[U-Boot] Fix for a build ?

[Wolfgang Denk <wd@denx.de>]

Dear Sylvain Lamontagne,

In message <h2y3e45db431005030651sacba80cz14740e8d79c4d178@mail.gmail.com> you wrote:
>
> We have recently installed an automated build system in our company
> and occasionally there is a problem when U-Boot is built.
> One build will work the other will not without any changes to the sources
> (it is not: 1 work, then other fail... it is more like 3 may work the 4 will
> not but the 5 will). Our build system guy says that the problem is probably
> a race condition with a dependency in the U-Boot make.
...
> *[09:23:58]:* *make: ***
> [/home/slamon/server/TeamCity/buildAgent/work/19b40828dc62d35d/build/u-boot-1.3.4/cpu/mpc5xxx/start.o]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------^^^^^^^^^^^^

Ah, U-Boot release 1.3.4.

That's nearly two years old, which means it's ancient.

Yes, there may be race conditions during building, especially on SMP
machines.

> Is there a way to fix this ? It could be putting some "sleep" somewhere...

Please upgrade to a recent version.

> * Also, upgrading U-Boot is not an option... since we don't have the need
> nor resources to port a new version of U-Boot to this product. So please
> don't suggest that.

Heh. So what do you want? A solution, but no changes?

We will not fix for free any bugs in old versions of the code. You
have the following options:

- stick with the obsolete code you have and stop complaining
- update to the current release and ask again if there should still be
  problems (which I doubt)
- fix the problems yourself
- hire somebody else to fix the problems (and most probably the most
  efficient way to fix the problem will be an update to the current
  release)

For your next project you can try and learn a lesson from this issue:
the amount of effort saved by not pushing your port upstream into
mainline is often smaller than the added maintenance cost for an
out-of-tree port.

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
You never have the time to do things right,  but you will always have
the time to do them twice.