GRUB support for RAID

[Robert Millan]

[ I'm adding CC to bug-grub@gnu.org ]

On Tue, Jul 20, 2004 at 08:11:15PM -0500, Charles Steinkuehler wrote:
> Robert Millan wrote:
> >
> >Uhm.. that brings the copyright issue back. I can't commit anything to GRUB
> >unless it isn't legaly-significant or copyright has been assigned.
> 
> NOTE:  The getraid_mdadm procedure in my patch to grub-install is a 
> hacked version of the same-named procedure from mkinitrd (the awk script 
> is the main content pulled from mkinitrd...looking at this, I think it 
> can fairly easily be re-written with sed or shell code if copyright is a 
> problem).

It is. However, now that I think of it, perhaps it's better to just do it
in the GRUB shell itself. For example, if you tell something like:

  root (md0)

that would make it resolve the RAID devices and write to them. Let's see
what Okuji thinks about all this.

> >If you can solve #3 and #4, we could get the partial solution committed
> >upstream, provided that Okuji approves it.
> 
> OK, I'll try to get to this in the next day or so...if I get ambitious, 
> I may even try to tackle part of #1 and/or #2.
> 
> I'll also try to avoid directly importing chunks of code from other 
> sources (most of the hard work looks like it's figuring out what to 
> parse for (ie: the algorithm)...the parsing itself looks like it can 
> easily be re-written, and in the process will avoid adding a new 
> reliance on awk).

Ah, that's good..

> QUESTION:  Should the boot-sector/MBR be installed on all RAID devices, 
> and should this behavior change depending on whether you're installing 
> to an MBR or to the partition boot-block?  Also, is this too much of an 
> x86-centric view of the issue?  I've got limited experience on alternate 
> architectures (some alpha experience, but that's about it).

I think it should be written to all RAID devices, even for partition boot
blocks. (Although I never heard of someone using GRUB in partition boot block)

I'm not aware of i386-isms in your view (my experience with non-i386 is quite
limited too)

> >Yeah that's it. Most core GNU projects require copyright assignments for
> >adding contributions and GRUB is one of them. You'll have to arrange the
> >assignment if you haven't already (Okuji will tell you the details).
> 
> I don't have a problem assigning the copyright, and will work out the 
> details if my patch is accepted upstream.

Ok.

-- 
Robert Millan

"[..] but the delight and pride of Aule is in the deed of making, and in the
thing made, and neither in possession nor in his own mastery; wherefore he
gives and hoards not, and is free from care, passing ever on to some new work."

 -- J.R.R.T., Ainulindale (Silmarillion)