Subject: USB changes
To: None <current-users@netbsd.org>
From: Lennart Augustsson <lennart@augustsson.net>
List: current-users
Date: 06/30/1999 00:54:36
I have just changed the way attach and detach of USB devices work.
It should be much more reliable now.  The usbd deamon is no longer
necessary and you should remove from /etc/rc.conf (and /etc/rc).
Starting it should be harmless; it will die quickly.

The device detach now works "The Right Way".  I.e. the device minor
numbers get reused instead of an ascending chain of numbers like it was before.

E.g., if wsmouse0 is a USB mouse and you unplug it, the device is gone.  wsmouse0
ceases to exist and any processes that are accessing it will get an I/O error.
If you plug it in again there will be a new wsmouse0.  To access it you have to
open it (i.e., if you still have the old wsmouse0 open access to it will still
yield an I/O error).

This behaviour is not the most convenient for plugging and unplugging devices,
but have patience, for keyboards and mice I have a solution coming up that
will allow easy plug-and-play.

If you notice any problems, please report them.  I'm doing this work in a hotel
room in Beaverton, OR, and my supply of USB devices to test with is rather
limited.

Also, if you have a UHCI controller then standby mode should work now, and suspend
mode does something reasonable.  If you have OHCI you'll have to wait a little
longer.  (I do have both UHCI and OHCI on my laptop, I'm sure it's one of the
few in the world that has access to both. :-)

    -- Lennart