[U-Boot] Multiple device support - none at all?

[Detlev Zundel]

Hi ksi (was it Sergei?),

>> The fundamental concept of u-boot isn't to handle all your devices, it is to
>> boot linux (or other OS) and use the OS to handle the multiple devices.
>
> The same is true for a PC BIOS, but it DOES handle all of my devices. And it
> allows me to choose which device to boot from. And it is extendable so I can
> add a PCI card with e.g. RAID controller and boot off of that RAID. And it
> is not handling of all devices, it is _BASIC_ functionality...

Actually I don't know what you're talking about in the PC BIOS area
here.  Usually the computers I own cannot boot from the devices that are
bought somewhat after the motherboard.  But maybe you have different
instances of computers...

> I don't mind reconfiguring and rebuilding the thing for my parcticular
> configuration instead of just changing some settings in interactive setup
> utility, but the current implementation won't allow even that...

Actually we are thinking about "going generic" here also for a while
already.  Look for example at the BOF session notes of OLS 2007[1]
"Device Tree Run Time Configuration".

We are all aware that a "proper" device model will be needed at a
certain stage, only nobody started into that direction yet.

As Jerry pointed out - booting embedded hardware used to be a comparably
simple operation ;)

Cheers
  Detlev

[1] http://www.denx.de/wiki/view/U-Boot/OLSUbootBOF

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