xen-kbdfront module should be provided by linux-image-virtual or linux-virtual

[Alex Bradley]

I am working on setting up Edubuntu 11.10 as a paravirtualized Xen guest. I installed linux-image-3.0.0-16-virtual on the guest VM, but found that the xen-kbdfront module was missing. According to the provided kernel configs, the Xen PV keyboard frontend is compiled as a module in both linux-image-3.0.0-12-generic and linux-image-3.0.0-16-virtual:

root@ltsp2:/# grep CONFIG_INPUT_XEN_KBDDEV_FRONTEND /boot/config-3.0.0-1*
/boot/config-3.0.0-12-generic:CONFIG_INPUT_XEN_KBDDEV_FRONTEND=m
/boot/config-3.0.0-16-virtual:CONFIG_INPUT_XEN_KBDDEV_FRONTEND=m

The xen-kbdfront module is provided with linux-image-3.0.0-12-generic but missing in linux-image-3.0.0-16-virtual:

root@ltsp2:/# locate xen-kbd
/lib/modules/3.0.0-12-generic/kernel/drivers/input/misc/xen-kbdfront.ko
root@ltsp2:/# ls /lib/modules/3.0.0-16-virtual/kernel/drivers/input/
evbug.ko gameport joydev.ko mouse serio touchscreen

This means that if I boot the VM using the "virtual" image and try to access the VM's console through VNC, the keyboard and mouse don't work. With the "generic" image, I can load the xen-kbdfront module and the keyboard and mouse work fine.

Other information:
root@ltsp2:~# cat /proc/version_signature
Ubuntu 3.0.0-16.28-virtual 3.0.17
root@ltsp2:~# lspci -vnvn # no output
root@ltsp2:~# lsb_release -rd
Description: Ubuntu 11.10
Release: 11.10
root@ltsp2:~# apt-cache policy linux-image-3.0.0-16-virtual
linux-image-3.0.0-16-virtual:
  Installed: 3.0.0-16.28
  Candidate: 3.0.0-16.28
  Version table:
 *** 3.0.0-16.28 0
        500 http://ca.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ oneiric-updates/main amd64 Packages
        500 http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ oneiric-security/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
---
AlsaDevices:
 total 0
 crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116, 1 2012-03-02 00:35 seq
 crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116, 33 2012-03-02 00:35 timer
AplayDevices: aplay: device_list:240: no soundcards found...
ApportVersion: 1.23-0ubuntu4
Architecture: amd64
ArecordDevices: arecord: device_list:240: no soundcards found...
CurrentDmesg:
 [ 12.177342] init: plymouth-stop pre-start process (1299) terminated with status 1
 [ 13.007807] ppdev: user-space parallel port driver
 [ 20.928065] eth0: no IPv6 routers present
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 11.10
InstallationMedia: Edubuntu 11.10 "Oneiric Ocelot" - Release amd64 (20111012)
Lspci:

Lsusb: Error: command ['lsusb'] failed with exit code 1: unable to initialize libusb: -99
Package: linux (not installed)
ProcEnviron:
 LANGUAGE=en_CA:en
 LANG=en_CA.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
ProcKernelCmdLine: root=/dev/xvda1 ro console=hvc0 root=/dev/xvda1 ro ip=:127.0.255.255::::eth0:dhcp
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.0.0-16.28-virtual 3.0.17
Tags: oneiric
Uname: Linux 3.0.0-16-virtual x86_64
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
UserGroups:

[Brad Figg (brad-figg)]

This bug is missing log files that will aid in diagnosing the problem. From a terminal window please run:

apport-collect 944582

and then change the status of the bug to 'Confirmed'.

If, due to the nature of the issue you have encountered, you are unable to run this command, please add a comment stating that fact and change the bug status to 'Confirmed'.

This change has been made by an automated script, maintained by the Ubuntu Kernel Team.

[Alex Bradley (a-bradley)]

apport information

[Alex Bradley (a-bradley)]

apport information

[Alex Bradley (a-bradley)]

apport information

[Alex Bradley (a-bradley)]

apport information

[Alex Bradley (a-bradley)]

apport information

[Alex Bradley (a-bradley)]

apport information

[Tim Gardner (timg-tpi)]

Alex - have you installed linux-image-extra-virtual ? Any modules that are _not_ included in linux-image-virtual are automatically included in linux-image-extra-virtual. Precise is similarly constructed.

[Alex Bradley (a-bradley)]

I have now installed linux-image-extra-virtual and I confirm that xen-kbdfront is present and working. Thanks for the clarification.

I think that it's a bad packaging choice to have xen-kbdfront relegated to an "extra" package for a kernel that's supposed to be specifically tailored for use on virtual hosts. It has the strange consequence that the "generic" kernel works out of the box (i.e., without searching for extra packages) for a Xen VM with VNC console and the "virtual" kernel doesn't.

The package description of linux-image-3.0.0-16-virtual states:

"You likely do not want to install this package directly. Instead, install the linux-virtual meta-package, which will ensure that upgrades work correctly, and that supporting packages are also installed."

So I did begin by installing the linux-virtual package, for which the description claims:

"This package will always depend on the latest complete Linux kernel available for virtual machines."

I don't think a VM-oriented kernel metapackage should be described as providing a "complete" kernel and as ensuring that "supporting packages are also installed" if it leaves the Xen PV keyboard/mouse driver uninstalled. Neither linux-virtual nor linux-image-virtual has a "Depends" or "Suggests" relationship to linux-image-extra-virtual, and their descriptions don't mention it at all.

In short, I would suggest that either (1) xen-kbdfront should move into linux-image-virtual or (2) linux-virtual should depend on linux-image-extra-virtual.

[Tim Gardner (timg-tpi)]

Alex - the whole point of the virtual image is to have a small minimal kernel, so having linux-virtual depend on the extras package doesn't make sense to me. I have updated the linux-virtual package description so that it at least mentions the extras package.

[Stefan Bader (smb)]

It makes sense to have that module in the main virtual package. I'll do a patch and will submit it to our list.

[Tim Gardner (timg-tpi)]

Actually, xen-kbdfront is already in the virtual inclusion list, but its wrong on Oneiric (correct for Precise)

[Stefan Bader (smb)]

This actually was a packaging bug. It is included in Precise, but the path for it was wrong in Oneiric resulting in dropping it into the extras package.

[Tim Gardner (timg-tpi)]

UBUNTU: (config) Fix virtual flavour inclusion of xen-kbdfront

[Tim Gardner (timg-tpi)]

See separate bug: http://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/947357

[Tim Gardner (timg-tpi)]

SRU Justification:

Impact: xen-kbdfront is not included in the linux-image-virtual package.

Patch: Use correct path to the kernel module.

[Luis Henriques (henrix)]

This bug is awaiting verification that the kernel for Oneiric in -proposed solves the problem ( 3.0.0-17.30). Please test the kernel and update this bug with the results. If the problem is solved, change the tag 'verification-needed-oneiric' to 'verification-done-oneiric'.

If verification is not done by one week from today, this fix will be dropped from the source code, and this bug will be closed.

See https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Testing/EnableProposed for documentation how to enable and use -proposed. Thank you!

[Alex Bradley (a-bradley)]

I have installed linux-image-3.0.0-17-virtual 3.0.0-17.30 on my ltsp2 VM. The xen-kbdfront module is present and I didn't have to install a corresponding version of linux-image-extra-virtual. The kernel boots successfully, the module loads, and VNC keyboard input works. Looks good to me.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

This bug was fixed in the package linux - 3.0.0-17.30

---------------
linux (3.0.0-17.30) oneiric-proposed; urgency=low

  [Luis Henriques]

  * Release Tracking Bug
    - LP: #949882

  [ Andy Whitcroft ]

  * [Config] restore build-% shortcut

  [ Stefan Bader ]

  * (config) Fix virtual flavour inclusion of xen-kbdfront
    - LP: #944582

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