[no subject]

From: Dave Boutcher
Date: Mon Apr 26 2004 - 20:29:03 EST


Hi Greg,

So I've drunk the sysfs kool-aid, but I'm wrestling with the implementation. And I apologize for a long-winded question...

I'm working on a SCSI target adapter....an adapter that lets a SCSI initiator in another system get at local block devices as if they were SCSI devices. The adapter device driver wants to make mappings like:

0:1 -> /dev/hda3
0:2 -> /dev/loop1

(where "0:1" is the SCSI bus/target identifier presented to the initiator.) The mapping is currently done through the /proc file system, and I would really like to do it via sysfs. For context, the current implementation would do something like:
echo "b 8 16 0 1" > /proc/drivers/ibmvscsis/30000005
to create a mapping from block device 8:16 (/dev/sdb) to 0:1

Currently my adapter shows up as
./bus/vio/drivers/ibmvscss/30000005
./bus/vio/devices/30000005
./devices/vio/30000005

Each of the mappings might have a number of attributes, (the mapping itself, whether it is active, read-only, etc.) So I think I want a directory under the device for each mapping:

sys
|-- devices
| |
| `-- vio
| |-- 30000005
| | |-- detach_state
| | |-- name
| | |-- 0
| | | |-- 0
| | | | |-- device
| | | | |-- active
| | | | `-- read-only
| | | |-- 1
| | | | |-- device
| | | | |-- active
| | | | `-- read-only

So now to establish the mapping you would

echo "/dev/sdb3" > /sys/devices/vio/30000005/0/0/device
echo 1 > /sys/devices/vio/30000005/0/0/active

I think this follows all the nice rules for one value per attribute, but I'm struggling with building the hierarchy in sysfs. Obviously I am going to need a kobject for each set of attributes so that I can tell which one is being accessed. I considered using struct devices for each level and registering them, which seems reasonable. I also considered creating a bus, but this seems like overkill in a single device driver.

Ultimately this has to be sane enough that Mr. Bottomley will accept it from a SCSI point of view, and you will accept it from a sysfs point of view.

All comments and suggestions welcomed...

Dave B
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