[Pvfs2-developers] [PATCH] Allow installing of pvfs2-client* without giving it a kernel

[David Brown]

> Well, it *can* be built without kernel headers, so if the kernel
> module were ever to be packaged as a binary or included in the kernel
> it might make sense to still have kernapps around.  Otherwise I agree
> about kernapps, although it may be worth keeping around for
> development purposes.  Is there some issue with debian packaging that
> makes that target a problem?

Well kinda with debian unstable they use an app called
module-assistant to build external module packages for various
external kernel module packages (redhats gfs, ipw3945, fuse) and
putting the build for both the kernapps and the module into that
package (because theoretically you should be able to just point
module-assistant at any kernel even one you build) is not quite the
way debian works, ideally the packages would be split. However, since
both the client and the kernel module kinda need to both change
depending on the kernel version used. It presents a problem for
fitting pvfs2 into debian.

For something like fuse they guarantee backwards compatibility between
their kernel module and userspace libraries, so you can update the
userspace libraries without rebooting or rmmoding to change out fuse
module. However, if pvfs actually changes the size of particular
structures across the device depending on what the configure checks
result in then putting both the kernapps and the module into one
package is going to have to be the way it works.

Thanks,
- David Brown