issue, or a really severe problem: those are 'issues of high priority' that
need special handling in some steps that are about to follow.
- * Check if your kernel was 'tainted' when the issue occurred, as the event
- that made the kernel set this flag might be causing the issue you face.
-
- * Locate the driver or kernel subsystem that seems to be causing the issue.
- Find out how and where its developers expect reports. Note: most of the
- time this won't be bugzilla.kernel.org, as issues typically need to be sent
- by mail to a maintainer and a public mailing list.
-
- * Search the archives of the bug tracker or mailing list in question
- thoroughly for reports that might match your issue. Also check if you find
- something with your favorite internet search engine or in the Linux Kernel
- Mailing List (LKML) archives. If you find anything, join the discussion
- instead of sending a new report.
+ * Make sure it's not the kernel's surroundings that are causing the issue
+ you face.
* Create a fresh backup and put system repair and restore tools at hand.
kernel modules on-the-fly, which solutions like DKMS might be doing locally
without your knowledge.
- * Make sure it's not the kernel's surroundings that are causing the issue
- you face.
+ * Check if your kernel was 'tainted' when the issue occurred, as the event
+ that made the kernel set this flag might be causing the issue you face.
* Write down coarsely how to reproduce the issue. If you deal with multiple
issues at once, create separate notes for each of them and make sure they
needs to get reported to the kernel developers separately, unless they are
strongly entangled.
+ * Locate the driver or kernel subsystem that seems to be causing the issue.
+ Find out how and where its developers expect reports. Note: most of the
+ time this won't be bugzilla.kernel.org, as issues typically need to be sent
+ by mail to a maintainer and a public mailing list.
+
+ * Search the archives of the bug tracker or mailing list in question
+ thoroughly for reports that might match your issue. Also check if you find
+ something with your favorite internet search engine or in the Linux Kernel
+ Mailing List (LKML) archives. If you find anything, join the discussion
+ instead of sending a new report.
+
After these preparations you'll now enter the main part:
* Unless you are already running the latest 'mainline' Linux kernel, better
as the kernel remains running after the latter.
+Ensure a healthy environment
+----------------------------
+
+ *Make sure it's not the kernel's surroundings that are causing the issue
+ you face.*
+
+Problems that look a lot like a kernel issue are sometimes caused by build or
+runtime environment. It's hard to rule out that problem completely, but you
+should minimize it:
+
+ * Use proven tools when building your kernel, as bugs in the compiler or the
+ binutils can cause the resulting kernel to misbehave.
+
+ * Ensure your computer components run within their design specifications;
+ that's especially important for the main processor, the main memory, and the
+ motherboard. Therefore, stop undervolting or overclocking when facing a
+ potential kernel issue.
+
+ * Try to make sure it's not faulty hardware that is causing your issue. Bad
+ main memory for example can result in a multitude of issues that will
+ manifest itself in problems looking like kernel issues.
+
+ * If you're dealing with a filesystem issue, you might want to check the file
+ system in question with ``fsck``, as it might be damaged in a way that leads
+ to unexpected kernel behavior.
+
+ * When dealing with a regression, make sure it's not something else that
+ changed in parallel to updating the kernel. The problem for example might be
+ caused by other software that was updated at the same time. It can also
+ happen that a hardware component coincidentally just broke when you rebooted
+ into a new kernel for the first time. Updating the systems BIOS or changing
+ something in the BIOS Setup can also lead to problems that on look a lot
+ like a kernel regression.
+
+
+Prepare for emergencies
+-----------------------
+
+ *Create a fresh backup and put system repair and restore tools at hand.*
+
+Reminder, you are dealing with computers, which sometimes do unexpected things,
+especially if you fiddle with crucial parts like the kernel of its operating
+system. That's what you are about to do in this process. Thus, make sure to
+create a fresh backup; also ensure you have all tools at hand to repair or
+reinstall the operating system as well as everything you need to restore the
+backup.
+
+
+Make sure your kernel doesn't get enhanced
+------------------------------------------
+
+ *Ensure your system does not enhance its kernels by building additional
+ kernel modules on-the-fly, which solutions like DKMS might be doing locally
+ without your knowledge.*
+
+The risk your issue report gets ignored or rejected dramatically increases if
+your kernel gets enhanced in any way. That's why you should remove or disable
+mechanisms like akmods and DKMS: those build add-on kernel modules
+automatically, for example when you install a new Linux kernel or boot it for
+the first time. Also remove any modules they might have installed. Then reboot
+before proceeding.
+
+Note, you might not be aware that your system is using one of these solutions:
+they often get set up silently when you install Nvidia's proprietary graphics
+driver, VirtualBox, or other software that requires a some support from a
+module not part of the Linux kernel. That why your might need to uninstall the
+packages with such software to get rid of any 3rd party kernel module.
+
+
Check 'taint' flag
------------------
the name of the module in question).
+Document how to reproduce issue
+-------------------------------
+
+ *Write down coarsely how to reproduce the issue. If you deal with multiple
+ issues at once, create separate notes for each of them and make sure they
+ work independently on a freshly booted system. That's needed, as each issue
+ needs to get reported to the kernel developers separately, unless they are
+ strongly entangled.*
+
+If you deal with multiple issues at once, you'll have to report each of them
+separately, as they might be handled by different developers. Describing
+various issues in one report also makes it quite difficult for others to tear
+it apart. Hence, only combine issues in one report if they are very strongly
+entangled.
+
+Additionally, during the reporting process you will have to test if the issue
+happens with other kernel versions. Therefore, it will make your work easier if
+you know exactly how to reproduce an issue quickly on a freshly booted system.
+
+Note: it's often fruitless to report issues that only happened once, as they
+might be caused by a bit flip due to cosmic radiation. That's why you should
+try to rule that out by reproducing the issue before going further. Feel free
+to ignore this advice if you are experienced enough to tell a one-time error
+due to faulty hardware apart from a kernel issue that rarely happens and thus
+is hard to reproduce.
+
+
Locate kernel area that causes the issue
----------------------------------------
details on how to get properly involved.
-Prepare for emergencies
------------------------
-
- *Create a fresh backup and put system repair and restore tools at hand.*
-
-Reminder, you are dealing with computers, which sometimes do unexpected things,
-especially if you fiddle with crucial parts like the kernel of its operating
-system. That's what you are about to do in this process. Thus, make sure to
-create a fresh backup; also ensure you have all tools at hand to repair or
-reinstall the operating system as well as everything you need to restore the
-backup.
-
-
-Make sure your kernel doesn't get enhanced
-------------------------------------------
-
- *Ensure your system does not enhance its kernels by building additional
- kernel modules on-the-fly, which solutions like DKMS might be doing locally
- without your knowledge.*
-
-The risk your issue report gets ignored or rejected dramatically increases if
-your kernel gets enhanced in any way. That's why you should remove or disable
-mechanisms like akmods and DKMS: those build add-on kernel modules
-automatically, for example when you install a new Linux kernel or boot it for
-the first time. Also remove any modules they might have installed. Then reboot
-before proceeding.
-
-Note, you might not be aware that your system is using one of these solutions:
-they often get set up silently when you install Nvidia's proprietary graphics
-driver, VirtualBox, or other software that requires a some support from a
-module not part of the Linux kernel. That why your might need to uninstall the
-packages with such software to get rid of any 3rd party kernel module.
-
-
-Ensure a healthy environment
-----------------------------
-
- *Make sure it's not the kernel's surroundings that are causing the issue
- you face.*
-
-Problems that look a lot like a kernel issue are sometimes caused by build or
-runtime environment. It's hard to rule out that problem completely, but you
-should minimize it:
-
- * Use proven tools when building your kernel, as bugs in the compiler or the
- binutils can cause the resulting kernel to misbehave.
-
- * Ensure your computer components run within their design specifications;
- that's especially important for the main processor, the main memory, and the
- motherboard. Therefore, stop undervolting or overclocking when facing a
- potential kernel issue.
-
- * Try to make sure it's not faulty hardware that is causing your issue. Bad
- main memory for example can result in a multitude of issues that will
- manifest itself in problems looking like kernel issues.
-
- * If you're dealing with a filesystem issue, you might want to check the file
- system in question with ``fsck``, as it might be damaged in a way that leads
- to unexpected kernel behavior.
-
- * When dealing with a regression, make sure it's not something else that
- changed in parallel to updating the kernel. The problem for example might be
- caused by other software that was updated at the same time. It can also
- happen that a hardware component coincidentally just broke when you rebooted
- into a new kernel for the first time. Updating the systems BIOS or changing
- something in the BIOS Setup can also lead to problems that on look a lot
- like a kernel regression.
-
-
-Document how to reproduce issue
--------------------------------
-
- *Write down coarsely how to reproduce the issue. If you deal with multiple
- issues at once, create separate notes for each of them and make sure they
- work independently on a freshly booted system. That's needed, as each issue
- needs to get reported to the kernel developers separately, unless they are
- strongly entangled.*
-
-If you deal with multiple issues at once, you'll have to report each of them
-separately, as they might be handled by different developers. Describing
-various issues in one report also makes it quite difficult for others to tear
-it apart. Hence, only combine issues in one report if they are very strongly
-entangled.
-
-Additionally, during the reporting process you will have to test if the issue
-happens with other kernel versions. Therefore, it will make your work easier if
-you know exactly how to reproduce an issue quickly on a freshly booted system.
-
-Note: it's often fruitless to report issues that only happened once, as they
-might be caused by a bit flip due to cosmic radiation. That's why you should
-try to rule that out by reproducing the issue before going further. Feel free
-to ignore this advice if you are experienced enough to tell a one-time error
-due to faulty hardware apart from a kernel issue that rarely happens and thus
-is hard to reproduce.
-
-
Install a fresh kernel for testing
----------------------------------
projects / platform / kernel / linux-starfive.git / commitdiff