Re: A patch got applied to v4l bypassing v4l lists

[Paul Mundt <lethal@linux-sh.org>]

On Thu, Dec 18, 2008 at 04:23:53PM +0100, Guennadi Liakhovetski wrote:
> Hi Magnus, Paul,
> 
> just stumbled upon a patch
> 
> sh: sh_mobile ceu clock framework support
> 
> http://marc.info/?l=linux-sh&m\x122545217725877&w=2
> 
> with diffstat
> 
>  arch/sh/boards/board-ap325rxa.c            |    2 +-
>  arch/sh/boards/mach-migor/setup.c          |    2 +-
>  drivers/media/video/sh_mobile_ceu_camera.c |   20 +++++++++++++++++++-
>  3 files changed, 21 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)
> 
> that has been pulled through linux-sh ML and the sh tree without even 
> being cc-ed to the v4l list, which wasn't a very good idea IMHO. Now this 
> patch has to be manually "back-ported" to v4l hg repos using the 
> "kernel-sync:" tag and only in part, because arch/sh directory is not in 
> hg at all. Can we please avoid this in the future?
> 
It wasn't cc-ed to the v4l list because there was nothing v4l specific
about it. The patch in question likewise has a dependency on arch/sh/
changes, and it makes no sense to merge the v4l component out of order.

The last time v4l patches related to sh drivers got merged out of order
with the board support patches, both the driver and the boards were
broken for over a week. When there is something relevant to v4l, then the
list will be CCed, but I will not hold trivial patches hostage to
overzealous patchflow enforcement when the end result is likely to cause
more trouble than it prevents.

When touching files outside of arch/sh/, it is always a judgement call
whether it makes sense to include it through that subsystem's tree or
whether to simply merge it directly. In this case, given that it is an
sh-specific driver, and the changes are trivial in nature, with an
inherent dependency on other bits, I see no reason to force this change
through the v4l tree.

If you wish to be CC-ed on all trivial patches relating to sh drivers in
the v4l space, that is certainly something we can watch out for in the
future, but I will still be applying the patches where it makes sense.