 kernel source. Patches are applied from the current directory, but
104 an alternative directory can be specified as the second argument.
105
106 - Make sure you have no stale .o files and dependencies lying around:
107
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108 cd linux
109 make mrproper
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110
111 You should now have the sources correctly installed.
112
113SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS
114
49d86dc9 115 Compiling and running the 4.x kernels requires up-to-date
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116 versions of various software packages. Consult
117 Documentation/Changes for the minimum version numbers required
118 and how to get updates for these packages. Beware that using
119 excessively old versions of these packages can cause indirect
120 errors that are very difficult to track down, so don't assume that
121 you can just update packages when obvious problems arise during
122 build or operation.
123
124BUILD directory for the kernel:
125
a6144bb9 126 When compiling the kernel, all output files will per default be
1da177e4 127 stored together with the kernel source code.
3047bcc5 128 Using the option "make O=output/dir" allows you to specify an alternate
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129 place for the output files (including .config).
130 Example:
88f7a642 131
49d86dc9 132 kernel source code: /usr/src/linux-4.X
3773b454 133 build directory: /home/name/build/kernel
1da177e4 134
a6144bb9 135 To configure and build the kernel, use:
88f7a642 136
49d86dc9 137 cd /usr/src/linux-4.X
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138 make O=/home/name/build/kernel menuconfig
139 make O=/home/name/build/kernel
140 sudo make O=/home/name/build/kernel modules_install install
1da177e4 141
a6144bb9 142 Please note: If the 'O=output/dir' option is used, then it must be
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143 used for all invocations of make.
144
145CONFIGURING the kernel:
146
147 Do not skip this step even if you are only upgrading one minor
148 version. New configuration options are added in each release, and
149 odd problems will turn up if the configuration files are not set up
150 as expected. If you want to carry your existing configuration to a
151 new version with minimal work, use "make oldconfig", which will
152 only ask you for the answers to new questions.
153
6d12760c 154 - Alternative configuration commands are:
88f7a642 155
3773b454 156 "make config" Plain text interface.
88f7a642 157
3773b454 158 "make menuconfig" Text based color menus, radiolists & dialogs.
88f7a642 159
3773b454 160 "make nconfig" Enhanced text based color menus.
88f7a642 161
3047bcc5 162 "make xconfig" Qt based configuration tool.
88f7a642 163
3047bcc5 164 "make gconfig" GTK+ based configuration tool.
88f7a642 165
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166 "make oldconfig" Default all questions based on the contents of
167 your existing ./.config file and asking about
168 new config symbols.
88f7a642 169
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170 "make silentoldconfig"
171 Like above, but avoids cluttering the screen
172 with questions already answered.
173 Additionally updates the dependencies.
88f7a642 174
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175 "make olddefconfig"
176 Like above, but sets new symbols to their default
177 values without prompting.
178
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179 "make defconfig" Create a ./.config file by using the default
180 symbol values from either arch/$ARCH/defconfig
181 or arch/$ARCH/configs/${PLATFORM}_defconfig,
182 depending on the architecture.
88f7a642 183
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184 "make ${PLATFORM}_defconfig"
185 Create a ./.config file by using the default
186 symbol values from
187 arch/$ARCH/configs/${PLATFORM}_defconfig.
188 Use "make help" to get a list of all available
189 platforms of your architecture.
88f7a642 190
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191 "make allyesconfig"
192 Create a ./.config file by setting symbol
193 values to 'y' as much as possible.
88f7a642 194
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195 "make allmodconfig"
196 Create a ./.config file by setting symbol
197 values to 'm' as much as possible.
88f7a642 198
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199 "make allnoconfig" Create a ./.config file by setting symbol
200 values to 'n' as much as possible.
88f7a642 201
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202 "make randconfig" Create a ./.config file by setting symbol
203 values to random values.
9dfb563b 204
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205 "make localmodconfig" Create a config based on current config and
206 loaded modules (lsmod). Disables any module
207 option that is not needed for the loaded modules.
208
209 To create a localmodconfig for another machine,
210 store the lsmod of that machine into a file
211 and pass it in as a LSMOD parameter.
212
213 target$ lsmod > /tmp/mylsmod
214 target$ scp /tmp/mylsmod host:/tmp
215
216 host$ make LSMOD=/tmp/mylsmod localmodconfig
217
218 The above also works when cross compiling.
219
220 "make localyesconfig" Similar to localmodconfig, except it will convert
221 all module options to built in (=y) options.
222
2af238e4 223 You can find more information on using the Linux kernel config tools
ad444684 224 in Documentation/kbuild/kconfig.txt.
2af238e4 225
3773b454 226 - NOTES on "make config":
88f7a642 227
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228 - Having unnecessary drivers will make the kernel bigger, and can
229 under some circumstances lead to problems: probing for a
230 nonexistent controller card may confuse your other controllers
88f7a642 231
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232 - Compiling the kernel with "Processor type" set higher than 386
233 will result in a kernel that does NOT work on a 386. The
234 kernel will detect this on bootup, and give up.
88f7a642 235
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236 - A kernel with math-emulation compiled in will still use the
237 coprocessor if one is present: the math emulation will just
238 never get used in that case. The kernel will be slightly larger,
239 but will work on different machines regardless of whether they
240 have a math coprocessor or not.
88f7a642 241
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242 - The "kernel hacking" configuration details usually result in a
243 bigger or slower kernel (or both), and can even make the kernel
244 less stable by configuring some routines to actively try to
245 break bad code to find kernel problems (kmalloc()). Thus you
246 should probably answer 'n' to the questions for "development",
247 "experimental", or "debugging" features.
1da177e4 248
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249COMPILING the kernel:
250
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251 - Make sure you have at least gcc 3.2 available.
252 For more information, refer to Documentation/Changes.
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253
254 Please note that you can still run a.out user programs with this kernel.
255
256 - Do a "make" to create a compressed kernel image. It is also
257 possible to do "make install" if you have lilo installed to suit the
258 kernel makefiles, but you may want to check your particular lilo setup first.
259
a6144bb9 260 To do the actual install, you have to be root, but none of the normal
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261 build should require that. Don't take the name of root in vain.
262
263 - If you configured any of the parts of the kernel as `modules', you
264 will also have to do "make modules_install".
265
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266 - Verbose kernel compile/build output:
267
a6144bb9 268 Normally, the kernel build system runs in a fairly quiet mode (but not
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269 totally silent). However, sometimes you or other kernel developers need
270 to see compile, link, or other commands exactly as they are executed.
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271 For this, use "verbose" build mode. This is done by passing
272 "V=1" to the "make" command, e.g.
2af238e4 273
3773b454 274 make V=1 all
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275
276 To have the build system also tell the reason for the rebuild of each
277 target, use "V=2". The default is "V=0".
278
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279 - Keep a backup kernel handy in case something goes wrong. This is
280 especially true for the development releases, since each new release
281 contains new code which has not been debugged. Make sure you keep a
282 backup of the modules corresponding to that kernel, as well. If you
283 are installing a new kernel with the same version number as your
284 working kernel, make a backup of your modules directory before you
285 do a "make modules_install".
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287 Alternatively, before compiling, use the kernel config option
288 "LOCALVERSION" to append a unique suffix to the regular kernel version.
289 LOCALVERSION can be set in the "General Setup" menu.
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290
291 - In order to boot your new kernel, you'll need to copy the kernel
292 image (e.g. .../linux/arch/i386/boot/bzImage after compilation)
293 to the place where your regular bootable kernel is found.
294
295 - Booting a kernel directly from a floppy without the assistance of a
296 bootloader such as LILO, is no longer supported.
297
a6144bb9 298 If you boot Linux from the hard drive, chances are you use LILO, which
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299 uses the kernel image as specified in the file /etc/lilo.conf. The
300 kernel image file is usually /vmlinuz, /boot/vmlinuz, /bzImage or
301 /boot/bzImage. To use the new kernel, save a copy of the old image
302 and copy the new image over the old one. Then, you MUST RERUN LILO
3047bcc5 303 to update the loading map! If you don't, you won't be able to boot
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304 the new kernel image.
305
306 Reinstalling LILO is usually a matter of running /sbin/lilo.
307 You may wish to edit /etc/lilo.conf to specify an entry for your
308 old kernel image (say, /vmlinux.old) in case the new one does not
309 work. See the LILO docs for more information.
310
311 After reinstalling LILO, you should be all set. Shutdown the system,
312 reboot, and enjoy!
313
314 If you ever need to change the default root device, video mode,
315 ramdisk size, etc. in the kernel image, use the 'rdev' program (or
316 alternatively the LILO boot options when appropriate). No need to
317 recompile the kernel to change these parameters.
318
319 - Reboot with the new kernel and enjoy.
320
321IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG:
322
323 - If you have problems that seem to be due to kernel bugs, please check
324 the file MAINTAINERS to see if there is a particular person associated
325 with the part of the kernel that you are having trouble with. If there
326 isn't anyone listed there, then the second best thing is to mail
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327 them to me (torvalds@linux-foundation.org), and possibly to any other
328 relevant mailing-list or to the newsgroup.
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329
330 - In all bug-reports, *please* tell what kernel you are talking about,
331 how to duplicate the problem, and what your setup is (use your common
332 sense). If the problem is new, tell me so, and if the problem is
333 old, please try to tell me when you first noticed it.
334
335 - If the bug results in a message like
336
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337 unable to handle kernel paging request at address C0000010
338 Oops: 0002
339 EIP: 0010:XXXXXXXX
340 eax: xxxxxxxx ebx: xxxxxxxx ecx: xxxxxxxx edx: xxxxxxxx
341 esi: xxxxxxxx edi: xxxxxxxx ebp: xxxxxxxx
342 ds: xxxx es: xxxx fs: xxxx gs: xxxx
343 Pid: xx, process nr: xx
344 xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx
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345
346 or similar kernel debugging information on your screen or in your
347 system log, please duplicate it *exactly*. The dump may look
348 incomprehensible to you, but it does contain information that may
349 help debugging the problem. The text above the dump is also
350 important: it tells something about why the kernel dumped code (in
a6144bb9 351 the above example, it's due to a bad kernel pointer). More information
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352 on making sense of the dump is in Documentation/oops-tracing.txt
353
354 - If you compiled the kernel with CONFIG_KALLSYMS you can send the dump
355 as is, otherwise you will have to use the "ksymoops" program to make
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356 sense of the dump (but compiling with CONFIG_KALLSYMS is usually preferred).
357 This utility can be downloaded from
358 ftp://ftp.<country>.kernel.org/pub/linux/utils/kernel/ksymoops/ .
6d12760c 359 Alternatively, you can do the dump lookup by hand:
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360
361 - In debugging dumps like the above, it helps enormously if you can
362 look up what the EIP value means. The hex value as such doesn't help
363 me or anybody else very much: it will depend on your particular
364 kernel setup. What you should do is take the hex value from the EIP
365 line (ignore the "0010:"), and look it up in the kernel namelist to
366 see which kernel function contains the offending address.
367
368 To find out the kernel function name, you'll need to find the system
369 binary associated with the kernel that exhibited the symptom. This is
370 the file 'linux/vmlinux'. To extract the namelist and match it against
371 the EIP from the kernel crash, do:
372
3773b454 373 nm vmlinux | sort | less
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374
375 This will give you a list of kernel addresses sorted in ascending
376 order, from which it is simple to find the function that contains the
377 offending address. Note that the address given by the kernel
378 debugging messages will not necessarily match exactly with the
379 function addresses (in fact, that is very unlikely), so you can't
380 just 'grep' the list: the list will, however, give you the starting
381 point of each kernel function, so by looking for the function that
382 has a starting address lower than the one you are searching for but
383 is followed by a function with a higher address you will find the one
384 you want. In fact, it may be a good idea to include a bit of
385 "context" in your problem report, giving a few lines around the
386 interesting one.
387
388 If you for some reason cannot do the above (you have a pre-compiled
389 kernel image or similar), telling me as much about your setup as
620034c8 390 possible will help. Please read the REPORTING-BUGS document for details.
1da177e4 391
6d12760c 392 - Alternatively, you can use gdb on a running kernel. (read-only; i.e. you
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393 cannot change values or set break points.) To do this, first compile the
394 kernel with -g; edit arch/i386/Makefile appropriately, then do a "make
395 clean". You'll also need to enable CONFIG_PROC_FS (via "make config").
396
397 After you've rebooted with the new kernel, do "gdb vmlinux /proc/kcore".
398 You can now use all the usual gdb commands. The command to look up the
399 point where your system crashed is "l *0xXXXXXXXX". (Replace the XXXes
400 with the EIP value.)
401
402 gdb'ing a non-running kernel currently fails because gdb (wrongly)
403 disregards the starting offset for which the kernel is compiled.
404
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