Re: Plugin Patch (was Re: creating live virtual files by concatenation)

[Hans Reiser <reiser@namesys.com>]

XFS is larger than Reiser4.......


Peter van Hardenberg wrote:

>Hans,
>
>you've said that these kinds of plugins should be something a weekend warrior 
>could tackle. Our group had a real stab and dumped hundreds of man hours into 
>the project with little effect. Admittedly, we were not experienced kernel 
>hackers, but we were all comfortable in low-level C and quite happy to read 
>source.
>
>I request that a simple plugin be maintained as a standalone patch to Reiser4.
>
I will accept a patch doing that.  Unfortunately, my guys really need to
focus on getting done the stuff needed for us to get into the kernel
first before we could tackle that.

> 
>
>Ideally, there would be a small set of these plugins demonstrating how to 
>create a new plugin which operates within the existing disk structure, and 
>one that extends the on-disk format in a safe way.
>
>This would allow interested parties to see in isolation what a Reiser4 plugin 
>looks like and would further provide a conceptual grappling point for the 
>development of a new plugin.
>
>I have been getting requests for just such a plugin to be added to my reiser4 
>developer's wiki (http://pvh.ca/trac/wiki/reiser4) at a rate of about one 
>every two months. A few successful third-party plugins would hopefully 
>increase interest in this.
>
>I realise you and your team are up to your necks in serious work on hardcore 
>lowlevel material, but I believe a brief diversion of some of your resources 
>would provide a significant reward. 
>
>Right now, the cost-of-entry appears to be set too high for developers outside 
>your team to approach the project.
>  
>
I share your concerns on this.

>If this information is already out there somewhere, great. I will integrate it 
>in the R4DevWiki and answer questions as best I can. If anyone out there 
>disagrees with me about the current difficulty of producing even a simple 
>plugin, let them prove me wrong with a patch.
>
>-pvh
>
>  
>