Re: [PATCH v3 2/7] docs: submitting-patches: say which commit a Fixes tag names

[Bradley Morgan]

On 16 October 2026 16:28:22 BST, Sasha Levin <sashal@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>The description of the Fixes: tag does not say which commit to name when
>a later commit made an older bug reachable, or when more than one commit
>introduced the same bug, and both questions come up regularly. The
>commit that blame points at is also often one that only moved the code.
>
>Say that the tag names the commit that introduced the bug, that the
>commit that exposed it may get a second tag, and that each commit that
>introduced the bug gets its own tag. Say that the tags tell the stable
>team which trees need the fix, and that trees without any of the tagged
>commits do not.

Hi, this would make finding fixes tags better.

Reviewed-by: Bradley Morgan <brads@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>


>
>Link: https://lore.kernel.org/r/c3ce794d-1ac2-4ef3-9e5c-1e171bd77a89@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Link: https://lore.kernel.org/r/20261013003535-mutt-send-email-mst@xxxxxxxxxx
>Link: https://lore.kernel.org/r/atCI4q2HvqVXOag1@stanley.mountain
>Assisted-by: LLM
>Signed-off-by: Sasha Levin <sashal@xxxxxxxxxx>
>---
> Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst | 9 +++++++++
> 1 file changed, 9 insertions(+)
>
>diff --git a/Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst b/Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
>index 7ae79452e1b46..7c4e3c8272d2a 100644
>--- a/Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
>+++ b/Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
>@@ -608,6 +608,15 @@ which stable kernel versions should receive your fix. This is the preferred
> method for indicating a bug fixed by the patch. See
> :ref:`describe_changes`
> for more details.
> 
>+Name the commit that introduced the bug. ``git blame`` and ``git bisect`` can
>+point at a commit that only moved the code, or that made an older bug
>+reachable. If a later commit made an older bug reachable, name the commit that
>+introduced the bug; a second Fixes: tag for the later commit is fine. If the
>+same bug was introduced separately by more than one commit, add a Fixes: tag
>+for each, but do not add tags for commits that are only suspected. The Fixes:
>+tags tell the stable team which trees need the fix: those that contain one of
>+the tagged commits. Trees that contain none of them do not need it.
>+
> Note: Attaching a Fixes: tag does not subvert the stable kernel rules
> process nor the requirement to Cc: stable@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx on all stable
> patch candidates. For more information, please read
>

--- Thanks!
"I'm not a very positive person" - Linus torvalds