• Tejun Heo's avatar
    libata: implement libata.spindown_compat · 920a4b10
    Tejun Heo authored
    Now that libata uses sd->manage_start_stop, libata spins down disk on
    shutdown.  In an attempt to compensate libata's previous shortcoming,
    some distros sync and spin down disks attached via libata in their
    shutdown(8).  Some disks spin back up just to spin down again on
    STANDBYNOW1 if the command is issued when the disk is spun down, so
    this double spinning down causes problem.
    
    This patch implements module parameter libata.spindown_compat which,
    when set to one (default value), prevents libata from spinning down
    disks on shutdown thus avoiding double spinning down.  Note that
    libata spins down disks for suspend to mem and disk, so with
    libata.spindown_compat set to one, disks should be properly spun down
    in all cases without modifying shutdown(8).
    
    shutdown(8) should be fixed eventually.  Some drive do spin up on
    SYNCHRONZE_CACHE even when their cache is clean.  Those disks
    currently spin up briefly when sd tries to shutdown the device and
    then the machine powers off immediately, which can't be good for the
    head.  We can't skip SYNCHRONIZE_CACHE during shudown as it can be
    dangerous data integrity-wise.
    
    So, this spindown_compat parameter is already scheduled for removal by
    the end of the next year and here's what shutdown(8) should do.
    
      * Check whether /sys/modules/libata/parameters/spindown_compat
        exists.  If it does, write 0 to it.
    
      * For each libata harddisk {
    	* Check whether /sys/class/scsi_disk/h:c:i:l/manage_start_stop
    	  exists.  Iff it doesn't, synchronize cache and spin the disk
    	  down as before.
      }
    
    The above procedure will make shutdown(8) work properly with kernels
    before this change, ones with this workaround and later ones without
    it.
    
    To accelerate shutdown(8) updates, if the compat mode is in use, this
    patch prints BIG FAT warning for five seconds during shutdown (the
    optimal interval to annoy the user just the right amount discovered by
    hours of tireless usability testing).
    Signed-off-by: default avatarTejun Heo <htejun@gmail.com>
    Signed-off-by: default avatarJeff Garzik <jeff@garzik.org>
    920a4b10
feature-removal-schedule.txt 13 KB