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boot/syslinux: Add host installer

PATCH New Alexander Sverdlin 2 participants 2 messages Nov 14, 2018 – Aug 3, 2019

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Alexander Sverdlin

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#0 lore raw

PATCH v2 1/1 boot/syslinux: Add host installer

Add host installer for syslinux bootloader which allows to pre-install syslinux in the generated firmware images. BR2_ROOTFS_POST_IMAGE_SCRIPT can do something like this:

	${HOST_DIR}/usr/bin/syslinux -d /syslinux/ -i ${IMGFILE}

if the rest of syslinux is installed under /syslinux inside the firmware image.

Signed-off-by Alexander Sverdlin <[email protected]>

---

Changelog:
v2:
- host package variant inside boot/syslinux instead of separate package/syslinux-installer
- reworked commit title

 boot/syslinux/Config.in   |  5 +++++
 boot/syslinux/syslinux.mk | 13 +++++++++++++
 2 files changed, 18 insertions(+)
boot/syslinux/Config.in +5 -0
index e969d53fd0..caec66d767 100644
@@ -56,6 +56,11 @@ config BR2_TARGET_SYSLINUX_C32
 	  Enter a space-separated list of .c32 modules to install.
 	  Leave empty to install no module.
 
+config BR2_TARGET_HOST_SYSLINUX
+	bool "host syslinux installer"
+	help
+	  Host installer for syslinux bootloader
+
 endif # BR2_TARGET_SYSLINUX_LEGACY_BIOS
 
 endif # BR2_TARGET_SYSLINUX
boot/syslinux/syslinux.mk +13 -0
index 67bc69254e..72d7f62672 100644
@@ -102,4 +102,17 @@ define SYSLINUX_INSTALL_IMAGES_CMDS
 	done
 endef
 
+# See SYSLINUX_POST_INSTALL_CLEANUP
+HOST_SYSLINUX_DEPENDENCIES = syslinux
+
+define HOST_SYSLINUX_BUILD_CMDS
+	$(HOST_MAKE_ENV) $(MAKE) \
+		-C $(@D) installer
+endef
+
+define HOST_SYSLINUX_INSTALL_CMDS
+	$(INSTALL) -D -m 0755 $(@D)/bios/mtools/syslinux $(HOST_DIR)/usr/bin/syslinux
+endef
+
 $(eval $(generic-package))
+$(eval $(host-generic-package))
Signature · 1 line
2.19.1
#1 lore raw

PATCH v2 1/1 boot/syslinux: Add host installer

Hi Alexander,

Sorry that we haven't reacted on this patch any earlier. We have a long patch
backlog, and somewhat more difficult patches like this one tend to get left behind...

Quoted 27 lines · Alexander Sverdlin

Add host installer for syslinux bootloader which allows to pre-install syslinux in the generated firmware images. BR2_ROOTFS_POST_IMAGE_SCRIPT can do something like this:

	${HOST_DIR}/usr/bin/syslinux -d /syslinux/ -i ${IMGFILE}

if the rest of syslinux is installed under /syslinux inside the firmware image.

Signed-off-by Alexander Sverdlin <[email protected]>

---

Changelog:
v2:
- host package variant inside boot/syslinux instead of separate package/syslinux-installer
- reworked commit title

 boot/syslinux/Config.in   |  5 +++++
 boot/syslinux/syslinux.mk | 13 +++++++++++++
 2 files changed, 18 insertions(+)
boot/syslinux/Config.in +0 -0
index e969d53fd0..caec66d767 100644

boot/syslinux/Config.in config BR2_TARGET_SYSLINUX_C32 · line 62

Quoted 7 lines
boot/syslinux/Config.in +4 -0
@@ -56,6 +56,11 @@ config BR2_TARGET_SYSLINUX_C32
 	  Enter a space-separated list of .c32 modules to install.
 	  Leave empty to install no module.
 
+config BR2_TARGET_HOST_SYSLINUX
+	bool "host syslinux installer"
+	help
+	  Host installer for syslinux bootloader

We normally put host configuration options in Config.in.host. However, for
this, I think it's better to always build it when syslinux is built. See below however.

Quoted 13 lines
boot/syslinux/Config.in +1 -0
+
 endif # BR2_TARGET_SYSLINUX_LEGACY_BIOS
 
 endif # BR2_TARGET_SYSLINUX
boot/syslinux/syslinux.mk +1 -0
index 67bc69254e..72d7f62672 100644
@@ -102,4 +102,17 @@ define SYSLINUX_INSTALL_IMAGES_CMDS
 	done
 endef
 
+# See SYSLINUX_POST_INSTALL_CLEANUP

boot/syslinux/syslinux.mk define SYSLINUX_INSTALL_IMAGES_CMDS · line 115

Quoted 10 lines
boot/syslinux/syslinux.mk +10 -0
+HOST_SYSLINUX_DEPENDENCIES = syslinux
+
+define HOST_SYSLINUX_BUILD_CMDS
+	$(HOST_MAKE_ENV) $(MAKE) \
+		-C $(@D) installer
+endef
+
+define HOST_SYSLINUX_INSTALL_CMDS
+	$(INSTALL) -D -m 0755 $(@D)/bios/mtools/syslinux $(HOST_DIR)/usr/bin/syslinux
+endef

The logic here is difficult to understand and not logical: during the target
build, we build and install most of the host tools, except for syslinux itself, which is built and installed during the host build. But syslinux is *also* built and installed during the target build (and then removed again because it is built for the target), so we need that additional dependency.

It would be much more appropriate to do the right thing, and build *only*
target things during the target build, and *only* host things during the host build. In fact, this mixing of host and target build is only possible because we're adding patches to support it:
0004-utils-Use-the-host-toolchain-to-build.patch 0011-extlinux-Use-the-host-toolchain-to-build.patch

Note that we still need some of those patches because there are tools that are used to generate code during the build.

Then, the syslinux package can install just to STAGING_DIR (because it now
contains only executables for the target), and we can have a completely separate host-syslinux. And then the dependency can be turned around, i.e. SYSLINUX_DEPENDENCIES += host-syslinux.

This has the additional advantage that it is possible to install the installers
(syslinux, extlinux, ...) in TARGET_DIR (by copying from STAGING_DIR). Not something to be done right away, but an interesting option.

Therefore, I've marked your patch as Changes Requested in patchwork.

Sorry it took so long!

Regards,
Arnout

Quoted 4 lines
boot/syslinux/syslinux.mk +2 -0
+
 $(eval $(generic-package))
+$(eval $(host-generic-package))