Skip site navigation (1)Skip section navigation (2)
Date:      Thu, 25 Oct 2007 12:50:30 +0100 (BST)
From:      Robert Watson <rwatson@FreeBSD.org>
To:        Warner Losh <imp@bsdimp.com>
Cc:        gnn@freebsd.org, freebsd-arch@freebsd.org, kip.macy@gmail.com
Subject:   Re: Should Xen be a sub-arch or a build option?
Message-ID:  <20071025124816.N16146@fledge.watson.org>
In-Reply-To: <20071022.153310.74664457.imp@bsdimp.com>
References:  <b1fa29170710212056x5649a858n5202b78fc3e55589@mail.gmail.com> <m2bqarl78i.wl%gnn@neville-neil.com> <20071022.153310.74664457.imp@bsdimp.com>

next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
On Mon, 22 Oct 2007, Warner Losh wrote:

> If it were me, I'd look at having it be a build option, much like PAE is a 
> build option.  PAE has a bigger impact on the i386 world than xen, and it is 
> only an option.  PAE breaks kernel ABIs, while xen doesn't (as far as I 
> know).  PAE changes the size of things like vm_addr_t and bus_addr_t.  I 
> think this would fit best with our current world view and sensabilities.

I have to admit that I find the novelty and simplicity of "options XEN" pretty 
appealing -- I also had been thinking only in terms of a sub-arch and the 
associated paperwork.  I guess the real question is what we lose by doing this 
-- will ps(1), vmstat(8), kgdb(8), etc, all work transparently across i386 and 
i386+xen?

Robert N M Watson
Computer Laboratory
University of Cambridge



Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?20071025124816.N16146>