cvs commit: src/sys/dev/ath if_ath.c src/sys/dev/awi awi.c src/sys/dev/bfe if_bfe.c src/sys/dev/bge if_bge.c src/sys/dev/ed if_ed.c src/sys/dev/em if_em.c src/sys/dev/ex if_ex.c src/sys/dev/fe if_fe.c src/sys/dev/fxp if_fxp.c src/sys/dev/gem ...

[Ed Maste]

On Sun, Jan 29, 2006 at 12:28:05PM -0800, Julian Elischer wrote:

> Ed Maste wrote:
> 
> >emaste      2006-01-29 15:39:09 UTC
> > Note that with these changes, these drivers now depend on locking the 
> > global
> > if_addr_mtx, so binary modules of these drivers will not work on 5.4 or
> > earlier releases.
> > 
> >
> 
> Is the converse true?
> 
> i.e. can older binaries (e.g. from 5.4) work on 5.5?
> 
> this is a "must"

Robert's answer pretty much covers everything, and I also posted that same
info (that older binaries will continue to work) to -STABLE.  Also, I did
the MFC in three parts, making sure everything continued to work as I went.
That is, until this commit, the drivers did not lock the new mutex, and
thus functioned exactly as old binary modules would on 5.5.

The only thing I suppose I should add is that anyone contemplating releasing
binary-only driver modules for FreeBSD 5.x will need to avoid locking this
mutex in order to make the module work on all 5.x releases.

-ed