An attempt to recompile a non-Red Hat supplied kernel ends up with

gcc tools/objstrip.c -o tools/objstrip
tools/objstrip.c: In function `main':
tools/objstrip.c:153: invalid type argument of `->'
make[1]: *** [tools/objstrip] Error 1
make[1]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/linux-2.2.18px/arch/alpha/boot'
make: *** [boot] Error 2

In fact creating this executable is mostly irrelevant but "general
users" will be quite spooked.

A reason for this failure is an apparently gratituous change in
/usr/include/linux/asm/elf.h which looks like this:

--- include/asm/elf.h	Wed Jun 24 15:30:11 1998
+++ /usr/include/asm/elf.h	Tue Jul 11 16:43:45 2000
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
 /*
  * This is used to ensure we don't load something for the wrong
architecture.
  */
-#define elf_check_arch(x) ((x) == EM_ALPHA)
+#define elf_check_arch(x) ((x)->e_machine == EM_ALPHA)
 
 /*
  * These are used to set parameters in the core dumps.
@@ -127,8 +127,7 @@
 
 #ifdef __KERNEL__
 #define SET_PERSONALITY(EX, IBCS2)				\
-	current->personality =					\
-	  ((EX).e_flags & EF_ALPHA_32BIT			\
+	set_personality((EX).e_flags & EF_ALPHA_32BIT		\
 	   ? PER_LINUX_32BIT : (IBCS2) ? PER_SVR4 : PER_LINUX)
 #endif
 
and more precisely and more precisely a change to 'elf_check_arch' macro.

True, arch/alpha/boot/Makefile from Red Hat sources is doctored to
run
   gcc -I../../../include tools/objstrip.c -o tools/objstrip
and this will pick up a correct definition, but in standard kernel
sources one ends up running
   gcc tools/objstrip.c -o tools/objstrip
which pick up a wrong macro and fails like above.

It is quite likely that other tools for Alpha which need that header
will end up with similar troubles.  Why this modification?

  Michal
  michal@harddata.com