Do I need to upgrade the kernel

jared78 · 12-28-2005, 02:58 PM

Hello all Linux Dudes,
I use RH 9.0 on my P4 and I m pretty much happy with it.I have already installed all the apps that I need thanks to LQ.
I use it for the usual stuff browsing,IM etc.
Do I realli need to upgrade the kernel from my current 2.4.x to something latest?
Why is it necessary?
Any inputs would be great...

thanx,
Jared

acid_kewpie · 12-28-2005, 03:58 PM

nothigns necessary if you don't want to do other things.... if you're happy, don't touch it. i guess you're technically missing out on erm.. udev... direct IDE cd burning erm... better ALSA frameworks. not a vast amount really. upgrtade when you know it would help you achieve something.

perfect_circle · 12-28-2005, 04:43 PM

I used to use 2.4 kernels for a long time. I upgraded to 2.6 a few months ago, when I bought a dvd writer and I couldn't burn dvd's with 2.4

IMHO, if you don't need to upgrate, then don't do it.

pljvaldez · 12-28-2005, 06:31 PM

The only other reasons to upgrade the kernel are 1)if you're interested in learning how to do it or b) if you have an old Celeron 400 like me. It's amazing how much faster my Debian Sarge machine runs with all the extraneous stuff cut out of the kernel...

bosewicht · 12-28-2005, 06:39 PM

there are a lot of new features in the 2.6.X kernel. Take a look at the release notes, but there are a lot of companies/individuals still using the 2.4.x kernel. So, like everyone said, it's a matter of preferences. You can also google for a 2.6 vs 2.4 comparison. http://www.2cpu.com/articles/98_1.html

btmiller · 12-29-2005, 01:14 AM

Instead of just upgrading the kernel, you may want to consider upgrading your entire distribution. Red Hat 9 is getting pretty long in the tooth now. I think any of the Fedora Core releases will update a RH9 system, but back up your data first just to be on the safe side.

amosf · 12-29-2005, 03:58 AM

The 2.4 and 2.2 (and 2.0) kernels are still maintained an updated, so you can upgrade to the latest 2.4 and be secure. Moving to 2.6 from 2.4 is a harder thing to do and you'd be better upgrading to a more current distro (RH9 is quite old). I usually run the latest kernel I can run that is compatible with what I need. That was 2.6.13.1 until recently, but then I went to 2.6.14.4 (and then 2.6.14.5) recently one the new win4lin patch came out. It only takes a few minutes on the A64 to patch and compile a new kernel, so I often do it just for fun... When the CD/DVD burning issue was arround in the 2.6.8.1 and 2.6.9 days, I was compiling RC and BK releases every couple of days and doing my own hacks to get it where I could burn a CD/DVD, but I settled down since then