retry:
        spin_lock(&all_mddevs_lock);
-       list_for_each_entry(mddev, &all_mddevs, all_mddevs)
-               if (mddev->unit == unit) {
-                       mddev_get(mddev);
+
+       if (unit) {
+               list_for_each_entry(mddev, &all_mddevs, all_mddevs)
+                       if (mddev->unit == unit) {
+                               mddev_get(mddev);
+                               spin_unlock(&all_mddevs_lock);
+                               kfree(new);
+                               return mddev;
+                       }
+
+               if (new) {
+                       list_add(&new->all_mddevs, &all_mddevs);
                        spin_unlock(&all_mddevs_lock);
-                       kfree(new);
-                       return mddev;
+                       new->hold_active = UNTIL_IOCTL;
+                       return new;
                }
-
-       if (new) {
+       } else if (new) {
+               /* find an unused unit number */
+               static int next_minor = 512;
+               int start = next_minor;
+               int is_free = 0;
+               int dev = 0;
+               while (!is_free) {
+                       dev = MKDEV(MD_MAJOR, next_minor);
+                       next_minor++;
+                       if (next_minor > MINORMASK)
+                               next_minor = 0;
+                       if (next_minor == start) {
+                               /* Oh dear, all in use. */
+                               spin_unlock(&all_mddevs_lock);
+                               kfree(new);
+                               return NULL;
+                       }
+                               
+                       is_free = 1;
+                       list_for_each_entry(mddev, &all_mddevs, all_mddevs)
+                               if (mddev->unit == dev) {
+                                       is_free = 0;
+                                       break;
+                               }
+               }
+               new->unit = dev;
+               new->md_minor = MINOR(dev);
+               new->hold_active = UNTIL_STOP;
                list_add(&new->all_mddevs, &all_mddevs);
-               mddev->hold_active = UNTIL_IOCTL;
                spin_unlock(&all_mddevs_lock);
                return new;
        }
 
 int mdp_major = 0;
 
-static struct kobject *md_probe(dev_t dev, int *part, void *data)
+static int md_alloc(dev_t dev, char *name)
 {
        static DEFINE_MUTEX(disks_mutex);
        mddev_t *mddev = mddev_find(dev);
        struct gendisk *disk;
-       int partitioned = (MAJOR(dev) != MD_MAJOR);
-       int shift = partitioned ? MdpMinorShift : 0;
-       int unit = MINOR(dev) >> shift;
+       int partitioned;
+       int shift;
+       int unit;
        int error;
 
        if (!mddev)
-               return NULL;
+               return -ENODEV;
+
+       partitioned = (MAJOR(mddev->unit) != MD_MAJOR);
+       shift = partitioned ? MdpMinorShift : 0;
+       unit = MINOR(mddev->unit) >> shift;
 
        /* wait for any previous instance if this device
         * to be completed removed (mddev_delayed_delete).
        if (mddev->gendisk) {
                mutex_unlock(&disks_mutex);
                mddev_put(mddev);
-               return NULL;
+               return -EEXIST;
+       }
+
+       if (name) {
+               /* Need to ensure that 'name' is not a duplicate.
+                */
+               mddev_t *mddev2;
+               spin_lock(&all_mddevs_lock);
+
+               list_for_each_entry(mddev2, &all_mddevs, all_mddevs)
+                       if (mddev2->gendisk &&
+                           strcmp(mddev2->gendisk->disk_name, name) == 0) {
+                               spin_unlock(&all_mddevs_lock);
+                               return -EEXIST;
+                       }
+               spin_unlock(&all_mddevs_lock);
        }
 
        mddev->queue = blk_alloc_queue(GFP_KERNEL);
        if (!mddev->queue) {
                mutex_unlock(&disks_mutex);
                mddev_put(mddev);
-               return NULL;
+               return -ENOMEM;
        }
        /* Can be unlocked because the queue is new: no concurrency */
        queue_flag_set_unlocked(QUEUE_FLAG_CLUSTER, mddev->queue);
                blk_cleanup_queue(mddev->queue);
                mddev->queue = NULL;
                mddev_put(mddev);
-               return NULL;
+               return -ENOMEM;
        }
-       disk->major = MAJOR(dev);
+       disk->major = MAJOR(mddev->unit);
        disk->first_minor = unit << shift;
-       if (partitioned)
+       if (name)
+               strcpy(disk->disk_name, name);
+       else if (partitioned)
                sprintf(disk->disk_name, "md_d%d", unit);
        else
                sprintf(disk->disk_name, "md%d", unit);
                mddev->sysfs_state = sysfs_get_dirent(mddev->kobj.sd, "array_state");
        }
        mddev_put(mddev);
+       return 0;
+}
+
+static struct kobject *md_probe(dev_t dev, int *part, void *data)
+{
+       md_alloc(dev, NULL);
        return NULL;
 }
 
+static int add_named_array(const char *val, struct kernel_param *kp)
+{
+       /* val must be "md_*" where * is not all digits.
+        * We allocate an array with a large free minor number, and
+        * set the name to val.  val must not already be an active name.
+        */
+       int len = strlen(val);
+       char buf[DISK_NAME_LEN];
+
+       while (len && val[len-1] == '\n')
+               len--;
+       if (len >= DISK_NAME_LEN)
+               return -E2BIG;
+       strlcpy(buf, val, len+1);
+       if (strncmp(buf, "md_", 3) != 0)
+               return -EINVAL;
+       return md_alloc(0, buf);
+}
+
 static void md_safemode_timeout(unsigned long data)
 {
        mddev_t *mddev = (mddev_t *) data;
                mddev->barriers_work = 0;
                mddev->safemode = 0;
                kobject_uevent(&disk_to_dev(mddev->gendisk)->kobj, KOBJ_CHANGE);
+               if (mddev->hold_active == UNTIL_STOP)
+                       mddev->hold_active = 0;
 
        } else if (mddev->pers)
                printk(KERN_INFO "md: %s switched to read-only mode.\n",
 module_param_call(start_ro, set_ro, get_ro, NULL, S_IRUSR|S_IWUSR);
 module_param(start_dirty_degraded, int, S_IRUGO|S_IWUSR);
 
+module_param_call(new_array, add_named_array, NULL, NULL, S_IWUSR);
 
 EXPORT_SYMBOL(register_md_personality);
 EXPORT_SYMBOL(unregister_md_personality);