System Stall [kernel > 2.6.24.5]

dlinux · 09-09-2008, 04:07 AM

After upgrading to the 2.6.26.x kernel series, my system just stalls right after a few seconds of logging in (10/15 seconds after boot sequence is complete).

I believe this is due to wpa_supplicant settings. my wireless card ( RaLink RT2561/RT61 802.11g PCI), is well supported and i never had any problems with this card (even with this 2.6.26.x kernel in another system with the same card).

I use the following script to initialize my wireless settings:

Quote:

ifconfig wlan0 down
ifconfig wlan0 up
iwconfig wlan0 mode managed
iwconfig wlan0 essid Intranet
iwconfig wlan0 key restricted
iwconfig wlan0 enc on
iwconfig wlan0 key s:"mypassword"
wpa_supplicant -B -c /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf -Dwext -i wlan0
dhcpcd wlan0 &

and my /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf:

Quote:

network={
scan_ssid=0
ssid="Intranet"
proto=WPA
key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
pairwise=CCMP
group=CCMP
psk=long string in here
}

I have the wireless settings of the new kernel just like the old 2.6.24.5.
Does anybody see something wrong?
The system gets stalled and i need to reboot.

keefaz · 09-09-2008, 04:23 AM

If the settings are known working, don't touch them, error must come from elsewhere
I would try to find the differences in config with the slackware kernel and your custom kernel
Look in /boot for the slackware config copy it in your desktop (say you named it 'oldconfig') make a new config file with ' zcat /proc/config > newconfig '
and do a diff between them, I like column comparison with ' diff -y oldconfig newconfig '
I know it is a bit tedious to compare the kernel configs though...

symatic · 09-09-2008, 12:13 PM

I have yet to get my card to work under the 2.6.26.x series. I have the same card as you. It lags for quite awhile, but does not work. I really haven't had the time to really research the situation. The 2.6.25.x does not seem to have this problem and is what I have been running. Gonna mess around for a few days to see what the issue is. Hopefully A solution will be found.

dlinux · 09-13-2008, 10:13 AM

I have narrowed the problem down to a few kernel configuration options.
First i compiled a 2.6.26.5 kernel with the config file "config-huge-smp-2.6.24.5-smp" that comes with slackware-12.1.
Then i just changed:

Quote:

Processor type and features->Processor family to Pentium4

Processor type and features->Preemption Model to Voluntary kernel Preemption

Processor type and features->Timer frequency to 300HZ

And everything runs OK, even the wireless card.Then i changed a few more options:

Quote:

Enable The Block Layer ->Support for Large Block Devices - disabled this.
Enable the Block Layer ->Support for large single files - disabled this.
Kernel Hacking -> Filter access to /dev/mem - enabled this.
Kernel Hacking -> Use 4kb instead of 8kb stacks - enabled this.

After recompiling, the old problem appeared, a system stall after bootup.

I wonder which of this options (and why) crash my system, i use the same config in other machines and it runs fine...

dlinux · 09-13-2008, 02:48 PM

I found a solution to the problem,albeit a strange one?
I moved the above script initializing the wireless card to /etc/rc.mywireless instead of putting it in rc.local and called it from there with stdin,stdout and stderr redirected to /dev/null.
Works like a charm

Bruce Hill · 09-13-2008, 04:51 PM

Configuring the network settings in Slackware that way is indeed strange.
Perhaps Alien Bob's Configuring your network in Slackware would help you
get a better understanding of The Slackware Way (TM).