[PATCH 3/3] Documentation: netconsole: add support for cmdline targets

[PATCH 3/3] Documentation: netconsole: add support for cmdline targets

[Breno Leitao]

With the previous patches, there is no more limitation at modifying the
targets created at boot time (or module load time).

Document the way on how to create the configfs directories to be able to
modify these netconsole targets.

The design discussion about this topic could be found at:
https://lore.kernel.org/all/ZRWRal5bW93px4km@gmail.com/

Signed-off-by: Breno Leitao <leitao@debian.org>
---
 Documentation/networking/netconsole.rst | 21 ++++++++++++++++++---
 1 file changed, 18 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/networking/netconsole.rst b/Documentation/networking/netconsole.rst
index 7a9de0568e84..b25c89608e50 100644
--- a/Documentation/networking/netconsole.rst
+++ b/Documentation/networking/netconsole.rst
@@ -99,9 +99,6 @@ Dynamic reconfiguration:
 Dynamic reconfigurability is a useful addition to netconsole that enables
 remote logging targets to be dynamically added, removed, or have their
 parameters reconfigured at runtime from a configfs-based userspace interface.
-[ Note that the parameters of netconsole targets that were specified/created
-from the boot/module option are not exposed via this interface, and hence
-cannot be modified dynamically. ]
 
 To include this feature, select CONFIG_NETCONSOLE_DYNAMIC when building the
 netconsole module (or kernel, if netconsole is built-in).
@@ -155,6 +152,24 @@ You can also update the local interface dynamically. This is especially
 useful if you want to use interfaces that have newly come up (and may not
 have existed when netconsole was loaded / initialized).
 
+You can control and modify the targets defined at boot time (or module load
+time) by creating special targets names. These special targets are named
+`cmdline` concatenated to an integer, example: `cmdline0`.
+
+Let's suppose you have two netconsole targets defined at boot time::
+
+ netconsole=4444@10.0.0.1/eth1,9353@10.0.0.2/12:34:56:78:9a:bc;4444@10.0.0.1/eth1,9353@10.0.0.3/12:34:56:78:9a:bc
+
+You can modify these targets in runtime by creating the following targets::
+
+ mkdir cmdline0
+ cat cmdline0/remote_ip
+ 10.0.0.2
+
+ mkdir cmdline1
+ cat cmdline1/remote_ip
+ 10.0.0.3
+
 Extended console:
 =================
 
-- 
2.34.1

Re: [PATCH 3/3] Documentation: netconsole: add support for cmdline targets

[Joel Becker]

On Mon, Oct 02, 2023 at 08:53:49AM -0700, Breno Leitao wrote:
> @@ -155,6 +152,24 @@ You can also update the local interface dynamically. This is especially
>  useful if you want to use interfaces that have newly come up (and may not
>  have existed when netconsole was loaded / initialized).
>  
> +You can control and modify the targets defined at boot time (or module load
> +time) by creating special targets names. These special targets are named
> +`cmdline` concatenated to an integer, example: `cmdline0`.

The special names are already "created", so perhaps it's a little
clearer to say something like:

```
+Netconsole targets defined at boot time (or module load time) with the
+`netconsole=` param are assigned the name `cmdline<index>`.  For
+example, the first target in the parameter is named `cmdline0`.  You
+can control and modify these targets by creating configfs directories
+with the matching name.
```

> +
> +Let's suppose you have two netconsole targets defined at boot time::
> +
> + netconsole=4444@10.0.0.1/eth1,9353@10.0.0.2/12:34:56:78:9a:bc;4444@10.0.0.1/eth1,9353@10.0.0.3/12:34:56:78:9a:bc
> +
> +You can modify these targets in runtime by creating the following targets::
> +
> + mkdir cmdline0
> + cat cmdline0/remote_ip
> + 10.0.0.2
> +
> + mkdir cmdline1
> + cat cmdline1/remote_ip
> + 10.0.0.3
> +

And of course keep the examples as you've described them.

Thanks,
Joel

-- 

Life's Little Instruction Book #337

	"Reread your favorite book."

			http://www.jlbec.org/
			jlbec@evilplan.org

Re: [PATCH 3/3] Documentation: netconsole: add support for cmdline targets

[Breno Leitao]

On Wed, Oct 04, 2023 at 01:09:16PM -0700, Joel Becker wrote:
> On Mon, Oct 02, 2023 at 08:53:49AM -0700, Breno Leitao wrote:
> > @@ -155,6 +152,24 @@ You can also update the local interface dynamically. This is especially
> >  useful if you want to use interfaces that have newly come up (and may not
> >  have existed when netconsole was loaded / initialized).
> >  
> > +You can control and modify the targets defined at boot time (or module load
> > +time) by creating special targets names. These special targets are named
> > +`cmdline` concatenated to an integer, example: `cmdline0`.
> 
> The special names are already "created", so perhaps it's a little
> clearer to say something like:
> 
> ```
> +Netconsole targets defined at boot time (or module load time) with the
> +`netconsole=` param are assigned the name `cmdline<index>`.  For
> +example, the first target in the parameter is named `cmdline0`.  You
> +can control and modify these targets by creating configfs directories
> +with the matching name.
> ```

That is way better. Thanks for the review.
I will send an updated version soon.