I'm definitely a newbie just trying to feel my way along with a Slackware install. I thought I remembered hearing awhile back that one of the advantages of Linux over Windows was the ability to do updates without restarting therefore minimizing downtime for servers and such. Now I'm not using my computer for a server or anything so I really don't care but I wanted to know if that was true or not? I used the 2.6 kernel on the initial install so I had to go into /extra on the 2nd CD after I installed and install the kernel module 2.6.17.13 to get support for my mouse. It didn't work till I rebooted though. Was the claim I heard related to minor updates and this was a major one or did I not understand the claim or do I just not have the knowledge necessary to make it happen without rebooting? Thanks

Usually you don't need to reboot the whole Linux system after updates unless you are installing a new kernel (which is called from the bootloader). With many changes/updates, you can just restart a service or sometimes do nothing at all.

In your case, you made a change relating to hardware. Hardware detection is something that happens when a system is booting up and usually something like a keyboard or mouse will require a reboot to get detected. I know Red Hat has an app called Kudzu for hardware detection, but I'm not 100% sure how it works while the system is already running and I'm not sure if Slackware has anything like that.

I hope that kind of answers your question....

Hi, I am also new to Linux and use Slackware also. As far as I know, the claim is true to a certain extent. If you download a program, MPlayer for example, you can compile and install it, and start using it instantly. However if you mess with major stuff like the kernel, then a reboot is necessary. I recently installed some development packages, after which I had to reboot. Most of the time though, programs are ready to run straight after the install. Or at least thats how it is for me.

John

The reboot is hardly ever needed, unless the kernel itself is recompiled. In OP's case loading mouse module into running kernel would have made it work instantly. In most cases even stopping running services is not necessary when making configuration changes, sending HUP signal to relevant process will suffice.

Exactly what I wanted to know. Thanks