Just updated the Itanium2 system (RX2600/ZX9000 hybrid) to kernel 4.15-rc1, but encountered a problem with the NFSv4 code.    Recent changes have exposed problems with ‘older’ compilers, and the system currently has GCC 4.3 (on Fedora 9/IA64):

.......................
 CALL scripts/checksyscalls.sh
<stdin>:1185:2: warning: #warning syscall perf_event_open not implemented
<stdin>:1239:2: warning: #warning syscall seccomp not implemented
<stdin>:1317:2: warning: #warning syscall pkey_mprotect not implemented
<stdin>:1320:2: warning: #warning syscall pkey_alloc not implemented
<stdin>:1323:2: warning: #warning syscall pkey_free not implemented
<stdin>:1326:2: warning: #warning syscall statx not implemented
 CHK scripts/mod/devicetable-offsets.h
 CHK include/generated/compile.h
 CHK include/generated/nr-irqs.h
 AR fs/nfs/nfs.o
 AR fs/nfs/nfsv2.o
 AR fs/nfs/nfsv3.o
 CC fs/nfs/nfs4state.o
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:74: error: unknown field ‘seqid’ specified in initializer
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:74: warning: missing braces around initializer
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:74: warning: (near initialization for ‘invalid_stateid.<anonymous>.data’)
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:74: warning: overflow in implicit constant conversion
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:75: error: unknown field ‘other’ specified in initializer
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:75: error: extra brace group at end of initializer
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:75: error: (near initialization for ‘invalid_stateid.<anonymous>’)
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:75: warning: excess elements in union initializer
fs/nfs/nfs4state.c:75: warning: (near initialization for ‘invalid_stateid.<anonymous>’)
make[2]: *** [fs/nfs/nfs4state.o] Error 1
make[1]: *** [fs/nfs] Error 2
make: *** [fs] Error 2

This is a ‘known problem’ and has – at least – been documented:  https://lkml.org/lkml/2017/11/18/224

The workaround – for the time being – is to simply deselect NFSv4 support in the Kernel config, and then the compile completes, and the system boots OK:

............................
Starting cups: [ OK ]
Starting anacron: [ OK ]
Fedora release 9 (Sulphur)
Kernel 4.15.0-rc1 on an ia64 (/dev/ttyS0)
rgia64 login:
..................
[root@rgia64 ~]# uname -a
Linux rgia64 4.15.0-rc1 #1 SMP Fri Dec 1 13:57:03 PST 2017 ia64 ia64 ia64 GNU/Linux

I have – so far – successfully swapped out the RX2600 all-PCI-X cage for a ZX9000 PCI-X/AGP one, and installed a NVIDIA Quadro 900 dual-DVI video card, but have not yet managed to get a more ‘modern’ version of Nouveau working, and so am still using framebuffer, and VNC.

Robert Gadsdon.  December 1, 2017.