Re: [PATCH] rtl8187: Fix for kernel oops when unloading with LEDs enabled

[Larry Finger <Larry.Finger@lwfinger.net>]

Richard Farina wrote:
> Larry Finger wrote:
>> When rtl8187 is unloaded and CONFIG_RTL8187_LEDS is set, the kernel
>> may oops when the module is unloaded as the workqueue for led_on was
>> not being cancelled.
>>
>> This patch fixes the problem reported in
>> http://marc.info/?l=linux-wireless&m=124742957615781&w=2.
>>
>> Reported-by: Gábor Stefanik <netrolller.3d@gmail.com>
>> Signed-off-by: Larry Finger <Larry.Finger@lwfinger>
>> ---
>>
>> V2 - Do not create a new workqueue.
>>
>> John,
>>
>> This patch is 2.6.31 material. To the best of my knowledge, a formal bug
>> report was never filed; however, it was reported in the reference
>> given above.
>>
>>   
> Anyone know what happened here? This bug still seems very much alive in
> compat-wireless-2.6.31-rc7.  I know the window is closed and this really
> isn't "earthshattering" but a kernel panick is kind of "a big deal".  I
> seems like it was tested doing a proper modprobe -r but not if you just
> unplug the usb card.

This kind of accusation is not the best way to get your problem solved.

> When I unplug the usb I get instadeath, very uncool.  If someone can
> teach me how to get the kernel output from a non-functional system I am
> happy to provide whatever.

This patch has been in wireless testing since August 3. I have no idea
why it wouldn't be in compat-wireless since then. In addition, I have
unplugged/plugged my RTL8187B device many times with no problem.

I just downloaded compat-wireless-2009-08-26 - it has the patch
included. You certainly could have checked your source to determine that.

To get something from a system that is crashing, you should switch to
the logging console by pressing CTRL/ALT/F10 before you do whatever it
takes to crash it. You will not get a full dump, but hopefully, there
will be enough of the stack visible when the panic occurs. Either copy
down the stack list, or take a picture of the screen and post a link
to it. FYI, you can get back to the graphical screen with CTRL/ALT/F7.

If you have a wired connection in addition to the wireless one, and
you have a second Linux host, you can also capture the dump using
netconsole. Using this facility is not easy, so we'll go the other
route first.

When you report what info you have, please tell what architecture you
are running (i386, x86_64, ppc,...) and whether your device is an
RTL8187L or RTL8187B. It may not matter, but who knows.

Larry