Shut down your computer and reboot it. Once again, depending on whether you’re using the older LiLO or the newer, Fedora-default GrUB boot loader, you’ll see different things. If you’re using LiLO, you’ll see this prompt: lilo: Type the name of the new kernel – this is the value you entered on the label= line …
Kernel 7: Boot the Kernel
Setting Up Your New Kernel To Boot: Automated Procedure Life is so much easier with the 2.6 kernel…. All you need to do (under most circumstances) is issue the command: make install If you haven’t had your daily dose of masochism, you can refer to the manual procedure below. Otherwise, however, go to the next …
Kernel 6: Build the Kernel
In 2.4 kernels, you would first check dependencies: make dep This would check dependencies for each source file and include dependent binaries in various makefiles. 2.6 and later kernels don’t need it. Command: make clean to prepare the source tree for your new build. Historical note: Once upon a time, the Linux kernel …
Kernel 5: Config Options
There are hundreds of configuration options. Basically, be aware of these ones: Power Management Options – If you’re using a pre-2001 computer, do NOT install ACPI or APM. Otherwise, be clear which options your chipset supports. IRDA Support – If you don’t need it, ditch it. ISDN Subsystem – If you’re not using ISDN, ditch …
Kernel 4: make Options
You should be in /usr/src/linux-2.6** (the new directory). Before you start, you need to clean your configuration directories. (We’ll simply assume you have run previous kernel compiles.) Type: make mrproper Also, open the Makefile in a text editor and find the config value EXTRAVERSION. This configuration option lets assign a version number to your own …
Kernel 3: Get the Source Code
From the Red Hat Linux Bible: Fedora Core 3 disks include older kernel source code From The Linux Kernel Archives: http://www.kernel.org/ From FTP sites: ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/ , ftp://tsx-11.mit.edu/ From any Fedora or other distro download libraries; look for CD ISOs with .src in their names From /usr/src/<kernel_version> on your existing computer, assuming you’re going to …
Kernel 2: Determine Your Hardware
What hardware do you need to support? You particularly want to know your processor, hard drives and controllers, your NIC, graphics and sound cards. Use the lspci utility: lspci # or, if necessary, /sbin/lspci which gives you a comprehensive listing. Save, print or write this down as necessary. Particularly note your: Ethernet contoller (NIC) Audio …
Building a Kernel
This example uses Fedora Core 4. Other distros will be similar, but not identical. Why Build Your Own Kernel? Optimizing for a particular processor Adding specific drivers: “disk-only” drivers for some IDE disks, and issues with IDE CD-ROMs Removing unnecessary drivers (most are external modules, but some are internally compiled) Networking: Gigabit ethernet vs 100 …
Using Kickstart
Review Chapter 2, Installing Red Hat Linux, pp. 41-46 Automating Installations When rolling out multiple Red Hat installations, you can use a system similar to using Difference Files in Windows. As in this type of multiple installation in Windows, you start by building one machine and using it as a template for the rest. The …
Recovering From A Crashed Hard Disk
Life gets rough when you start encountering filesystem failures. Are they caused by a software issue, or by failing hardware? Your first task is to determine exactly this. 1. Run the command: dmesg and look for messages about disk failure. If you find these, the question is answered. 2. You can run a file system …