[RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues]

Hi folks:

We're on an effort of streamlining the KVM test experience, by choosing
sane defaults and helper scripts that can overcome the initial barrier
with getting the KVM test running. On one of the conversations I've had
today, we came up with the idea of shipping the compiled windows
programs rss.exe and finish.exe, needed for windows hosts testing.

Even though rss.exe and finish.exe can be compiled in a fairly
straightforward way using the awesome cross compiling environment with
mingw, there are some obvious limitations to it:

1) The cross compiling environment is only available for fedora >= 11.
No other distros I know have it.

2) Sometimes it might take time for the user to realize he/she has to
compile the source code under unattended/ folder, and how to do it.

That person would take a couple of failed attempts scratching his/her
head thinking "what the heck is this deps/finish.exe they're talking
about?". Surely documentation can help, and I am looking at making the
documentation on how to do it more easily discoverable.

That said, shipping the binaries would make the life of those people
easier, and anyway the binaries work pretty well across all versions of
windows from winxp to win7, they are self contained, with no external
dependencies (they all use the standard win32 API).

3) That said we also need a script that can build the entire
winutils.iso without making the user to spend way too much time figuring
out how to do it. I want to work on such a script on the next days.

So, what are your opinions? Should we ship the binaries or pursue a
script that can build those for the user as soon as the (yet to be
integrated) get_started.py script runs? Remember that the later might
mean users of RHEL <= 5.X and debian like will be left out in the cold.

Looking forward hearing your input,

Lucas

Re: [Autotest] [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Yolkfull Chow]

>On Tue, Feb 02, 2010 at 09:48:34AM -0200, Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues wrote:
> Hi folks:
> 
> We're on an effort of streamlining the KVM test experience, by choosing
> sane defaults and helper scripts that can overcome the initial barrier
> with getting the KVM test running. On one of the conversations I've had
> today, we came up with the idea of shipping the compiled windows
> programs rss.exe and finish.exe, needed for windows hosts testing.
> 
> Even though rss.exe and finish.exe can be compiled in a fairly
> straightforward way using the awesome cross compiling environment with
> mingw, there are some obvious limitations to it:
> 
> 1) The cross compiling environment is only available for fedora >= 11.
> No other distros I know have it.
> 
> 2) Sometimes it might take time for the user to realize he/she has to
> compile the source code under unattended/ folder, and how to do it.
> 
> That person would take a couple of failed attempts scratching his/her
> head thinking "what the heck is this deps/finish.exe they're talking
> about?". Surely documentation can help, and I am looking at making the
> documentation on how to do it more easily discoverable.
> 
> That said, shipping the binaries would make the life of those people
> easier, and anyway the binaries work pretty well across all versions of
> windows from winxp to win7, they are self contained, with no external
> dependencies (they all use the standard win32 API).
> 
> 3) That said we also need a script that can build the entire
> winutils.iso without making the user to spend way too much time figuring
> out how to do it. I want to work on such a script on the next days.
> 
> So, what are your opinions? Should we ship the binaries or pursue a
> script that can build those for the user as soon as the (yet to be
> integrated) get_started.py script runs? Remember that the later might
> mean users of RHEL <= 5.X and debian like will be left out in the cold.
> 
> Looking forward hearing your input,
> 
> Lucas

Hi Lucas,

I believe it's straightforward way for newbie of kvm-autotest to get quickly started.

I once compiled the source code two times, and each time I have to find the email
that has the exact command with options. 

Thanks for working on this. :-)

> 
> _______________________________________________
> Autotest mailing list
> Autotest@test.kernel.org
> http://test.kernel.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/autotest

Re: [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[sudhir kumar]

Lucas Great!!
A nice pill for the windows' pain.

On Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 5:18 PM, Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues <lmr@redhat.com> wrote:
> Hi folks:
>
> We're on an effort of streamlining the KVM test experience, by choosing
> sane defaults and helper scripts that can overcome the initial barrier
> with getting the KVM test running. On one of the conversations I've had
> today, we came up with the idea of shipping the compiled windows
> programs rss.exe and finish.exe, needed for windows hosts testing.
>
> Even though rss.exe and finish.exe can be compiled in a fairly
> straightforward way using the awesome cross compiling environment with
> mingw, there are some obvious limitations to it:
>
> 1) The cross compiling environment is only available for fedora >= 11.
> No other distros I know have it.
And we have to take care of it, otherwise people will not stop
complaining about the complexity involved in kvm testing under
autotest.

>
> 2) Sometimes it might take time for the user to realize he/she has to
> compile the source code under unattended/ folder, and how to do it.
>
> That person would take a couple of failed attempts scratching his/her
> head thinking "what the heck is this deps/finish.exe they're talking
> about?". Surely documentation can help, and I am looking at making the
> documentation on how to do it more easily discoverable.
>
> That said, shipping the binaries would make the life of those people
> easier, and anyway the binaries work pretty well across all versions of
> windows from winxp to win7, they are self contained, with no external
> dependencies (they all use the standard win32 API).
>
> 3) That said we also need a script that can build the entire
> winutils.iso without making the user to spend way too much time figuring
> out how to do it. I want to work on such a script on the next days.
>
> So, what are your opinions? Should we ship the binaries or pursue a
> script that can build those for the user as soon as the (yet to be
> integrated) get_started.py script runs? Remember that the later might
> mean users of RHEL <= 5.X and debian like will be left out in the cold.
I am completely in favour of shipping the binaries and the script to make cd.iso
This will also help in install setup of windows guest.
I know many people complain that getting up with autotest for kvm
testing is so complex, which definitely is not(however it appears).
This will make windows testing bit more smooth. In my personal
experience, I usually keep a fully configured win.img across multiple
qemu-kvm versions for running different tests. The freshly installed
images after the install test, I usually delete.

So my vote is in favour of shipping the binary( and it is not too large).
>
> Looking forward hearing your input,
>
> Lucas
>
> _______________________________________________
> Autotest mailing list
> Autotest@test.kernel.org
> http://test.kernel.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/autotest
>



-- 
Sudhir Kumar

Re: [Autotest] [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Uri Lublin]

On 02/02/2010 01:48 PM, Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues wrote:
> Hi folks:
>
> We're on an effort of streamlining the KVM test experience, by choosing
> sane defaults and helper scripts that can overcome the initial barrier
> with getting the KVM test running. On one of the conversations I've had
> today, we came up with the idea of shipping the compiled windows
> programs rss.exe and finish.exe, needed for windows hosts testing.
>
> Even though rss.exe and finish.exe can be compiled in a fairly
> straightforward way using the awesome cross compiling environment with
> mingw, there are some obvious limitations to it:
>
> 1) The cross compiling environment is only available for fedora>= 11.
> No other distros I know have it.
>
> 2) Sometimes it might take time for the user to realize he/she has to
> compile the source code under unattended/ folder, and how to do it.
>
> That person would take a couple of failed attempts scratching his/her
> head thinking "what the heck is this deps/finish.exe they're talking
> about?". Surely documentation can help, and I am looking at making the
> documentation on how to do it more easily discoverable.
>
> That said, shipping the binaries would make the life of those people
> easier, and anyway the binaries work pretty well across all versions of
> windows from winxp to win7, they are self contained, with no external
> dependencies (they all use the standard win32 API).
>
> 3) That said we also need a script that can build the entire
> winutils.iso without making the user to spend way too much time figuring
> out how to do it. I want to work on such a script on the next days.
>
> So, what are your opinions? Should we ship the binaries or pursue a
> script that can build those for the user as soon as the (yet to be
> integrated) get_started.py script runs? Remember that the later might
> mean users of RHEL<= 5.X and debian like will be left out in the cold.

4) Another option is to make winutils.iso available (somewhere on the web), and 
download it in get_started.py (similar to other iso images used by kvm test).

Re: [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues]

On Wed, Feb 3, 2010 at 10:09 AM, Uri Lublin <uril@redhat.com> wrote:
> On 02/02/2010 01:48 PM, Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues wrote:
>> So, what are your opinions? Should we ship the binaries or pursue a
>> script that can build those for the user as soon as the (yet to be
>> integrated) get_started.py script runs? Remember that the later might
>> mean users of RHEL<= 5.X and debian like will be left out in the cold.
>
> 4) Another option is to make winutils.iso available (somewhere on the web),
> and download it in get_started.py (similar to other iso images used by kvm
> test).

Yes, that's a good idea. I was thinking that we could improve
winutils.iso to include a script to install virtio drivers and,
perhaps, e1000 drivers for XP, however I am not certain if doing so is
legal (shipping e1000 drivers on a CD).


-- 
Lucas

Re: [Autotest] [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Michael Goldish]

----- "Uri Lublin" <uril@redhat.com> wrote:

> On 02/02/2010 01:48 PM, Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues wrote:
> > Hi folks:
> >
> > We're on an effort of streamlining the KVM test experience, by
> choosing
> > sane defaults and helper scripts that can overcome the initial
> barrier
> > with getting the KVM test running. On one of the conversations I've
> had
> > today, we came up with the idea of shipping the compiled windows
> > programs rss.exe and finish.exe, needed for windows hosts testing.
> >
> > Even though rss.exe and finish.exe can be compiled in a fairly
> > straightforward way using the awesome cross compiling environment
> with
> > mingw, there are some obvious limitations to it:
> >
> > 1) The cross compiling environment is only available for fedora>=
> 11.
> > No other distros I know have it.
> >
> > 2) Sometimes it might take time for the user to realize he/she has
> to
> > compile the source code under unattended/ folder, and how to do it.
> >
> > That person would take a couple of failed attempts scratching
> his/her
> > head thinking "what the heck is this deps/finish.exe they're
> talking
> > about?". Surely documentation can help, and I am looking at making
> the
> > documentation on how to do it more easily discoverable.
> >
> > That said, shipping the binaries would make the life of those
> people
> > easier, and anyway the binaries work pretty well across all versions
> of
> > windows from winxp to win7, they are self contained, with no
> external
> > dependencies (they all use the standard win32 API).
> >
> > 3) That said we also need a script that can build the entire
> > winutils.iso without making the user to spend way too much time
> figuring
> > out how to do it. I want to work on such a script on the next days.
> >
> > So, what are your opinions? Should we ship the binaries or pursue a
> > script that can build those for the user as soon as the (yet to be
> > integrated) get_started.py script runs? Remember that the later
> might
> > mean users of RHEL<= 5.X and debian like will be left out in the
> cold.
> 
> 4) Another option is to make winutils.iso available (somewhere on the
> web), and 
> download it in get_started.py (similar to other iso images used by kvm
> test).

But isn't there a legal problem with that?
winutils.iso contains VLC media player (for the timedrift test).
If there's no legal problem, this sounds like the best option to me.

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Re: [Autotest] [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Uri Lublin]

On 02/03/2010 04:25 PM, Michael Goldish wrote:
>
> ----- "Uri Lublin"<uril@redhat.com>  wrote:
>
>> On 02/02/2010 01:48 PM, Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues wrote:
>>> Hi folks:
>>>
>>> We're on an effort of streamlining the KVM test experience, by
>> choosing
>>> sane defaults and helper scripts that can overcome the initial
>> barrier
>>> with getting the KVM test running. On one of the conversations I've
>> had
>>> today, we came up with the idea of shipping the compiled windows
>>> programs rss.exe and finish.exe, needed for windows hosts testing.
>>>
>>> Even though rss.exe and finish.exe can be compiled in a fairly
>>> straightforward way using the awesome cross compiling environment
>> with
>>> mingw, there are some obvious limitations to it:
>>>
>>> 1) The cross compiling environment is only available for fedora>=
>> 11.
>>> No other distros I know have it.
>>>
>>> 2) Sometimes it might take time for the user to realize he/she has
>> to
>>> compile the source code under unattended/ folder, and how to do it.
>>>
>>> That person would take a couple of failed attempts scratching
>> his/her
>>> head thinking "what the heck is this deps/finish.exe they're
>> talking
>>> about?". Surely documentation can help, and I am looking at making
>> the
>>> documentation on how to do it more easily discoverable.
>>>
>>> That said, shipping the binaries would make the life of those
>> people
>>> easier, and anyway the binaries work pretty well across all versions
>> of
>>> windows from winxp to win7, they are self contained, with no
>> external
>>> dependencies (they all use the standard win32 API).
>>>
>>> 3) That said we also need a script that can build the entire
>>> winutils.iso without making the user to spend way too much time
>> figuring
>>> out how to do it. I want to work on such a script on the next days.
>>>
>>> So, what are your opinions? Should we ship the binaries or pursue a
>>> script that can build those for the user as soon as the (yet to be
>>> integrated) get_started.py script runs? Remember that the later
>> might
>>> mean users of RHEL<= 5.X and debian like will be left out in the
>> cold.
>>
>> 4) Another option is to make winutils.iso available (somewhere on the
>> web), and
>> download it in get_started.py (similar to other iso images used by kvm
>> test).
>
> But isn't there a legal problem with that?
> winutils.iso contains VLC media player (for the timedrift test).
> If there's no legal problem, this sounds like the best option to me.

You may be right (although I think VLC is GPL).
I meant only for rss.exe and finish.exe.
Other components such as VLC media player can be downloaded separately.

Re: [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues]

On Thu, Feb 4, 2010 at 5:13 PM, Uri Lublin <uril@redhat.com> wrote:
> On 02/03/2010 04:25 PM, Michael Goldish wrote:
>>> 4) Another option is to make winutils.iso available (somewhere on the
>>> web), and
>>> download it in get_started.py (similar to other iso images used by kvm
>>> test).
>>
>> But isn't there a legal problem with that?
>> winutils.iso contains VLC media player (for the timedrift test).
>> If there's no legal problem, this sounds like the best option to me.
>
> You may be right (although I think VLC is GPL).
> I meant only for rss.exe and finish.exe.
> Other components such as VLC media player can be downloaded separately.

Well, today I re-vamped the documentation for the kvm test, and there
I explained how to get all the components of the iso

http://www.linux-kvm.org/page/KVM-Autotest/Client_Install

And I really really want to ship the full winutils.iso. If for some
reason we can't ship VLC, we'll find another windows video capable of
doing theora, which is totally patent unencumbered, so there will be
joy and happiness for everyone :)

-- 
Lucas

Re: [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues]

On Thu, Feb 4, 2010 at 5:26 PM, Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues <lmr@redhat.com> wrote:
> And I really really want to ship the full winutils.iso. If for some
> reason we can't ship VLC, we'll find another windows video capable of
> doing theora, which is totally patent unencumbered, so there will be
> joy and happiness for everyone :)

Just in case someone is wondering, by "shipping" it I mean have in
some place handy for download, so get_started.py can easily download
it, *not* put it under version control.

-- 
Lucas

Re: [RFC] KVM test: Ship rss.exe and finish.exe binaries with KVM test

[Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues]

On Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 9:48 AM, Lucas Meneghel Rodrigues <lmr@redhat.com> wrote:
> Hi folks:
>
> We're on an effort of streamlining the KVM test experience, by choosing
> sane defaults and helper scripts that can overcome the initial barrier
> with getting the KVM test running. On one of the conversations I've had
> today, we came up with the idea of shipping the compiled windows
> programs rss.exe and finish.exe, needed for windows hosts testing.

Bottom line is, from the feedback I've got from this thread, I think
it's a good idea to have those files under version control, so I did
it:

http://autotest.kernel.org/changeset/4193

In addition, we'll also ship them on a downloadable winutils.iso CD,
but we'll have that ready and downloadable in some days.