common: kernels: warnings for when LINUXCONFIG is set to something nonstandard

[rpardini]

• board: beagley-ai.conf: mark TODO
• family: sun55iw3: mark TODO

Summary by CodeRabbit

Release Notes

• Refactor

  • Improved configuration validation logic to detect and warn about incorrect settings.

• Documentation

  • Added clarifying comments to configuration files documenting configuration requirements and constraints.

[coderabbitai]

Walkthrough

This PR adds configuration validation and readonly enforcement to the LINUXCONFIG variable. It transitions from simple assignment to a readonly global variable with conditional validation logic for non-standard values, while adding clarifying comments to board-specific configurations.

Changes

Cohort / File(s)	Summary
Configuration validation enhancement config/sources/common.conf	Changed LINUXCONFIG handling from simple assignment to declare -g -r (readonly global). When unset, initializes to linux-${LINUXFAMILY}-${BRANCH}. When pre-set, validates against expected patterns: allows linux-uefi-${LINUXFAMILY}-${BRANCH} variant, warns if value doesn't match expected pattern, and warns if set to standard pattern (should be auto-determined).
Configuration comments config/boards/beagley-ai.conf, config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf	Added clarifying comments: beagley-ai notes that LINUXCONFIG is shared with k3 family and should use its own; sun55iw3 documents note about single .config usage with two LINUXFAMILY values.

Estimated code review effort

🎯 2 (Simple) | ⏱️ ~15 minutes

• Verify validation logic in common.conf correctly handles all expected configuration patterns without breaking existing deployments
• Ensure readonly enforcement doesn't conflict with any dynamic configuration scenarios
• Confirm warning messages are appropriate and actionable

Suggested labels

Framework

Suggested reviewers

• igorpecovnik
• pyavitz
• chraac
• EvilOlaf

Poem

🐰 A config so rigid, now locked down tight,
With validation to keep patterns right,
LINUXCONFIG declares its readonly might,
Comments guide families through the night,
Framework grows stronger, shining bright! ✨

Pre-merge checks and finishing touches

✅ Passed checks (3 passed)

Check name	Status	Explanation
Description Check	✅ Passed	Check skipped - CodeRabbit’s high-level summary is enabled.
Title check	✅ Passed	The title accurately reflects the main change: adding warnings and validation logic for non-standard LINUXCONFIG values in the common kernel configuration, as shown in config/sources/common.conf.
Docstring Coverage	✅ Passed	No functions found in the changed files to evaluate docstring coverage. Skipping docstring coverage check.

✨ Finishing touches

🧪 Generate unit tests (beta)

• Create PR with unit tests
• Post copyable unit tests in a comment

---

📜 Recent review details

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📥 Commits

Reviewing files that changed from the base of the PR and between fe8b540 and edb7b15.

📒 Files selected for processing (3)

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf (1 hunks)
• config/sources/common.conf (1 hunks)
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf (1 hunks)

🧰 Additional context used

🧠 Learnings (22)

📓 Common learnings

Learnt from: igorpecovnik
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8849
File: config/boards/radxa-e54c.csc:14-28
Timestamp: 2025-11-02T20:49:56.719Z
Learning: In Armbian board configuration files (config/boards/*.conf, *.csc, etc.), do not use kernel_config_set, kernel_config_set_m, kernel_config_set_y, or custom_kernel_config__* functions to modify kernel configuration. Kernel configuration is associated with LINUXFAMILY/BOARDFAMILY, not individual BOARD. Board-specific kernel modifications cause inconsistency in kernel packages published to the apt repository because boards within a family share the same kernel packages. Kernel configuration changes must be made in the appropriate kernel config file (e.g., config/kernel/linux-*-*.config) or in family configuration files (config/sources/families/*.conf, *.inc) instead.

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 0
File: :0-0
Timestamp: 2025-07-21T04:12:02.439Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, for recurring maintenance tasks like kernel version bumping, TODO comments should use generic version formats (e.g., "MAJOR.MINOR-rc1") rather than specific version numbers (e.g., "6.17-rc1") to avoid the need for frequent comment updates that would create unnecessary maintenance overhead.

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8328
File: lib/functions/compilation/patch/drivers_network.sh:542-545
Timestamp: 2025-06-24T10:08:40.313Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, when a PR removes build support for a specific kernel version, version check issues for that removed version become practically irrelevant even if they appear incorrect in isolation. Context about which kernel versions are being deprecated/removed is important for understanding the impact of version-related code changes.

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8661
File: lib/functions/compilation/armbian-kernel.sh:194-199
Timestamp: 2025-09-25T18:37:00.330Z
Learning: In PR armbian/build#8661, line 235 of lib/functions/compilation/armbian-kernel.sh already contains the corrected comment "BPF link support for netfilter hooks" for NETFILTER_BPF_LINK, not the misleading "BPF_SYSCALL" comment that was flagged during review.

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8661
File: lib/functions/compilation/armbian-kernel.sh:194-199
Timestamp: 2025-09-25T18:37:00.330Z
Learning: In PR armbian/build#8661, line 235 of lib/functions/compilation/armbian-kernel.sh already contains the corrected comment "BPF link support for netfilter hooks" for NETFILTER_BPF_LINK, not the misleading "BPF_SYSCALL" comment that was flagged during review.

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8428
File: config/boards/lckfb-taishanpi.csc:5-9
Timestamp: 2025-07-25T03:51:50.830Z
Learning: When reviewing PRs in the Armbian build system, U-Boot defconfig files and patches may be added as part of the PR changes but might not be visible in the current repository clone state during review. It's important to check the actual PR file changes directly via GitHub or the PR API to get the complete picture of what files are being added or modified.

Learnt from: SuperKali
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8609
File: config/boards/nanopi-r76s.conf:5-5
Timestamp: 2025-09-11T06:16:10.236Z
Learning: In Armbian board configuration files, WIP (Work In Progress) comments describe intended goals or planned features rather than current implementation state. For example, a comment like "WIP: current kernel" indicates that current kernel support is being worked toward, even if KERNEL_TARGET doesn't yet include "current".

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8428
File: config/boards/lckfb-taishanpi.csc:5-9
Timestamp: 2025-07-25T03:51:50.830Z
Learning: When reviewing PRs in the Armbian build system, U-Boot defconfig files and patches may be added as part of the PR changes but might not be visible in the current repository clone state during review. It's important to check the actual PR file changes directly via GitHub API (https://api.github.com/repos/armbian/build/pulls/{pr_number}/files) to get the complete picture of what files are being added or modified, especially for U-Boot patches that will be applied during the build process.

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8330
File: config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf:32-36
Timestamp: 2025-06-25T03:40:52.109Z
Learning: In Armbian build system configuration files like config/sources/families/*.conf, when KERNELSOURCE is not explicitly declared in a case branch, the system falls back to a default KERNELSOURCE value, so missing KERNELSOURCE declarations are not critical issues.

Learnt from: rpardini
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8879
File: config/sources/families/uefi-x86.conf:0-0
Timestamp: 2025-11-06T15:36:04.606Z
Learning: As of PR #8879, the uefi-x86 family in the Armbian build system now includes kernel patches for the first time. The current and edge branches for uefi-x86 are specifically configured for Apple T2-based x86 machines, including T2-specific patches from the linux-t2 project and custom kernel configuration options for Apple hardware drivers.

📚 Learning: 2025-11-02T20:49:56.719Z

Learnt from: igorpecovnik
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8849
File: config/boards/radxa-e54c.csc:14-28
Timestamp: 2025-11-02T20:49:56.719Z
Learning: In Armbian board configuration files (config/boards/*.conf, *.csc, etc.), do not use kernel_config_set, kernel_config_set_m, kernel_config_set_y, or custom_kernel_config__* functions to modify kernel configuration. Kernel configuration is associated with LINUXFAMILY/BOARDFAMILY, not individual BOARD. Board-specific kernel modifications cause inconsistency in kernel packages published to the apt repository because boards within a family share the same kernel packages. Kernel configuration changes must be made in the appropriate kernel config file (e.g., config/kernel/linux-*-*.config) or in family configuration files (config/sources/families/*.conf, *.inc) instead.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-08-30T04:13:16.457Z

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 0
File: :0-0
Timestamp: 2025-08-30T04:13:16.457Z
Learning: Armbian kernel configuration files like linux-filogic-current.config are autogenerated overlays on top of arch defconfig. Comments added manually will be lost during future updates by maintainers, and explicit "CONFIG_OPTION is not set" statements aren't needed for mutually exclusive options since these are overlay configs that only specify changes from the base configuration.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-10-05T19:31:16.930Z

Learnt from: rpardini
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8718
File: config/boards/thinkpad-x13s.conf:185-185
Timestamp: 2025-10-05T19:31:16.930Z
Learning: In config/boards/thinkpad-x13s.conf, the x13s_obtain_firmware() function is reference-only utility code that never runs. It is kept for documentation purposes. Updates to firmware must be done at the armbian/firmware repository. TODO comments in this function are intentional reminders and should not be flagged.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-07-17T04:12:33.125Z

Learnt from: pyavitz
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8388
File: config/boards/kickpik2b.conf:1-14
Timestamp: 2025-07-17T04:12:33.125Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, board configuration files (*.conf) follow a project standard of not including shebang lines, even though they contain bash code and are sourced by the build system. This is an established Armbian convention that individual contributors are expected to follow, and changes to this standard would require broader project maintainer approval.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-07-21T04:12:02.439Z

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 0
File: :0-0
Timestamp: 2025-07-21T04:12:02.439Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, for recurring maintenance tasks like kernel version bumping, TODO comments should use generic version formats (e.g., "MAJOR.MINOR-rc1") rather than specific version numbers (e.g., "6.17-rc1") to avoid the need for frequent comment updates that would create unnecessary maintenance overhead.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-09-27T21:50:15.915Z

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8678
File: config/kernel/linux-sunxi64-current.config:94-94
Timestamp: 2025-09-27T21:50:15.915Z
Learning: When kernel config files are generated through Armbian's automated process (previous config → armbian-kernel.sh changes → make oldconfig → Armbian machinery processing), manual config file edits are not appropriate since they would be overwritten. Deprecated option handling should be implemented in the automated tooling instead.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-06-25T03:42:09.086Z

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8330
File: config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf:32-36
Timestamp: 2025-06-25T03:42:09.086Z
Learning: In Armbian build system configuration files like config/sources/families/*.conf, KERNELSOURCE is explicitly declared when using unofficial or 3rd party kernel repositories (like the "dev" branch using https://github.com/apritzel/linux), but can be omitted when using the standard mainline kernel (like the "edge" branch) since it will fall back to the default mainline source.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-10-14T05:08:11.785Z

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8754
File: config/boards/bestv-r3300-l.csc:14-16
Timestamp: 2025-10-14T05:08:11.785Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, BOOTBRANCH_BOARD is a valid framework variable used as a fallback when BOOTBRANCH is unset. The framework checks BOOTBRANCH_BOARD before applying the default bootloader branch value (see config/sources/common.conf). Board configuration files can use BOOTBRANCH_BOARD to specify the bootloader branch.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-05-05T12:35:07.143Z

Learnt from: Grippy98
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8152
File: lib/functions/configuration/interactive.sh:209-266
Timestamp: 2025-05-05T12:35:07.143Z
Learning: For the interactive kernel selection in Armbian, KERNEL_MAJOR_MINOR and KERNEL_DESCRIPTION are parsed from family.conf but deliberately not set as environment variables to avoid potential interference with other parts of the build system.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-06-25T03:40:52.109Z

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8330
File: config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf:32-36
Timestamp: 2025-06-25T03:40:52.109Z
Learning: In Armbian build system configuration files like config/sources/families/*.conf, when KERNELSOURCE is not explicitly declared in a case branch, the system falls back to a default KERNELSOURCE value, so missing KERNELSOURCE declarations are not critical issues.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-10-26T10:41:35.118Z

Learnt from: HackingGate
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8665
File: config/boards/photonicat2.csc:4-4
Timestamp: 2025-10-26T10:41:35.118Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, rk3576 boards consistently use BOARDFAMILY="rk35xx" for both vendor and edge kernel targets. The rk35xx family configuration sources rockchip64_common.inc, which provides edge and current kernel branch definitions, making these branches available even though they're not defined directly in rk35xx.conf.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-09-14T06:29:18.958Z

Learnt from: amazingfate
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8619
File: config/sources/families/rockchip.conf:64-70
Timestamp: 2025-09-14T06:29:18.958Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, vendor branch configurations in family files are designed to be shared across multiple SoCs within the same family that use the same vendor kernel tree. For example, rk35xx and rockchip-rk3588 families both use identical vendor branch settings (same KERNELSOURCE, KERNELBRANCH, and KERNELPATCHDIR), demonstrating that vendor branches are intentionally generic rather than SoC-specific.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-09-12T19:28:38.491Z

Learnt from: Grippy98
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8622
File: config/sources/families/k3.conf:66-66
Timestamp: 2025-09-12T19:28:38.491Z
Learning: In the Armbian k3 family build system (config/sources/families/k3.conf), builds do not fail when TIBOOT3_BOOTCONFIG is unset, even though tiboot3.bin is still listed in UBOOT_TARGET_MAP. The gating mechanism in pre_config_uboot_target__build_first_stage function works as intended to conditionally build/copy tiboot3.bin only when TIBOOT3_BOOTCONFIG is defined.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-04-30T16:16:47.150Z

Learnt from: The-going
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8147
File: config/sources/families/include/sunxi64_common.inc:38-39
Timestamp: 2025-04-30T16:16:47.150Z
Learning: The Armbian build system references Linux kernel versions in the form "tag:v6.14.4" in the KERNELBRANCH variable, even when point release tags might not be directly visible in the upstream repository in the same form.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-08-02T05:46:10.664Z

Learnt from: EvilOlaf
Repo: armbian/build PR: 0
File: :0-0
Timestamp: 2025-08-02T05:46:10.664Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, the modern recommended approach for kernel configuration is to use the kernel-config command via "./compile.sh BOARD=boardname BRANCH=branchname kernel-config" instead of the deprecated KERNEL_CONFIGURE=yes flag. This provides a two-step workflow: configure using menuconfig, then build, with better transparency and control over configuration changes.

Applied to files:

• config/boards/beagley-ai.conf
• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-09-22T22:08:54.273Z

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 0
File: :0-0
Timestamp: 2025-09-22T22:08:54.273Z
Learning: When extracting comments from Linux Kconfig files, def_bool and def_tristate entries use their parameter as a dependency/default condition, not as a feature description. Comments should be generated differently for these entry types to avoid misleading inline documentation.

Applied to files:

• config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf
• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-09-27T21:47:58.020Z

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8678
File: config/kernel/linux-bcm2711-edge.config:859-861
Timestamp: 2025-09-27T21:47:58.020Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, kernel configuration files in config/kernel/ are generated through an automated process: taking previous config → applying scripted changes from armbian-kernel.sh → running kernel's `make oldconfig` → processing by Armbian machinery back into config files. This automated process properly handles kernel configuration dependencies and reduces the likelihood of manual configuration errors.

Applied to files:

• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-09-27T21:49:55.796Z

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8678
File: config/kernel/linux-sm8250-current.config:78-80
Timestamp: 2025-09-27T21:49:55.796Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, kernel configuration files are generated through an automated process: taking previous config → applying scripted changes from armbian-kernel.sh → running kernel's `make oldconfig` → processing by Armbian machinery back into config files. This automated process properly handles kernel configuration dependencies and reduces the likelihood of manual configuration errors.

Applied to files:

• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-09-27T21:50:04.845Z

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8678
File: config/kernel/linux-sm8250-edge.config:80-82
Timestamp: 2025-09-27T21:50:04.845Z
Learning: In the Armbian build system, kernel configuration files are generated through this automated process: taking previous config → applying scripted changes from armbian-kernel.sh → running kernel's `make oldconfig` → processing by Armbian machinery back into config files. This automated process properly handles kernel configuration dependencies and reduces the likelihood of manual configuration errors.

Applied to files:

• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-09-10T01:24:50.833Z

Learnt from: tabrisnet
Repo: armbian/build PR: 0
File: :0-0
Timestamp: 2025-09-10T01:24:50.833Z
Learning: In Armbian's kernel configuration, both kernel_config_set_string CONFIG_LOCALVERSION '""' and kernel_config_set_string CONFIG_LOCALVERSION "" produce identical results in the final .config file (CONFIG_LOCALVERSION=""). The scripts/config tool handles quoting appropriately regardless of input format.

Applied to files:

• config/sources/common.conf

📚 Learning: 2025-10-26T12:56:29.185Z

Learnt from: rpardini
Repo: armbian/build PR: 8820
File: config/sources/families/include/meson64_common.inc:51-53
Timestamp: 2025-10-26T12:56:29.185Z
Learning: In the Armbian build framework, scripts/config correctly handles kernel configuration option names both with and without the CONFIG_ prefix, so opts_m+=("CONFIG_RTL8822CS") and opts_m+=("RTL8822CS") are both valid and will work correctly.

Applied to files:

• config/sources/common.conf

🔇 Additional comments (4)

config/sources/families/sun55iw3.conf (1)

23-23: Good documentation of the config sharing issue.

The TODO comment appropriately documents that this configuration is incorrectly sharing a single .config file between two LINUXFAMILYs (sunxi64 and sun55iw3). With the new validation logic in config/sources/common.conf, this will now trigger a warning at build time, making the issue more visible.

config/boards/beagley-ai.conf (1)

28-28: Good documentation of the config sharing issue.

The TODO comment appropriately documents that this configuration is shared with the k3 family. Note that LINUXFAMILY is set to "k3-beagle" (line 27) but LINUXCONFIG uses "linux-k3-${BRANCH}", which will now trigger a warning with the new validation logic in config/sources/common.conf.

config/sources/common.conf (2)

133-135: Good addition of readonly enforcement for auto-determined LINUXCONFIG.

Declaring LINUXCONFIG as readonly (-r) when it's auto-determined is a solid defensive practice that prevents accidental modifications downstream. This ensures the standardized pattern linux-${LINUXFAMILY}-${BRANCH} remains intact.

---

136-146: Well-structured validation logic for explicitly set LINUXCONFIG.

The validation logic correctly handles three cases:

1. UEFI exception (line 139-140): Allows linux-uefi-${LINUXFAMILY}-${BRANCH} pattern for UEFI families where the LINUXFAMILY may not include the "uefi-" prefix
2. Non-standard pattern (line 141-142): Warns when LINUXCONFIG doesn't match the expected pattern and suggests using a separate LINUXFAMILY
3. Standard pattern (line 143-144): Warns that LINUXCONFIG shouldn't be set explicitly since it's auto-determined

The warnings appropriately flag the issues documented in the TODO comments added to sun55iw3.conf and beagley-ai.conf.

---

_{Comment @coderabbitai help to get the list of available commands and usage tips.}

[glneo]

This should be fixed for board: beagley-ai.conf after #8913