Re: [gentoo-user] The End Is Near ... or, get the vaseline, they're on the way!

[William Kenworthy <billk@iinet.net.au>]

On Sun, 2012-03-18 at 18:30 -0600, Canek Peláez Valdés wrote:
> On Sun, Mar 18, 2012 at 4:28 PM, Alan McKinnon <alan.mckinnon@gmail.com> wrote:
> > On Sun, 18 Mar 2012 15:39:59 -0500
> > Dale <rdalek1967@gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> Eliezer Croitoru wrote:
> >> > On 18/03/2012 11:52, Dale wrote:
> >> >> Peter Humphrey wrote:
> >> >>> On Saturday 17 March 2012 12:54:53 Eliezer Croitoru wrote:
> >> >>>
> >> >>>> genkernel is pretty simple to use if you ask me.
> >> >>>> just
> >> >>>>
> >> >>>> emerege genkernel
> >> >>>>
> >> >>>> and then use
> >> >>>>
> >> >>>> genkerenl --menuconfig all
> >> >>>>
> >> >>>> it will do everything for you the same as in a regular kernel
> >> >>>> compiling.
> >> >>>>
> >> >>>> you have instructions on how to use genkernel on the handbook.
> >> >>>
> >> >>> What's more, you don't have to keep going through menuconfig if
> >> >>> you already have a running self-compiled kernel. Just copy
> >> >>> the .config file to
> >> >>> somewhere safe (I use, e.g. /boot/config-3.2) and call genkernel
> >> >>> with the
> >> >>> option to specify the config file it's to use. Sorry but I can't
> >> >>> tell you
> >> >>> exactly what the parameter is as I don't have genkernel on this
> >> >>> box. Someone will be along in a moment though.
> >> >>>
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >> >> I used genkernel when I was first installing Gentoo.  I let that
> >> >> thing build half a dozen kernels, chroot in between too.  You know
> >> >> what, not one of them worked.  That was a long time ago but let me
> >> >> check something here.<  spit spit spit>   I had to get the bad
> >> >> taste out of my mouth. lol
> >> >>
> >> >> I might also add, I started using a init thingy a few weeks ago,
> >> >> dracut tool.  For some crazy reason, when I boot with the init
> >> >> thingy, my system doesn't work right.  When I boot without the
> >> >> init thingy, it works fine.  Still trying to figure out that one.
> >> >> It's in another thread.
> >> >>
> >> >> I don't see myself using genkernel any time soon.  Right now, I'm
> >> >> having flashbacks to hal with regard to dracut and the whole init
> >> >> thingy /usr mess.
> >> > i have used genkernel for a long time and all of my genkernel
> >> > compilation works really good.
> >> > i have (counting, 1 very very big production server, 2 small
> >> > production server, 3 home server, 4 +5 +6 + 7 +8 of vms runing
> >> > genkernel with several services such as mail mail filtering web
> >> > server and monitoring) so what can i say? all these machines will
> >> > say other then you.
> >> >
> >> > Regards,
> >> > Eliezer
> >> >
> >> >>
> >> >> Dale
> >> >>
> >> >> :-)  :-)
> >> >>
> >>
> >> Odd, it can work on all those yet fail on a relatively simple system.
> >> Makes one wonder.  Maybe it is to complicated?  Sort of starting to
> >> sound like udev isn't it?  lol
> >>
> >> I didn't say it would fail for the OP.  I just said it never worked
> >> for me.  Compiling my own has worked for me.  I have only had one
> >> failure with that.  I might also add, I have read where others have
> >> nightmares about genkernel.  I'm not the only one.
> >
> > And using genkernel is pretty fucking pointless while it doesn't
> > support suspend/resume right.
> >
> > Anyone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, I don;t use genkernel so
> > don;t know the truth from experience. I only read what others say,
> > claiming that genkernel doesn't support suspend/resume.
> 
> Resume/suspend or
> hibernate/whatever-the-inverse-of-hibernate-is-called? Because
> resume/suspend has nothing to do with an initramfs (being genkernel or
> dracut or whatever), since it doesn't "boot" the machine again
> (contrary to hibernate/whatever-etc.)
> 
> My laptop has used dracut since months ago, and suspends/resumes just
> fine, as it does my media center.
> 
> Regards.

Genkernel doesnt, bugs and work arounds on gentoo bugzilla, with angry
comments from a dev that it wont be supported and to not file bugs for
it - now that dev has moved on I dont know if enough has changed to test
the waters and file a bug again.

Its missing a hook in the initrd to call the binary that starts the
resume process.

I was reading where dracut needs a lot of work still, so despite my
previous bad experiences with genkernel in the past I went that way as
the suspend fix is available.  

People generally just call it suspend/resume but technically,
suspend/resume is often used to refer to suspend to ram, and hibernate
is for suspend to disk - I use suspend to disk but generally just call
it suspend/resume as (non-tech) people I talk to know what I mean.
Calling it hibernate usually has them asking questions.

It does work, as I said in a previous post, but the whole initrd thing
is a disaster waiting to happen - and dont say to me it works for Red
Hat as proof that it must be good because thats the distro where my most
major initrd embarrassment occurred (update getting missmatched versions
and fail to reboot.)

Your experience may be different to mine, but I am of the once bitten,
twice shy persuasion.  Whatever happened to Linux/Unix and its focus on
KISS as a major pillar of its stability?



BillK