-// priv->phyOnline = 1;
+/* priv->phyOnline = 1; */
The ISO has decided to make C++ comments legal in C.
This means you should adjust your gcc config, not hack
the nice new-style comments out of the kernel.
Those old-style comments are not good. There was a pre-2.0.32
kernel which didn't compile because of them. It would be nice
to move in the _other_ direction, converting old-style to
new-style as code changes.
The ISO standardizes C, not obsolete gcc config files.