Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce
From: Theodore Ts'o <tytso@Athena.MIT.EDU>
Subject: Linux 0.99pl10 and serial configurations...
Message-ID: <1993Jun24.140113.1971@dg-rtp.dg.com>
Approved: linux-announce@tc.cornell.edu (Matt Welsh)
Date: Thu, 24 Jun 93 14:01:13 GMT


>      Unlike previous 0.99pl's, pl10 does not include an option during
>      'make config' for auto-detection of serial line IRQ's. (It does
>      the detection, but does not change the settings, even if it finds
>      an IRQ different from what it expects.--Someone should ask Linus
>      to put this feature back, it was handy.)  

Since lots of people seem to have completely missed the various
announcements about this change in how the serial drivers are
configured, starting with pl10, it's time for me to make another
announcement.

THE SERIAL CONFIGURATION STRATEGY IN LINUX 0.99 PL10 HAS CHANGED.
If you are have any non-standard serial ports (which include cheap
v.32 internal modems that don't use standard NS16550A UART) YOU MUST GET
A RECENT COPY OF THE SETSERIAL PROGRAM.  Make sure your setserial
program is at least as recent as the release date of 0.99pl10.  It will
come with an /etc/rc.serial script, which you should customize for your
system and then install.  

This new behavior is a feature --- it means that there is no longer any
need to recompile the kernel in order to support some serial card.  It
also avoids problems in the past with the automatic IRQ configuration
interfereing with people with 8514 displays, and on other wierd hardware
configurations.

							- Ted

--
Send submissions for comp.os.linux.announce to: linux-announce@tc.cornell.edu
