I really want the latest kernel on my debian-based laptop. I'm using the woody distribution, and the older kernel does not support my USB NIC or my wireless network card. I've heard of people using 2.6.? on their debian system, with the kernel coming with the distro. Which distribution is this?

Thanks all!

How To Upgrade to the 2.6 Kernel. This should get you started.

I upgraded to 2.6.6 with synaptic painless and easy.

have you heard about knoppix (debian) ?

Well here are some things it comes with...

Linux Kernel 2.4.26 and, as a boot option, Kernel 2.6.5, both ACPI-enabled.
KDE version 3.2.2.
GIMP version 2.0.
New IRDA/Bluetooth-Setup.
GPRS internet-connection ready.
enhanced hardware autodetection and driver updates, wifi for instance.
also boots from (some) USB- and Firewire CD-Roms now.
internet-based software "live-installer", installs add-on packages in ramdisk or on persistent home directory.
free ticket to LinuxTag 2004, Europe's leading Linux and Free Software event, included.

the public download edition of the new version 3.4 of KNOPPIX is now available on the http://www.knopper.net/knoppix-mirrors/?lang=enKnoppix-Mirrors.

For more details go:

http://www.knoppix.org
http://www.knoppix.net

you can also use the beta 4 installer from debian. boot it up and at the prompt type linux26 and it will install 2.6.3. this is the distro i use and it simply works and works very well. i have had no issues at all with it. highly recommended

however you want to just upgrade your kernel, then some of the above suggestions will work as well

Right on, that beta 4 thing is exactly what I'm looking for. I tried to compile a new kernel before and failed miserably. I got everything configured the way my computer and I needed it, and even installed it correctly, but when it booted, the /dev filesystem was missing almost all of it's devices, including hda1, so debian refused to boot. If anyone would like to help me fix that problem, that would be rockin, but for now, I'm gonna try the beta 4 installer Then again, the kernel I compiled would have been perfect for my system if it worked ... yeah ... what do you think happed as far as the /dev filesystem went?

Well, got the 2.6 kernel installed BUT ... it installed the K7-SMP version. I have a P233 MMX ... how would I be able to fix that??

to be honest i have no idea about either of your issues. did you use the beta installer? i know you can use apt-get to get the kernel and kernel headers you need, but i'm still a newb when it comes to compiling the kernel or upgrading it. i need to get around to doing that sometime....

You need to set the correct architecture in menuconfig, or use a precompiled debian package (`apt-cache search kernel-image | grep 686`).

If you are using GRUB as your bootloader, you can try to install some of the precompiled debian kernel packages (try apt-cache search kernel-image) for a list.

You may install the precompiled debian kernel-images regardless of your bootloader. The bootloader is not a factor with the kernel. All it must do is be config'd properly. When OP says they installed the k7 version, what do they mean? a Debian image? Or you selected the incorrect stuff in | PROCESSOR TYPE AND FEATURES |.

Point is that the bootloader doesn't conflict/affect the kernel. All it does is load it; whether LILO, Grub, or yaboot.

I am installing the debian kernel packages ... Yeah. I lent my laptop to my friend so he can steal his neighbor's bandwidth via 802.11b for the night (ssh!) ... but as far as I remember, the bootloader said "kernel-2.6.3-k7-smp" or something similar on the first debian boot after rebboting from the installation. I didn't tell the installer to do anything with the kernel - it kinda did it's own thing like usual (except this time it goofed). When I try to boot from it, it shows a few lines of blah blah blah (no errors or anything), hangs for about two seconds, then reboots.

Dang, I still can't figure it out ... ?

If your installing a new system anyway, install it with the 2.4.x kernel and attempt an upgrade to 2.6.x with a precompiled kernel. This is the only way to go if compiling yourself doesn't work. I recently switched to precompiled kernels because they're easier to handle and less prone to user mistakes. Unless you have some specific need for a custum kernel I advice against it. Just about everything can be inserted as a module in precompiled kernels, so it will work if you know how to use it.

Most standard installs have the i386 optimised kernel, so I find it hard to believe you got the k7 optimised kernel. Please be as specific as possible about what you do and what you get as a result. It's kinda hard to follow what you're doing. Don't take this the wrong way, we're here to help

Right now I'm trying SuSE and so far, it looks GREAT! I'm installing it through the net with my USB NIC that I couldn't get working in debian. And this is just the install. I still totally dig debian - it's an excellent distro, especially for the older machines, but at this point, I'm starting to drift away from it. I've seen too much trouble already.

I would install with the 2.4 kernel, and that would have been the next path until I got attracted to SuSE. The main attration that I had with the 2.6.3 kernel is XFS ... oh wow would that rock sox over ext2! It was like the sweetest thing evarrrr. Plus, USB MIDI is integrated and I got a keyboard that does that. But ... I'm on to SuSE now ...