[coreboot] [GSoC] Coreboot Spice Payload

[Peter Stuge]

xdrudis wrote:
> > 3. Coreboot Spice Payload
> 
> Do you mean some kind of SerialICE?

No..


> > CSPLD will rely on libpayload drivers for keyboard, serial and video.
> 
> Which drivers ? Are there drivers for video in libpayload ?

Yes.


> For which VGAs ?

GeodeLX and VGA AFAIR.


> I think there's going to be a similar effort as to that of building
> an OS and its drivers if you don't want to load an OS on the client.

It depends on what SPICE requires. I haven't looked though, so I
don't know. I think it's a very interesting idea, but also that more
research is needed to determine that the project will not explode in
the face.


> My understanding is that coreboot/payloads only initialize the CPU,
> chipset, memory, buses

This is what coreboot does.


> and the minimum devices they need for debug and loading and OS.

A payload would do this.


> It is the OS who recognizes the different possible mouses, vgas,
> network cards, etc., the OS loads the appropiate drivers

Yes, but if SPICE is not a beast, the driver requirements would be
fairly moderate. However it might also be best to go for an existing
kernel. Maybe QNX. Maybe leverage Cristi's work from previous GSoC
with Linux+uClibc.


> Let's suppose the user want to move a window and the processing
> that calculates the next image (which other windows parts are shown
> or hidden, any animation, etc.) is done in a remote computer.

Right, except that since SPICE is optimized for virtual machines..


> The image still has to be sent (however compressed or optimized)

..the image can be highly optimized.


> and the client has to show it on screen. So you need a video
> driver, a mouse driver, knowledge of the monitor, mouse, their
> resolutions and protocols...

Correct. This would be in a SPICE payload.


> I don't think there's such a thing in coreboot or libpayload. 

Some of it is in libpayload.


> In fact I know nothing about virtualization, but my notion is that
> with vitualization you get more than one OS in a physical machine,

Correct. This is a remote machine.


> I don't see how you can get 0 OSes.

The local machine with coreboot might not need an OS to talk SPICE,
with the remote machine where the VMs are running.


> With coreboot you can certainly avoid loading an OS, but then the
> payload will have to do all the useful functionality.

Also correct, but maybe it isn't too bad!


//Peter