Re: cannot create partition entries for /dev/ad3

On Tuesday 07 October 2003 18:01, ecsd wrote:
> I have a WintTV card that should be /dev/bktr0. I have tried using "devfs"
> to remedy this:
>
> host[157] # fxtv
> open("/dev/bktr0") failed: No such file or directory
>
> but I cannot see what to do, precisely and in order, to make the device
> exist.

I think you have a pretty fundamental misconception about /dev and devfs.

Makeing devices in /dev doesn't create those devices, or install their 
drivers.

In reality you need both the /dev entry AND the driver to be able to access a 
device. What devfs does is just make it so that you don't have to bother 
changing /dev to reflect newely loaded drivers - the drivers tell devfs to 
create the device nodes to reflect what hardware they have actually found.

> I can't tell if use of devfs makes permanent changes to a system definition
> file so that changes are retained across reboots. I don't see a reference
> to a system file I would modify to make devices exist. The man page for
> devfs does not provide an example of creating a device - or if it does, it
> doesn't explain what /other/ commands are needed in tandem to make the
> device usable (extant.) If devfs will create devices to correspond to
> devices defined in the kernel config file, then where is the bktr device?

You don't WANT to create device nodes in devfs, that's like the whole [user 
visible] point!

kldload bktr might help you out.

If you have it, or it's in the kernel read dmesg, if THAT doesn't help and the 
device used to work, email a list, or the device maintainer.

The only reason most people will ever touch /dev is to either make devices 
(hence no longer necessary with devfs), or change permissions. The later is 
more difficult with devfs, but IMHO the tradeoff is worthwhile.

-- 
Daniel O'Connor software and network engineer
for Genesis Software - http://www.gsoft.com.au
"The nice thing about standards is that there
are so many of them to choose from."
  -- Andrew Tanenbaum
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