proper kernel config - using an oldconfig
 

I know this topic has been covered many times..but that's my problem. I'm a bit confused as to the proper way to use an old kernel config for a new kernel. So what is the best way to go about this?

Currently I make menuconfig for my new kernel..then I "load an alternate config" and go on with my day. Am I correct in that I would be missing new options available to my newer kernel??

So what should I do?

thanks

After you load the old config, simply open up all the options. If you find another you want to use, include it or build as a module. Then you will have a new old config in the build tree. If I include new options, I rename .config to something that I hope to remember why I did it, and put in in my /home/michael.

I'm sorry but I am just as confused.

Can someone explain what happens when you make menuconfig for a new kernel, then load an alternate config? What happens when an "oldconfig" is loaded?

What is the "proper" way to use an old config for a new kernel?

bump..

can anyone help me understand the process?

When you load an alternate config file, all the options for that config are loaded and nothing else. So, if you built a previous kernel and you are satisfied with the results, saving the .config file for use later is a good idea.

When you obtain a newer kernel source, using the old config file is a good idea as well - assuming that nothing has changed in your hardware. Maybe the newer kernel source has support for something you did not have previously. There are always newer options in new kernel source releases. Reading the changelog will give you what is new. If it is something you need or want, after loading the old config, just browse through menuconfig until you get to the new options. Decide if you want them after reading the help section and include the option(s). Save your now new config and build.

If I load an old config for a newer version of the kernel, I will still have access to the newer features correct?

When I set up a system I always make a base kernel, in which I have gone through every option of the kernel one at a time. Later kernels might add features, but either way, I have organized my boot partition and I always save my configs :O)

What do these two commands do, and (more importantly) what would be the reason to use them?


Thanks for the clarification!

make mrproper returns the kernel source to its base state. It will delete the .config file - so if you have built from this source before, make sure you back up the config file. If it is a fresh tarball, make mrproper is the first thing to do.

make oldconfig uses the last .config file in the build tree. Again, a fresh tarball would probably have a .config file that may be totally unusable for your system.

thanks~

I just realized how easy gentoo makes my life sometimes..

to all of you who think gentoo is a waste of time..
you're wasting your time avoiding it.