diff options
Diffstat (limited to 'Documentation')
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/README.rst | 410 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/bad-memory.rst (renamed from Documentation/bad_memory.txt) | 1 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/basic-profiling.rst (renamed from Documentation/basic_profiling.txt) | 1 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/binfmt-misc.rst (renamed from Documentation/binfmt_misc.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/braille-console.rst (renamed from Documentation/braille-console.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/bug-hunting.rst (renamed from Documentation/BUG-HUNTING) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/conf.py | 10 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/devices.rst (renamed from Documentation/devices.txt) | 1 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/dynamic-debug-howto.rst (renamed from Documentation/dynamic-debug-howto.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/index.rst | 34 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/init.rst (renamed from Documentation/init.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/initrd.rst (renamed from Documentation/initrd.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/java.rst (renamed from Documentation/java.txt) | 1 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst (renamed from Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/md.rst (renamed from Documentation/md.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/mono.rst (renamed from Documentation/mono.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/oops-tracing.rst (renamed from Documentation/oops-tracing.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/parport.rst (renamed from Documentation/parport.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/ramoops.rst (renamed from Documentation/ramoops.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-bugs.rst | 182 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/security-bugs.rst (renamed from Documentation/SecurityBugs) | 12 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/serial-console.rst (renamed from Documentation/serial-console.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/sysfs-rules.rst (renamed from Documentation/sysfs-rules.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/sysrq.rst (renamed from Documentation/sysrq.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/unicode.rst (renamed from Documentation/unicode.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/admin-guide/vga-softcursor.rst (renamed from Documentation/VGA-softcursor.txt) | 0 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/conf.py | 2 | ||||
-rw-r--r-- | Documentation/index.rst | 1 |
28 files changed, 645 insertions, 10 deletions
diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/README.rst b/Documentation/admin-guide/README.rst new file mode 100644 index 000000000000..05aad8543340 --- /dev/null +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/README.rst @@ -0,0 +1,410 @@ +Linux kernel release 4.x <http://kernel.org/> +============================================= + +These are the release notes for Linux version 4. Read them carefully, +as they tell you what this is all about, explain how to install the +kernel, and what to do if something goes wrong. + +What is Linux? +-------------- + + Linux is a clone of the operating system Unix, written from scratch by + Linus Torvalds with assistance from a loosely-knit team of hackers across + the Net. It aims towards POSIX and Single UNIX Specification compliance. + + It has all the features you would expect in a modern fully-fledged Unix, + including true multitasking, virtual memory, shared libraries, demand + loading, shared copy-on-write executables, proper memory management, + and multistack networking including IPv4 and IPv6. + + It is distributed under the GNU General Public License - see the + accompanying COPYING file for more details. + +On what hardware does it run? +----------------------------- + + Although originally developed first for 32-bit x86-based PCs (386 or higher), + today Linux also runs on (at least) the Compaq Alpha AXP, Sun SPARC and + UltraSPARC, Motorola 68000, PowerPC, PowerPC64, ARM, Hitachi SuperH, Cell, + IBM S/390, MIPS, HP PA-RISC, Intel IA-64, DEC VAX, AMD x86-64, AXIS CRIS, + Xtensa, Tilera TILE, AVR32, ARC and Renesas M32R architectures. + + Linux is easily portable to most general-purpose 32- or 64-bit architectures + as long as they have a paged memory management unit (PMMU) and a port of the + GNU C compiler (gcc) (part of The GNU Compiler Collection, GCC). Linux has + also been ported to a number of architectures without a PMMU, although + functionality is then obviously somewhat limited. + Linux has also been ported to itself. You can now run the kernel as a + userspace application - this is called UserMode Linux (UML). + +Documentation +------------- + + - There is a lot of documentation available both in electronic form on + the Internet and in books, both Linux-specific and pertaining to + general UNIX questions. I'd recommend looking into the documentation + subdirectories on any Linux FTP site for the LDP (Linux Documentation + Project) books. This README is not meant to be documentation on the + system: there are much better sources available. + + - There are various README files in the Documentation/ subdirectory: + these typically contain kernel-specific installation notes for some + drivers for example. See Documentation/00-INDEX for a list of what + is contained in each file. Please read the Changes file, as it + contains information about the problems, which may result by upgrading + your kernel. + + - The Documentation/DocBook/ subdirectory contains several guides for + kernel developers and users. These guides can be rendered in a + number of formats: PostScript (.ps), PDF, HTML, & man-pages, among others. + After installation, ``make psdocs``, ``make pdfdocs``, ``make htmldocs``, + or ``make mandocs`` will render the documentation in the requested format. + +Installing the kernel source +---------------------------- + + - If you install the full sources, put the kernel tarball in a + directory where you have permissions (e.g. your home directory) and + unpack it:: + + xz -cd linux-4.X.tar.xz | tar xvf - + + Replace "X" with the version number of the latest kernel. + + Do NOT use the /usr/src/linux area! This area has a (usually + incomplete) set of kernel headers that are used by the library header + files. They should match the library, and not get messed up by + whatever the kernel-du-jour happens to be. + + - You can also upgrade between 4.x releases by patching. Patches are + distributed in the xz format. To install by patching, get all the + newer patch files, enter the top level directory of the kernel source + (linux-4.X) and execute:: + + xz -cd ../patch-4.x.xz | patch -p1 + + Replace "x" for all versions bigger than the version "X" of your current + source tree, **in_order**, and you should be ok. You may want to remove + the backup files (some-file-name~ or some-file-name.orig), and make sure + that there are no failed patches (some-file-name# or some-file-name.rej). + If there are, either you or I have made a mistake. + + Unlike patches for the 4.x kernels, patches for the 4.x.y kernels + (also known as the -stable kernels) are not incremental but instead apply + directly to the base 4.x kernel. For example, if your base kernel is 4.0 + and you want to apply the 4.0.3 patch, you must not first apply the 4.0.1 + and 4.0.2 patches. Similarly, if you are running kernel version 4.0.2 and + want to jump to 4.0.3, you must first reverse the 4.0.2 patch (that is, + patch -R) **before** applying the 4.0.3 patch. You can read more on this in + :ref:`Documentation/applying-patches.txt <applying_patches>`. + + Alternatively, the script patch-kernel can be used to automate this + process. It determines the current kernel version and applies any + patches found:: + + linux/scripts/patch-kernel linux + + The first argument in the command above is the location of the + kernel source. Patches are applied from the current directory, but + an alternative directory can be specified as the second argument. + + - Make sure you have no stale .o files and dependencies lying around:: + + cd linux + make mrproper + + You should now have the sources correctly installed. + +Software requirements +--------------------- + + Compiling and running the 4.x kernels requires up-to-date + versions of various software packages. Consult + :ref:`Documentation/Changes <changes>` for the minimum version numbers + required and how to get updates for these packages. Beware that using + excessively old versions of these packages can cause indirect + errors that are very difficult to track down, so don't assume that + you can just update packages when obvious problems arise during + build or operation. + +Build directory for the kernel +------------------------------ + + When compiling the kernel, all output files will per default be + stored together with the kernel source code. + Using the option ``make O=output/dir`` allows you to specify an alternate + place for the output files (including .config). + Example:: + + kernel source code: /usr/src/linux-4.X + build directory: /home/name/build/kernel + + To configure and build the kernel, use:: + + cd /usr/src/linux-4.X + make O=/home/name/build/kernel menuconfig + make O=/home/name/build/kernel + sudo make O=/home/name/build/kernel modules_install install + + Please note: If the ``O=output/dir`` option is used, then it must be + used for all invocations of make. + +Configuring the kernel +---------------------- + + Do not skip this step even if you are only upgrading one minor + version. New configuration options are added in each release, and + odd problems will turn up if the configuration files are not set up + as expected. If you want to carry your existing configuration to a + new version with minimal work, use ``make oldconfig``, which will + only ask you for the answers to new questions. + + - Alternative configuration commands are:: + + "make config" Plain text interface. + + "make menuconfig" Text based color menus, radiolists & dialogs. + + "make nconfig" Enhanced text based color menus. + + "make xconfig" Qt based configuration tool. + + "make gconfig" GTK+ based configuration tool. + + "make oldconfig" Default all questions based on the contents of + your existing ./.config file and asking about + new config symbols. + + "make silentoldconfig" + Like above, but avoids cluttering the screen + with questions already answered. + Additionally updates the dependencies. + + "make olddefconfig" + Like above, but sets new symbols to their default + values without prompting. + + "make defconfig" Create a ./.config file by using the default + symbol values from either arch/$ARCH/defconfig + or arch/$ARCH/configs/${PLATFORM}_defconfig, + depending on the architecture. + + "make ${PLATFORM}_defconfig" + Create a ./.config file by using the default + symbol values from + arch/$ARCH/configs/${PLATFORM}_defconfig. + Use "make help" to get a list of all available + platforms of your architecture. + + "make allyesconfig" + Create a ./.config file by setting symbol + values to 'y' as much as possible. + + "make allmodconfig" + Create a ./.config file by setting symbol + values to 'm' as much as possible. + + "make allnoconfig" Create a ./.config file by setting symbol + values to 'n' as much as possible. + + "make randconfig" Create a ./.config file by setting symbol + values to random values. + + "make localmodconfig" Create a config based on current config and + loaded modules (lsmod). Disables any module + option that is not needed for the loaded modules. + + To create a localmodconfig for another machine, + store the lsmod of that machine into a file + and pass it in as a LSMOD parameter. + + target$ lsmod > /tmp/mylsmod + target$ scp /tmp/mylsmod host:/tmp + + host$ make LSMOD=/tmp/mylsmod localmodconfig + + The above also works when cross compiling. + + "make localyesconfig" Similar to localmodconfig, except it will convert + all module options to built in (=y) options. + + You can find more information on using the Linux kernel config tools + in Documentation/kbuild/kconfig.txt. + + - NOTES on ``make config``: + + - Having unnecessary drivers will make the kernel bigger, and can + under some circumstances lead to problems: probing for a + nonexistent controller card may confuse your other controllers + + - A kernel with math-emulation compiled in will still use the + coprocessor if one is present: the math emulation will just + never get used in that case. The kernel will be slightly larger, + but will work on different machines regardless of whether they + have a math coprocessor or not. + + - The "kernel hacking" configuration details usually result in a + bigger or slower kernel (or both), and can even make the kernel + less stable by configuring some routines to actively try to + break bad code to find kernel problems (kmalloc()). Thus you + should probably answer 'n' to the questions for "development", + "experimental", or "debugging" features. + +Compiling the kernel +-------------------- + + - Make sure you have at least gcc 3.2 available. + For more information, refer to :ref:`Documentation/Changes <changes>`. + + Please note that you can still run a.out user programs with this kernel. + + - Do a ``make`` to create a compressed kernel image. It is also + possible to do ``make install`` if you have lilo installed to suit the + kernel makefiles, but you may want to check your particular lilo setup first. + + To do the actual install, you have to be root, but none of the normal + build should require that. Don't take the name of root in vain. + + - If you configured any of the parts of the kernel as ``modules``, you + will also have to do ``make modules_install``. + + - Verbose kernel compile/build output: + + Normally, the kernel build system runs in a fairly quiet mode (but not + totally silent). However, sometimes you or other kernel developers need + to see compile, link, or other commands exactly as they are executed. + For this, use "verbose" build mode. This is done by passing + ``V=1`` to the ``make`` command, e.g.:: + + make V=1 all + + To have the build system also tell the reason for the rebuild of each + target, use ``V=2``. The default is ``V=0``. + + - Keep a backup kernel handy in case something goes wrong. This is + especially true for the development releases, since each new release + contains new code which has not been debugged. Make sure you keep a + backup of the modules corresponding to that kernel, as well. If you + are installing a new kernel with the same version number as your + working kernel, make a backup of your modules directory before you + do a ``make modules_install``. + + Alternatively, before compiling, use the kernel config option + "LOCALVERSION" to append a unique suffix to the regular kernel version. + LOCALVERSION can be set in the "General Setup" menu. + + - In order to boot your new kernel, you'll need to copy the kernel + image (e.g. .../linux/arch/x86/boot/bzImage after compilation) + to the place where your regular bootable kernel is found. + + - Booting a kernel directly from a floppy without the assistance of a + bootloader such as LILO, is no longer supported. + + If you boot Linux from the hard drive, chances are you use LILO, which + uses the kernel image as specified in the file /etc/lilo.conf. The + kernel image file is usually /vmlinuz, /boot/vmlinuz, /bzImage or + /boot/bzImage. To use the new kernel, save a copy of the old image + and copy the new image over the old one. Then, you MUST RERUN LILO + to update the loading map! If you don't, you won't be able to boot + the new kernel image. + + Reinstalling LILO is usually a matter of running /sbin/lilo. + You may wish to edit /etc/lilo.conf to specify an entry for your + old kernel image (say, /vmlinux.old) in case the new one does not + work. See the LILO docs for more information. + + After reinstalling LILO, you should be all set. Shutdown the system, + reboot, and enjoy! + + If you ever need to change the default root device, video mode, + ramdisk size, etc. in the kernel image, use the ``rdev`` program (or + alternatively the LILO boot options when appropriate). No need to + recompile the kernel to change these parameters. + + - Reboot with the new kernel and enjoy. + +If something goes wrong +----------------------- + + - If you have problems that seem to be due to kernel bugs, please check + the file MAINTAINERS to see if there is a particular person associated + with the part of the kernel that you are having trouble with. If there + isn't anyone listed there, then the second best thing is to mail + them to me (torvalds@linux-foundation.org), and possibly to any other + relevant mailing-list or to the newsgroup. + + - In all bug-reports, *please* tell what kernel you are talking about, + how to duplicate the problem, and what your setup is (use your common + sense). If the problem is new, tell me so, and if the problem is + old, please try to tell me when you first noticed it. + + - If the bug results in a message like:: + + unable to handle kernel paging request at address C0000010 + Oops: 0002 + EIP: 0010:XXXXXXXX + eax: xxxxxxxx ebx: xxxxxxxx ecx: xxxxxxxx edx: xxxxxxxx + esi: xxxxxxxx edi: xxxxxxxx ebp: xxxxxxxx + ds: xxxx es: xxxx fs: xxxx gs: xxxx + Pid: xx, process nr: xx + xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx + + or similar kernel debugging information on your screen or in your + system log, please duplicate it *exactly*. The dump may look + incomprehensible to you, but it does contain information that may + help debugging the problem. The text above the dump is also + important: it tells something about why the kernel dumped code (in + the above example, it's due to a bad kernel pointer). More information + on making sense of the dump is in Documentation/oops-tracing.txt + + - If you compiled the kernel with CONFIG_KALLSYMS you can send the dump + as is, otherwise you will have to use the ``ksymoops`` program to make + sense of the dump (but compiling with CONFIG_KALLSYMS is usually preferred). + This utility can be downloaded from + ftp://ftp.<country>.kernel.org/pub/linux/utils/kernel/ksymoops/ . + Alternatively, you can do the dump lookup by hand: + + - In debugging dumps like the above, it helps enormously if you can + look up what the EIP value means. The hex value as such doesn't help + me or anybody else very much: it will depend on your particular + kernel setup. What you should do is take the hex value from the EIP + line (ignore the ``0010:``), and look it up in the kernel namelist to + see which kernel function contains the offending address. + + To find out the kernel function name, you'll need to find the system + binary associated with the kernel that exhibited the symptom. This is + the file 'linux/vmlinux'. To extract the namelist and match it against + the EIP from the kernel crash, do:: + + nm vmlinux | sort | less + + This will give you a list of kernel addresses sorted in ascending + order, from which it is simple to find the function that contains the + offending address. Note that the address given by the kernel + debugging messages will not necessarily match exactly with the + function addresses (in fact, that is very unlikely), so you can't + just 'grep' the list: the list will, however, give you the starting + point of each kernel function, so by looking for the function that + has a starting address lower than the one you are searching for but + is followed by a function with a higher address you will find the one + you want. In fact, it may be a good idea to include a bit of + "context" in your problem report, giving a few lines around the + interesting one. + + If you for some reason cannot do the above (you have a pre-compiled + kernel image or similar), telling me as much about your setup as + possible will help. Please read the :ref:`REPORTING-BUGS <reportingbugs>` + document for details. + + - Alternatively, you can use gdb on a running kernel. (read-only; i.e. you + cannot change values or set break points.) To do this, first compile the + kernel with -g; edit arch/x86/Makefile appropriately, then do a ``make + clean``. You'll also need to enable CONFIG_PROC_FS (via ``make config``). + + After you've rebooted with the new kernel, do ``gdb vmlinux /proc/kcore``. + You can now use all the usual gdb commands. The command to look up the + point where your system crashed is ``l *0xXXXXXXXX``. (Replace the XXXes + with the EIP value.) + + gdb'ing a non-running kernel currently fails because ``gdb`` (wrongly) + disregards the starting offset for which the kernel is compiled. diff --git a/Documentation/bad_memory.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/bad-memory.rst index 5cac93e27a97..017fc86430c3 100644 --- a/Documentation/bad_memory.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/bad-memory.rst @@ -48,4 +48,3 @@ With the numbers of the example above:: or:: memmap=0x10000$0x18690000 - diff --git a/Documentation/basic_profiling.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/basic-profiling.rst index 15a49dbd0189..72babc71b771 100644 --- a/Documentation/basic_profiling.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/basic-profiling.rst @@ -66,4 +66,3 @@ Some ``opcontrol`` commands:: To only report on the kernel, run ``opreport -l /boot/vmlinux > output_file`` A reset is needed to clear old statistics, which survive a reboot. - diff --git a/Documentation/binfmt_misc.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/binfmt-misc.rst index 9c5ff8f260bf..9c5ff8f260bf 100644 --- a/Documentation/binfmt_misc.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/binfmt-misc.rst diff --git a/Documentation/braille-console.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/braille-console.rst index fa3702dc04ab..fa3702dc04ab 100644 --- a/Documentation/braille-console.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/braille-console.rst diff --git a/Documentation/BUG-HUNTING b/Documentation/admin-guide/bug-hunting.rst index a8ef794aadae..a8ef794aadae 100644 --- a/Documentation/BUG-HUNTING +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/bug-hunting.rst diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/conf.py b/Documentation/admin-guide/conf.py new file mode 100644 index 000000000000..86f738953799 --- /dev/null +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/conf.py @@ -0,0 +1,10 @@ +# -*- coding: utf-8; mode: python -*- + +project = 'Linux Kernel User Documentation' + +tags.add("subproject") + +latex_documents = [ + ('index', 'linux-user.tex', 'Linux Kernel User Documentation', + 'The kernel development community', 'manual'), +] diff --git a/Documentation/devices.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/devices.rst index 17b365331f23..b29555041531 100644 --- a/Documentation/devices.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/devices.rst @@ -3348,4 +3348,3 @@ for the slaves; the slaves are named with decimal integers (``/dev/pts/#`` in our notation). This removes the problem of exhausting the namespace and enables the kernel to automatically create the device nodes for the slaves on demand using the "devpts" filesystem. - diff --git a/Documentation/dynamic-debug-howto.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/dynamic-debug-howto.rst index 88adcfdf5b2b..88adcfdf5b2b 100644 --- a/Documentation/dynamic-debug-howto.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/dynamic-debug-howto.rst diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/index.rst b/Documentation/admin-guide/index.rst new file mode 100644 index 000000000000..4e5abbb4bbd5 --- /dev/null +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/index.rst @@ -0,0 +1,34 @@ +Linux Kernel User's Documentation +================================= + +Contents: + +.. toctree:: + :maxdepth: 2 + :numbered: + + README + reporting-bugs + bug-hunting + oops-tracing + ramoops + initrd + init + dynamic-debug-howto + security-bugs + kernel-parameters + serial-console + braille-console + parport + md + module-signing + sysrq + unicode + vga-softcursor + sysfs-rules + devices + binfmt-misc + mono + java + bad-memory + basic-profiling diff --git a/Documentation/init.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/init.rst index e89d97f31eaf..e89d97f31eaf 100644 --- a/Documentation/init.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/init.rst diff --git a/Documentation/initrd.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/initrd.rst index a03dabaaf3a3..a03dabaaf3a3 100644 --- a/Documentation/initrd.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/initrd.rst diff --git a/Documentation/java.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/java.rst index ae33d959638c..a0de7c1a1ed9 100644 --- a/Documentation/java.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/java.rst @@ -415,4 +415,3 @@ originally by Brian A. Lantz, brian@lantz.com heavily edited for binfmt_misc by Richard Günther new scripts by Colin J. Watson <cjw44@cam.ac.uk> added executable Jar file support by Kurt Huwig <kurt@iku-netz.de> - diff --git a/Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst index b0804273b6e3..b0804273b6e3 100644 --- a/Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst diff --git a/Documentation/md.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/md.rst index e449fb5f277c..e449fb5f277c 100644 --- a/Documentation/md.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/md.rst diff --git a/Documentation/mono.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/mono.rst index 9a9744ca0cf3..9a9744ca0cf3 100644 --- a/Documentation/mono.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/mono.rst diff --git a/Documentation/oops-tracing.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/oops-tracing.rst index 3e25ea7349ee..3e25ea7349ee 100644 --- a/Documentation/oops-tracing.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/oops-tracing.rst diff --git a/Documentation/parport.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/parport.rst index ad3f9b8a11e1..ad3f9b8a11e1 100644 --- a/Documentation/parport.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/parport.rst diff --git a/Documentation/ramoops.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/ramoops.rst index 7eaf1e71c083..7eaf1e71c083 100644 --- a/Documentation/ramoops.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/ramoops.rst diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-bugs.rst b/Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-bugs.rst new file mode 100644 index 000000000000..05c53ac7fa76 --- /dev/null +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-bugs.rst @@ -0,0 +1,182 @@ +.. _reportingbugs: + +Reporting bugs +++++++++++++++ + +Background +========== + +The upstream Linux kernel maintainers only fix bugs for specific kernel +versions. Those versions include the current "release candidate" (or -rc) +kernel, any "stable" kernel versions, and any "long term" kernels. + +Please see https://www.kernel.org/ for a list of supported kernels. Any +kernel marked with [EOL] is "end of life" and will not have any fixes +backported to it. + +If you've found a bug on a kernel version that isn't listed on kernel.org, +contact your Linux distribution or embedded vendor for support. +Alternatively, you can attempt to run one of the supported stable or -rc +kernels, and see if you can reproduce the bug on that. It's preferable +to reproduce the bug on the latest -rc kernel. + + +How to report Linux kernel bugs +=============================== + + +Identify the problematic subsystem +---------------------------------- + +Identifying which part of the Linux kernel might be causing your issue +increases your chances of getting your bug fixed. Simply posting to the +generic linux-kernel mailing list (LKML) may cause your bug report to be +lost in the noise of a mailing list that gets 1000+ emails a day. + +Instead, try to figure out which kernel subsystem is causing the issue, +and email that subsystem's maintainer and mailing list. If the subsystem +maintainer doesn't answer, then expand your scope to mailing lists like +LKML. + + +Identify who to notify +---------------------- + +Once you know the subsystem that is causing the issue, you should send a +bug report. Some maintainers prefer bugs to be reported via bugzilla +(https://bugzilla.kernel.org), while others prefer that bugs be reported +via the subsystem mailing list. + +To find out where to send an emailed bug report, find your subsystem or +device driver in the MAINTAINERS file. Search in the file for relevant +entries, and send your bug report to the person(s) listed in the "M:" +lines, making sure to Cc the mailing list(s) in the "L:" lines. When the +maintainer replies to you, make sure to 'Reply-all' in order to keep the +public mailing list(s) in the email thread. + +If you know which driver is causing issues, you can pass one of the driver +files to the get_maintainer.pl script:: + + perl scripts/get_maintainer.pl -f <filename> + +If it is a security bug, please copy the Security Contact listed in the +MAINTAINERS file. They can help coordinate bugfix and disclosure. See +:ref:`Documentation/SecurityBugs <securitybugs>` for more information. + +If you can't figure out which subsystem caused the issue, you should file +a bug in kernel.org bugzilla and send email to +linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org, referencing the bugzilla URL. (For more +information on the linux-kernel mailing list see +http://www.tux.org/lkml/). + + +Tips for reporting bugs +----------------------- + +If you haven't reported a bug before, please read: + + http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/bugs.html + + http://www.catb.org/esr/faqs/smart-questions.html + +It's REALLY important to report bugs that seem unrelated as separate email +threads or separate bugzilla entries. If you report several unrelated +bugs at once, it's difficult for maintainers to tease apart the relevant +data. + + +Gather information +------------------ + +The most important information in a bug report is how to reproduce the +bug. This includes system information, and (most importantly) +step-by-step instructions for how a user can trigger the bug. + +If the failure includes an "OOPS:", take a picture of the screen, capture +a netconsole trace, or type the message from your screen into the bug +report. Please read "Documentation/oops-tracing.txt" before posting your +bug report. This explains what you should do with the "Oops" information +to make it useful to the recipient. + +This is a suggested format for a bug report sent via email or bugzilla. +Having a standardized bug report form makes it easier for you not to +overlook things, and easier for the developers to find the pieces of +information they're really interested in. If some information is not +relevant to your bug, feel free to exclude it. + +First run the ver_linux script included as scripts/ver_linux, which +reports the version of some important subsystems. Run this script with +the command ``sh scripts/ver_linux``. + +Use that information to fill in all fields of the bug report form, and +post it to the mailing list with a subject of "PROBLEM: <one line +summary from [1.]>" for easy identification by the developers:: + + [1.] One line summary of the problem: + [2.] Full description of the problem/report: + [3.] Keywords (i.e., modules, networking, kernel): + [4.] Kernel information + [4.1.] Kernel version (from /proc/version): + [4.2.] Kernel .config file: + [5.] Most recent kernel version which did not have the bug: + [6.] Output of Oops.. message (if applicable) with symbolic information + resolved (see Documentation/oops-tracing.txt) + [7.] A small shell script or example program which triggers the + problem (if possible) + [8.] Environment + [8.1.] Software (add the output of the ver_linux script here) + [8.2.] Processor information (from /proc/cpuinfo): + [8.3.] Module information (from /proc/modules): + [8.4.] Loaded driver and hardware information (/proc/ioports, /proc/iomem) + [8.5.] PCI information ('lspci -vvv' as root) + [8.6.] SCSI information (from /proc/scsi/scsi) + [8.7.] Other information that might be relevant to the problem + (please look in /proc and include all information that you + think to be relevant): + [X.] Other notes, patches, fixes, workarounds: + + +Follow up +========= + +Expectations for bug reporters +------------------------------ + +Linux kernel maintainers expect bug reporters to be able to follow up on +bug reports. That may include running new tests, applying patches, +recompiling your kernel, and/or re-triggering your bug. The most +frustrating thing for maintainers is for someone to report a bug, and then +never follow up on a request to try out a fix. + +That said, it's still useful for a kernel maintainer to know a bug exists +on a supported kernel, even if you can't follow up with retests. Follow +up reports, such as replying to the email thread with "I tried the latest +kernel and I can't reproduce my bug anymore" are also helpful, because +maintainers have to assume silence means things are still broken. + +Expectations for kernel maintainers +----------------------------------- + +Linux kernel maintainers are busy, overworked human beings. Some times +they may not be able to address your bug in a day, a week, or two weeks. +If they don't answer your email, they may be on vacation, or at a Linux +conference. Check the conference schedule at https://LWN.net for more info: + + https://lwn.net/Calendar/ + +In general, kernel maintainers take 1 to 5 business days to respond to +bugs. The majority of kernel maintainers are employed to work on the +kernel, and they may not work on the weekends. Maintainers are scattered +around the world, and they may not work in your time zone. Unless you +have a high priority bug, please wait at least a week after the first bug +report before sending the maintainer a reminder email. + +The exceptions to this rule are regressions, kernel crashes, security holes, +or userspace breakage caused by new kernel behavior. Those bugs should be +addressed by the maintainers ASAP. If you suspect a maintainer is not +responding to these types of bugs in a timely manner (especially during a +merge window), escalate the bug to LKML and Linus Torvalds. + +Thank you! + +[Some of this is taken from Frohwalt Egerer's original linux-kernel FAQ] diff --git a/Documentation/SecurityBugs b/Documentation/admin-guide/security-bugs.rst index 342d769834f6..df795e22d08b 100644 --- a/Documentation/SecurityBugs +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/security-bugs.rst @@ -8,8 +8,8 @@ like to know when a security bug is found so that it can be fixed and disclosed as quickly as possible. Please report security bugs to the Linux kernel security team. -1) Contact ----------- +Contact +------- The Linux kernel security team can be contacted by email at <security@kernel.org>. This is a private list of security officers @@ -23,8 +23,8 @@ REPORTING-BUGS if you are unclear about what information is helpful. Any exploit code is very helpful and will not be released without consent from the reporter unless it has already been made public. -2) Disclosure -------------- +Disclosure +---------- The goal of the Linux kernel security team is to work with the bug submitter to bug resolution as well as disclosure. We prefer @@ -39,8 +39,8 @@ disclosure is from immediate (esp. if it's already publicly known) to a few weeks. As a basic default policy, we expect report date to disclosure date to be on the order of 7 days. -3) Non-disclosure agreements ----------------------------- +Non-disclosure agreements +------------------------- The Linux kernel security team is not a formal body and therefore unable to enter any non-disclosure agreements. diff --git a/Documentation/serial-console.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/serial-console.rst index a8d1e36b627a..a8d1e36b627a 100644 --- a/Documentation/serial-console.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/serial-console.rst diff --git a/Documentation/sysfs-rules.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/sysfs-rules.rst index 04bdd52cba1d..04bdd52cba1d 100644 --- a/Documentation/sysfs-rules.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/sysfs-rules.rst diff --git a/Documentation/sysrq.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/sysrq.rst index d1712ea2d314..d1712ea2d314 100644 --- a/Documentation/sysrq.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/sysrq.rst diff --git a/Documentation/unicode.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/unicode.rst index 012e8e895842..012e8e895842 100644 --- a/Documentation/unicode.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/unicode.rst diff --git a/Documentation/VGA-softcursor.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/vga-softcursor.rst index 9eac6744b3a1..9eac6744b3a1 100644 --- a/Documentation/VGA-softcursor.txt +++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/vga-softcursor.rst diff --git a/Documentation/conf.py b/Documentation/conf.py index b08e0c9b73b7..d9bad21dd427 100644 --- a/Documentation/conf.py +++ b/Documentation/conf.py @@ -336,6 +336,8 @@ latex_elements = { # (source start file, target name, title, # author, documentclass [howto, manual, or own class]). latex_documents = [ + ('user/index', 'linux-user.tex', 'Linux Kernel User Documentation', + 'The kernel development community', 'manual'), ('kernel-documentation', 'kernel-documentation.tex', 'The Linux Kernel Documentation', 'The kernel development community', 'manual'), ('process/index', 'development-process.tex', 'Linux Kernel Development Documentation', diff --git a/Documentation/index.rst b/Documentation/index.rst index e1f18b3db6e4..f6a3d4766495 100644 --- a/Documentation/index.rst +++ b/Documentation/index.rst @@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ Contents: .. toctree:: :maxdepth: 2 + admin-guide/index kernel-documentation process/index dev-tools/tools |