Hi Gerd,
Gerd Hoffmann wrote:
This breaks compatibility with very old coreboot build (build before fb5d5b16 "2015-07-14, cbtable: describe boot media").
Is that really acceptable in SeaBIOS master at some random time?
As far I know there is no policy on that written down somewhere. In general we try avoid breaking backward compatibility (and thus requiring lockstep updates). But maintaining backward compatibility has a cost too, so this isn't set in stone.
Sure, but backwards compatibility is highly valuable, so will offset quite some cost. See Windows or the Linux kernel ABI.
Here we are talking about a firmware compatibility, arguably even more valuable than a kernel ABI, because firmware often, and ironically this is probably no less true for coreboot than IBV products, simply can not be updated.
I expect payloads to value backwards compatibility quite high.
Keeping backward compatibility with the "cbfs master header" would complicate the code.
Obviously, but is undeniably valuable, even if not to you.
Well, maintaining compatibility with a version released more than five years ago isn't that valuable IMHO, but comes with the cost of adding compatibility code which most likely will never ever be actually used.
I know that five years is forever in QEMU, and perhaps in particular at Red Hat.
Firmware is not QEMU.
At a minimum please at least announce a flag day a month or two out, to give those not on this list a chance.
Thanks
//Peter