On 3/2/06, Dimitrios Apostolou <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> My primary concern is that necessary modules should be autoloaded by
> default. Since module autoloading is enabled in the kernel insmod should
> be redundant for any of them. I have two theories:
> 1) Modules can't be autoloaded with a static /dev so we need udev in the
> initrd too. However, I'm pretty sure I remember module autoloading was
> doable in the old days too, with a static /dev.
> 2) The modprobe utility is missing from the initrd, so module
> autoloading can't happen.

There are alot of reasons for all this stuff, however, before I go
that way, let me ask what you're trying to accomplish:
Yes, you want less modules loaded.  We get that - that is the reason
for this page:
http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Initrd

Autoloading can be done, and it's probably preferrable, but at this
point in time, it might not be the best move - udev and modprobe in
the initrd image will (a) require alot of testing and (b) require
glibc out of the box (or possibly static compiles, or uClibc) - either
way, it's alot of stuff that would require much testing.

In the near future, klibc will be integrated with the kernel, making
the initrd redundant.  I have been, off-and-on, doing some initramfs
testing with klibc.  Module autoloading and all the stuff you speak of
is almost trivial when using kinit.  The only thing holding me back is
the fact that kinit is rather young, and just recently added support
for raid devices, so I'm letting it mature.

I do have a plan in mind, I am just waiting on things outside of my
control.  When klibc/kinit become a bit more mature, I will experiment
a tad more on a wider breadth of hardware.

For now, though, I would recommend following the wiki.  You will
achieve exactly what you want without massive changes to the initrd
process which may be going away in the near future.
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