[gentoo-user] Re: initramfs & RAID at boot time

[Mark Knecht <markknecht@gmail.com>]

On Sat, Apr 17, 2010 at 10:32 AM, Mark Knecht <markknecht@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi,
>   I've never learned to do an initramfs as I've never used hardware
> in a Linux box that required it. However now I find myself using mdadm
> software-RAID and getting dinged on the linux-raid list when I ask
> about things like the kernel autodetecting RAID drives at boot time as
> the mdadm developers are firmly fixated on using initramfs and
> auto-detecting nothing. Going with the flow I'm studying this Gentoo
> Wiki link:
>
> http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/Initramfs
>
> and most specifically this portion on software RAID:
>
> http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/Initramfs#Software_RAID
>
> where the statement "But if you use an initramfs the kernel will not
> automatically scan for RAIDs until it is told to." caught my
> attention. Does anyone know if the word "not" in that statement is
> absolutely true? I.e. - if I take a kernel that today finds a RAID1 /
> drive and boots, that if I do nothing other than turn on that feature
> in the kernel then the boot process is not going to assemble my RAID,
> not find / and then fail to boot?
>
>   Maybe I'm reading too much into that but I like that my system
> boots and I don't think I want to do things that stop it from doing
> so... ;-)
>
>   That said, if it's true, does the "noinitrd" kernel parameter
> override it and then RAID would work and the boot completes normally?
>
> Thanks,
> Mark
>

Empirically any way there doesn't seem to be a problem. I built the
new kernel and it booted normally so I think I'm misinterpreting what
was written in the Wiki or the Wiki is wrong.

Now to try building the actual initramfs...

Cheers,
Mark