[Pkg-lirc-maint] Bug#680768: Bug#680768: SIR irda problems

[Stefan Lippers-Hollmann]

reassign 680762 src:linux 3.2.20-1
severity 680762 normal
reassign 680768 src:linux 3.2.20-1
severity 680768 normal
forcemerge 680762 680768
found 680762 3.4.4-1~experimental.1
thanks

On Sunday 08 July 2012, sergio wrote:
> Package: lirc
> Version: 0.9.0~pre1-1
> Severity: important
> 
> Hello.
> 
> There are several problems with lirc_sir driver.
> 
> *) lirc_sir module from the kernel (3.2, 3.3, 3.4) doesn't work. I've
>    described thin in the #680762 kernel bug.

I can confirm this issue locally (kernel 3.4.4):

serial8250: ttyS1 at I/O 0x2f8 (irq = 3) is a 16550A
smsc_superio_flat(): fir: 0x230, sir: 0x2f8, dma: 03, irq: 3, mode: 0x0e
smsc_ircc_present: can't get sir_base of 0x2f8
[…]
lirc_dev: IR Remote Control driver registered, major 251
lirc_sir: module is from the staging directory, the quality is unknown, you have been warned.
lirc_register_driver: dev pointer not filled in!
lirc_sir: init_chrdev() failed.


This bug has been fixed in linux-next (through the media tree) and will
be added to 3.6, although it should be applied to 3.5~ and marked for 
stable (>= 2.6.37):

http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/next/linux-next.git;a=commitdiff;h=4b71ca6bce8fab3d08c61bf330e781f957934ae1
commit 4b71ca6bce8fab3d08c61bf330e781f957934ae1
Author: Jarod Wilson <jarod at redhat.com>
Date:   Mon Jun 4 13:05:24 2012 -0300

    [media] lirc_sir: make device registration work
    
    For one, the driver device pointer needs to be filled in, or the lirc core
    will refuse to load the driver. And we really need to wire up all the
    platform_device bits. This has been tested via the lirc sourceforge tree
    and verified to work, been sitting there for months, finally getting
    around to sending it. :\
    
    CC: Josh Boyer <jwboyer at redhat.com>
    Signed-off-by: Jarod Wilson <jarod at redhat.com>
    Signed-off-by: Mauro Carvalho Chehab <mchehab at redhat.com>

http://patchwork.linuxtv.org/patch/11579/

Which I can confirm to be functional (3.4.4 plus the referenced patch,
this is definately needed for kernel >= 3.2 and most likely even 
for >= 2.6.37):

serial8250: ttyS1 at I/O 0x2f8 (irq = 3) is a 16550A
smsc_superio_flat(): fir: 0x230, sir: 0x2f8, dma: 03, irq: 3, mode: 0x0e
smsc_ircc_present: can't get sir_base of 0x2f8
[…]
lirc_dev: IR Remote Control driver registered, major 251 
lirc_sir: module is from the staging directory, the quality is unknown, you have been warned.
platform lirc_dev.0: lirc_dev: driver lirc_sir registered at minor = 0
lirc_sir: I/O port 0x02f8, IRQ 3.
lirc_sir: Installed

> *) lirc_sir module from the 0.9.0 and git source doen't compile with 3.4
>    due to absence of asm/system.h (asm/system.h: No such file or directory)
>   
> *) lirc_sir  module from the 0.9.0 compiles and loads well with 3.2
>    kernel, but lirc userspace doesn't work:
>    lircd-0.9.0-pre1[15978]: could not open /dev/lirc0
>    lircd-0.9.0-pre1[15978]: default_init(): Device or resource busy
>    all other problems, which use /dev/lirc0 directly (xmode2, mode2,
>    irrecord) also show the same problem.

lirc-modules is not shipped anymore in >=wheezy, all kernel modules are
provided by the linux kernel >= 2.6.37. Using out-of-tree drivers from 
upstream lirc.git or taken from other (unpackaged) places is not 
supported. There is no bug in Debian's lirc packages (well, there are, 
but this isn't one of them), the only problem is with the staging 
lirc_sir kernel module.

> LIRC modules and tools from git repository works fine with 3.2 kernel.
> 
> 
> -- System Information:
> Debian Release: wheezy/sid
>   APT prefers unstable
>   APT policy: (500, 'unstable'), (200, 'experimental')
> Architecture: amd64 (x86_64)

As a sidenote, I wouldn't exactly recommend using lirc_sir. Even 
ignoring that this is a staging module, it has been broken mainline
since its introduction in 2.6.36 (this bug makes it fail to load, 
always) and it has several technical shortcomings (IrDA receivers
usually only have a very limited range (less than half a metre) and 
the transmitting frequency of ordinary CIR remotes tends to match only 
barely; key-repeat is also rarely supported by the hardware). Most 
other lirc devices perform much better.

Regards
	Stefan Lippers-Hollmann
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