From mboxrd@z Thu Jan  1 00:00:00 1970
From: wd@denx.de (Wolfgang Denk)
Date: Thu, 20 Sep 2012 17:10:21 +0200
Subject: [PATCH] ARM: mxs: m28evk: Disable OCOTP OUI loading
In-Reply-To: <505B1FC2.2090609@free-electrons.com>
References: <1348007837-23187-1-git-send-email-marex@denx.de>
 <201209201420.55526.marex@denx.de> <20120920125631.GC2609@pengutronix.de>
 <201209201510.24631.marex@denx.de> <505B1FC2.2090609@free-electrons.com>
Message-ID: <20120920151021.7307C203A17@gemini.denx.de>
To: linux-arm-kernel@lists.infradead.org
List-Id: linux-arm-kernel.lists.infradead.org

Dear Maxime,

In message <505B1FC2.2090609@free-electrons.com> you wrote:
> 
> > Fix it and send patch, so this problem doesn't spread.
> 
> I'm sorry, but you still miss the point.

I'm not so sure about this.

> If someone wants to use another bootloader than U-boot (or a possible
> patched barebox), or none other than the bootlets to boot directly the
> Linux (with an appended device tree), you will still have no way to get
> the NIC from the OCOTP, and I'm sorry, but it is just wrong.

With device tree supoort enabled, the regular way to pass the MAC
address to a network interface (that needs one) is through the device
tree.

There are several options how such information gets there.  Boot
loaders with built-in DT support may fill in the MAC address
information into the DT before passing it to the Linux kernel.

If your boot method does not allow such dynamic adjustment, you ould
provide a statically configured device tree, which already includes
the MAC address.

> The kernel shouldn't rely on a particular feature of a given bootloader.

100% agreed.  And it does not.  It always uses the respective
information from the device tree.


So when you use bootlets, all you need to do is to insert the
respective MAC address entry to your device tree definition.

Best regards,

Wolfgang Denk

-- 
DENX Software Engineering GmbH,     MD: Wolfgang Denk & Detlev Zundel
HRB 165235 Munich, Office: Kirchenstr.5, D-82194 Groebenzell, Germany
Phone: (+49)-8142-66989-10 Fax: (+49)-8142-66989-80 Email: wd at denx.de
Every program has at least one bug and can be shortened by  at  least
one  instruction  --  from  which,  by induction, one can deduce that
every program can be reduced to one instruction which doesn't work.