hello again

according to uname i am running the 2.4.21-231-athlon kernel, which i would really like to upgrade to 2.6.7 to use wolf: ET and some other cool progs. only problem is the last time i tried this i screwed my entire OS up. how should i go about updating it? also

whats the easiest way to upgrade and do i hav to do it in increments or all at once?

should i get a suse kernel or the raw 2.6.7 one?

are vmlinuz and the modules in /boot all that is actually used after the source is compiled?

what is the best way to hav my old kernel as a back up so i can quicky restore my old system if (*WHEN!!*) it all goes horribly wrong?

thanks a lot

"what is the best way to hav my old kernel as a back up so i can quicky restore my old system if (*WHEN!!*) it all goes horribly wrong?"

"whats the easiest way to upgrade and do i hav to do it in increments or all at once?"

When you update the kernel you add the new kernel as a second kernel and dual boot until the new kernel is stable.

"should i get a suse kernel or the raw 2.6.7 one?"

Are you going to install a binary kernel package or compile a new kernel from source. If you are installing a binary kernel package then get one from SuSE that was compiled for your SuSE release. If you are compiling your own kernel then download the latest source from:

www.kernel.org

"are vmlinuz and the modules in /boot all that is actually used after the source is compiled?"

No. Every kernel consists of 2 parts. The bootable kernel is in /boot and is not necessarily named vmlinuz. The loadable kernel modules are in /lib/modules/xxxx where xxxx is the name of the kernel.

___________________________________
Be prepared. Create a LifeBoat CD.
http://users.rcn.com/srstites/LifeBo...home.page.html

Steve Stites

ok i think i understand. what do u think is the best way to update? the last time i used the stages outlined in the README and INSTALL files to compile the 2.6.7 kernel from source, but it never booted and i had to reinstall everything. should i hav done something like update my kernel a few stages first or does that only make a difference if im UPDATING my old one as opposed to compiling an entirely new one?

and if the modules are in /lib/modules, should i make a copy of the current /lib/modules directory and /boot directory? if i save these will i be able to recover the system if the update/new kernel compilation goes pear-shaped?

thanks again

"ok i think i understand. what do u think is the best way to update? the last time i used the stages outlined in the README and INSTALL files to compile the 2.6.7 kernel from source, but it never booted and i had to reinstall everything. should i hav done something like update my kernel a few stages first or does that only make a difference if im UPDATING my old one as opposed to compiling an entirely new one?"

Don't update your old kernel. Install the new kernel as a second kernel. Then set up your bootloader to dual boot the two kernels.

"and if the modules are in /lib/modules, should i make a copy of the current /lib/modules directory and /boot directory? if i save these will i be able to recover the system if the update/new kernel compilation goes pear-shaped?"

Yes. The only problem you could have is if you name the new kernel the same as the old kernel and the new kernel overwrites the old. Then you could restore the old kernel by using a rescue CD.

___________________________________
Be prepared. Create a LifeBoat CD.
http://users.rcn.com/srstites/LifeBo...home.page.html

Steve Stites

how do i set grub do dual boot the kernels? i will probably cp /boot to /boot.old and /lib/modules to /lib/modules.old, so i will hav a backup plan. then ill compile the 2.6.7 kernel - but is it safe to use the raw kernel file from kernel.org, without installing any lower releases first, onto my Suse system? and what file will i hav to edit to make sure grub recognizes the two kernels? is it menu.lst? will having it dual boot mean it will attempt both or ask me to select one?

sorry bout all the qs but i am very grateful for help as i am paranoid about screwing this up again.

"but is it safe to use the raw kernel file from kernel.org, without installing any lower releases first"
Yes.

"what file will i hav to edit to make sure grub recognizes the two kernels? is it menu.lst?"
Yes.

"will having it dual boot mean it will attempt both or ask me to select one?"
It will ask you to select one.

___________________________________
Be prepared. Create a LifeBoat CD.
http://users.rcn.com/srstites/LifeBo...home.page.html

Steve Stites

very concise responses! one thing u didnt mention tho is how i should edit the menu.lst file

here it is:

# Modified by YaST2. Last modification on Fri Jul 2 22:31:04 2004


color white/blue black/light-gray
default 0
timeout 8
gfxmenu (hd0,1)/boot/message

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: linux###
title Linux
kernel (hd0,1)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda2 vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop showopts
initrd (hd0,1)/boot/initrd

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: floppy###
title Floppy
root (fd0)
chainloader +1

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: failsafe###
title Failsafe
kernel (hd0,1)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda2 showopts ide=nodma apm=off acpi=off vga=normal nosmp noapic maxcpus=0 3
initrd (hd0,1)/boot/initrd

what lines should i add? extra second kernel lines? this would be a great way to do it as it would give me a really solid backup plan - so i am really grateful 4 ur help!