Biosdevname software retrieves the BIOS-given name of a kernel by taking its name as an input parameter. Its primary function is to simplify naming conventions in compliance with BIOS standards.
The software known as biosdevname is a tool used for returning the BIOS-given name for a device in place of its kernel name. This is important in situations where the naming convention of a device provided by the BIOS, such as a label on the chassis, does not directly correlate with the name the kernel assigns to that device.
To integrate biosdevname with the SLES10 udev ethernet naming rules, a patch within the distro-patches/sles10/ directory is needed. This patch also works as a udev rule. For RHEL4, the udev rule appears as follows:
KERNEL=="eth*", ACTION=="add", PROGRAM="/usr/sbin/biosdevname -i %k", NAME="%c".
This software makes use of various BIOS-provided tables: PCI Configuration Space, PCI IRQ Routing Table ($PIR), PCMCIA Card Information Structure, SMBIOS 2.6 Type 9, Type 41, and HP OEM-specific types. Thus, it is more compatible with architectures that provide this information in their BIOS.
In terms of updates, the latest release of biosdevname has worked to integrate its tool more cleanly with udev rules. With udev version 115, this release improves compatibility. Additionally, a segfault within the PCMCIA code path has been fixed, and a segfault in another area has been addressed. This release is now available as a Debian package, and there are changes to the makefile and RPM spec file.
Overall, biosdevname is a valuable tool for systems where the BIOS and the kernel do not assign device names in an easily recognizable or direct manner. Its ability to use different BIOS-provided tables to accomplish this makes it a unique option for those in need of this type of software.
To integrate biosdevname with the SLES10 udev ethernet naming rules, a patch within the distro-patches/sles10/ directory is needed. This patch also works as a udev rule. For RHEL4, the udev rule appears as follows:
KERNEL=="eth*", ACTION=="add", PROGRAM="/usr/sbin/biosdevname -i %k", NAME="%c".
This software makes use of various BIOS-provided tables: PCI Configuration Space, PCI IRQ Routing Table ($PIR), PCMCIA Card Information Structure, SMBIOS 2.6 Type 9, Type 41, and HP OEM-specific types. Thus, it is more compatible with architectures that provide this information in their BIOS.
In terms of updates, the latest release of biosdevname has worked to integrate its tool more cleanly with udev rules. With udev version 115, this release improves compatibility. Additionally, a segfault within the PCMCIA code path has been fixed, and a segfault in another area has been addressed. This release is now available as a Debian package, and there are changes to the makefile and RPM spec file.
Overall, biosdevname is a valuable tool for systems where the BIOS and the kernel do not assign device names in an easily recognizable or direct manner. Its ability to use different BIOS-provided tables to accomplish this makes it a unique option for those in need of this type of software.
What's New
Version 0.2.4: N/A