Subject: Re: [PATCH regression] net: phy: fix initialization (config_init) for Marvel 88E1116R PHYs

From: Alexander Holler <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 17:45:37 +0200

Am 03.04.2014 17:14, schrieb David Miller:
> From: Alexander Holler <[email-masked]>
> Date: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 17:06:52 +0200
>
>> But don't suggest me (or insist on) a time consuming
>
> Bisects are not time consuming, and help developers analyze your
> issue tremendously.

Hmm, compiling and booting several dozen kernels isn't time consuming? 
Then I must have done something wrong in the past.

And I wonder why I've writen descriptions at all, if nobody wants to 
understand that I already know the patch which leads to a broken network 
on that system.

If the patch is really the reason for the problem, is something totally 
different, but bisecting won't help here. Besides that I know since 4 
years that netconsole is broken on that box, it just never broke the 
network or anything else. And so I ignored it, foreseeing the necessary 
time to debug and especially describe and discuss the problem.

You see, I'm already feeling like just talking with myself. But just in 
case: After reverting patch 7cd1463, there exist a online-change to turn 
on/off the problem:

------
diff --git a/drivers/net/ethernet/marvell/mv643xx_eth.c 
b/drivers/net/ethernet/marvell/mv643xx_eth.c
index e891b48..246f065 100644
--- a/drivers/net/ethernet/marvell/mv643xx_eth.c
+++ b/drivers/net/ethernet/marvell/mv643xx_eth.c
@@ -2095,7 +2095,8 @@ static void port_start(struct mv643xx_eth_private *mp)
                 struct ethtool_cmd cmd;

                 mv643xx_eth_get_settings(mp->dev, &cmd);
-               phy_reset(mp);
+               //phy_reset(mp);
+               phy_init_hw(mp->phy);
                 mv643xx_eth_set_settings(mp->dev, &cmd);
                 phy_start(mp->phy);
         }
------

Thats basically just what the reverted patch does. Now, why should I 
still bisect?

Of course, my first assumption that the changed reset is the bug is 
wrong, it just makes the problem to appear. But that wrong assumption 
still doesn't make a bisect necessary. And it's discouraging if people 
still insist on that.

I will see if I spend the time to write down a more detailed description 
about what happens here.

Regards,

Alexander Holler