Re: [PATCH] make: add modules_update target

[Avi Kivity <avi@argo.co.il>]

Theodore Ts'o wrote:
> On Fri, Apr 14, 2006 at 10:06:56AM -0500, Kylene Jo Hall wrote:
>   
>> This new "modules_update" target only copies out modules that have
>> changed, using "cp -u".  This less zealous method is a more efficient
>> approach to module installation for kernel developers working on single,
>> or small numbers of modules.  
>>     
>
> Hi Kylene,
>
> This works as long as the .config hasn't been changed so that some
> configuration options haven't been changed so that a driver which had
> been previously built as a module is now built into the kernel.  In
> that case, you really want to make sure the no-longer applicable .ko
> file has been removed from the system.  If the developer knows that to
> be true, they can use your proposed modules_update without any problems.
>
> As a suggestion, something that might be worth trying would be to
> change to modules_install so that it uses cp -u, but also so that it
> tries to delete all files that could have previously installed as
> modules (by using the obj-y list).  This should hopefully speed up
> modules_install, and make it do the right thing all the time.
>
>   
How about using rsync with --delete as a substitute for cp (if rsync is 
available)?

-- 
Do not meddle in the internals of kernels, for they are subtle and quick to panic.