LinuxQuestions.org
Visit Jeremy's Blog.
Go Back   LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - General
User Name
Password
Linux - General This Linux forum is for general Linux questions and discussion.
If it is Linux Related and doesn't seem to fit in any other forum then this is the place.

Notices


Reply
  Search this Thread
Old 09-04-2004, 08:18 PM   #301
Khang
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2004
Distribution: Debian, Linux 2.6
Posts: 88

Rep: Reputation: 15

Thanks. I'll try that tomorrow morning .

One other question though - are the warnings anything to worry about, or are they perfectly normal?
 
Old 09-04-2004, 09:34 PM   #302
DrOzz
Senior Member
 
Registered: May 2003
Location: Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
Distribution: slackware
Posts: 4,185

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 60
sorry which warnings are you referring to ?
and since i don't know which ones, by any means they should be alright, but
i guess it depends ... you'll get warnings a lot of times in your installation or things ...
 
Old 09-05-2004, 06:24 AM   #303
Khang
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2004
Distribution: Debian, Linux 2.6
Posts: 88

Rep: Reputation: 15
cd /usr/src
make

It runs through a whole load of files, and every now and again a warning is produced (not too many, but I'd say I probably saw 15 or so warnings in total). The process isn't actually halted however, until I get that error I posted a couple of posts back.

Some of the warnings were things I'm reasonably sure are nothing to be concerned about (unused variable 'err', stuff like that), but there were others I didn't really understand.

I'm in Windows right now I'm afraid, so I can't get the warnings right now, but you probably don't need to see them to know whether or not that command normally produces some. That's my hope anyway :P.
 
Old 09-06-2004, 11:39 AM   #304
DrOzz
Senior Member
 
Registered: May 2003
Location: Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
Distribution: slackware
Posts: 4,185

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 60
yah i don't think you should worry about it right now ....... lets see if you can compile the
kernel first, and then if anything acts out of the ordinary, then we can take a look at that

so just try to avoid compiling that module (that is if you don't need it) or fix the code up
with that link i gave you and see if it helped ..
 
Old 09-07-2004, 10:34 AM   #305
Khang
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2004
Distribution: Debian, Linux 2.6
Posts: 88

Rep: Reputation: 15
Do you know why make-kpkg isn't working for me? It seems to be having the same problem that make xconfig was.

Basically, it can't find some needed files. I was able to make make xconfig work by doing the following in /usr/src/linux/include

ln -s asm-i386 asm

Then the files are found and xconfig works fine.

But when I run make-kpkg, this link seems to be broken again... And make-kpkg quits with an error saying it can't find the files in there.

So... Any ideas why the link is being messed up? What am I doing wrong?
 
Old 09-07-2004, 05:17 PM   #306
DrOzz
Senior Member
 
Registered: May 2003
Location: Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
Distribution: slackware
Posts: 4,185

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 60
i would have no idea, cause i never tried to use that command before ...
whenever i compile a kernel i only use "make menuconfig" ..
so if you wanna post some errors your getting maybe i (or someone else) could help ya out ...
is 'make-kpkg' a debian specific command ?
 
Old 09-07-2004, 06:00 PM   #307
Khang
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2004
Distribution: Debian, Linux 2.6
Posts: 88

Rep: Reputation: 15
Yeah it is. I figured since it wasn't working I could try doing things the standard (non-Debian specific) way, but I don't know if that's a good idea... Maybe that would just cause more problems.

All the stuff I've read on this subject makes it sound like it's supposed to be dead simple. One command to build a kernel package, and a second to install it. Easy, or so it seems. I have no idea why my system isn't cooperating

I'm beginning to think I'd be better off starting off with a nice clean Debian installation. My current installation is an HDD-install of Knoppix (Debian based)... I guess that might be the problem.

I'll get some of the errors for you when I can (tomorrow hopefully)... Although I seem to remember they weren't very informative. But maybe I'm wrong .

Last edited by Khang; 09-07-2004 at 06:05 PM.
 
Old 09-09-2004, 10:42 AM   #308
Khang
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2004
Distribution: Debian, Linux 2.6
Posts: 88

Rep: Reputation: 15
Last night I tried it and it worked... Very mysterious. I did exactly the same as I'd been doing all along. I'm very puzzled about it... But at least it worked Now I just need to put some more energy into getting rid of unneeded modules and stuff

Thanks for the help in getting this working
 
Old 09-10-2004, 03:05 PM   #309
DrOzz
Senior Member
 
Registered: May 2003
Location: Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
Distribution: slackware
Posts: 4,185

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 60
glad to see your own your way
very bizarre, that it just worked all of a sudden ...
but don't complain hehe
 
Old 03-03-2005, 10:57 AM   #310
luqman
Member
 
Registered: Feb 2005
Posts: 43

Rep: Reputation: 15
i have successfully installed the new kernel-2.4.25 on my redhat 9.0 (shrike). It boots correctly and i am able to ssh in to my box.

Now the problem is that when i do

#uname -r
2.4.25

that ok.

but if i do

#rpm -qa | grep kernel
kernel-pcmcia-cs-3.1.31-13
kernel-2.4.20-8

It doesn't even mention my new kernel

i have done all this to get the kernel-source package installed but :

#rpm -qa kernel-source
package kernel-source not installed

the steps for the compilation and the installtio were:

======================================================================
======================================================================
Linux Kernel Compilation

Steps in compiling a kernel:

* Installing the sources.
* Configuring the kernel (choosing which features and Drivers to compile).
* Compiling the kernel (i.e. typing a single command, and watching...).
* Installing the compiled kernel.
* Updating the boot loader to recognize the new kernel.
* Booting...
* Making the new kernel become the default.

Kernel "Types"

* The Linux kernel comes in two variants - the "vanilla" kernel, and the distribution's kernel.
* The "vanilla" kernel is the kernel officially released by Linus, or by a member of the community appointed by Linus (e.g. kernels version 2.4.X are officially maintained and released by Marcelo Tosatti).
* The distribution's kernel is normally a "vanilla" kernel, with many patches on top of it that either did not get accepted to the "vanilla" kernel, or that the distribution's maker back-ported from newer kernels.
* Thus, normally the latest "vanilla" kernel has more features...
* ... while the distribution's kernel has gone through more orderly testing and could be more stable.

Getting The Source

* The sources of linux kernels are available via the Internet, or on the distribution's CDs.
* Of-course, there are many mirrors, and since we're talking about not-so-small files (around 30MB), we better know our mirrors.
* In Israel, one may try Iglu's mirror, at http://www.iglu.org.il/, or check Hamakor's Israeli mirrors list, at http://mirror.hamakor.org.il/.

The Source Of The Distribution's Kernel

* The source code of the distribution's kernel comes as another package on the installation CDs.
* On RedHat 9, for example, it is stored in a file named 'kernel-source-2.4.20-8.i386.rpm'.
* Installing it is done like installing any other RPM package:

rpm -Uvh /path/to/kernel-source-2.4.20-8.i386.rpm


* If The distribution's maker updated the kernel, the new kernel sources would be found among the updates.
* In RedHat 9, the current file is kernel-2.4.20-28.9.src.rpm, found in the SRPMs (Source-RPMs) directory.

The Source Of The Vanilla Kernel

* The "vanilla" kernel is normally kept at ftp.kernel.org, as a tar.gz (or tar.bz2 - better compressed) file.
* For example, the latest 2.4 kernel for now is found at ftp://ftp.kernel.org/pub/linux/kern...-2.4.24.tar.bz2
* Unpack these kernel sources as root:

cd /usr/src/
tar xjf /path/to/linux-2.4.24.tar.bz2


* You will get a new directory named 'linux-2.4.24', containing the sources.

"Readying" The Sources

* Before we do anything with the sources, we should make sure the source tree does not contain any old object files or configuration information...
* ... That got there accidentally.
* This is especially true for distribution kernels - they tend to contain various stale files.
* To do this, go into the source directory and run the command:

make mrproper

Configuring The Kernel

* Before we compile the kernel, we need to configure it.
* This includes telling it which drivers and features to compile ...
* ... and how to compile them (as modules or inside the kernel's main file).
* Several configuration programs are supported by the kernel, to be launched using one of the following commands:

make config
A simple text-mode program, that asks a zillion questions one after the other. Not recommended.
make menuconfig
A full-screen text-mode program. Use it if you don't have X windows running, or if you're connected from a remote location.
make xconfig
A Graphical program. Use this one when you can.

* There is yet another, which will be shown later...

Tips Regarding Configuring The Kernel

* Each item has a help section - read it.
* Each help text contains a suggestion of what to do if you're not sure. Use these suggestions, indeed.
* The first time around, take a tour around the different options, without changing them.
* The configuration process generates a file called ".config" in the top directory of the kernel sources. Keep a backup before making changes.
* Don't configure a kernel when you don't have enough free time - it's a long task (1-2 hours) the first time around.
* Do not despair - eventually, you'll configure kernels in 5 minutes

Compiling The Kernel

* Once configured, Compiling the kernel is easy.
* First, make sure we start afresh (takes a few seconds):

make clean

* Then, prepare the dependencies list (might take a minute):

make depend

Compiling The Kernel (Cont.)

* Then, compile the kernel's main part (might take 5-30 minutes):

make bzImage

After this step, we should have the following new file:

[root@simey linux]# ls -l arch/i386/boot/bzImage
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 1064017 Jan 16 01:53 arch/i386/boot/bzImage


* Then, compile the kernel modules (might take 5-30 minutes):

make modules

Compilation Errors

* A normal compilation process might result several warnings.
* But errors should not happen, unless you're compiling a non-stable kernel.
* Make sure you started from a fresh compilation (i.e. ran 'make clean').
* Make sure that you have read/write access to the source tree (i.e. if the sources belong to 'root', compile them as user 'root').

Installing The New Kernel

* Installing the kernel is split into two parts:
1. First, installing the kernel itself.
2. Then, installing the kernel modules.
* Before we install the kernel, we want to make sure we do not overrun our current kernel, or a previously existing kernel.
* So we will install the kernel itself manually.
* Avoiding overrunning the kernel modules is more difficult, since the location of the modules is hard-coded into the kernel (its version number) and the module loading tools.

Installing The Kernel's Main File

* Runnable kernels are expected to be in the /boot directory.
* Simple way to install the kernel (assuming it is version 2.4.20-8):

cp arch/i386/boot/bzImage /boot/vmlinuz-2.4.20-8

* Make sure the name is unique, and especially different then the current kernel...
* ... cause if we got a broken kernel, we will want to be able to switch back to the current kernel.

Installing The Kernel Modules

* The kernel modules will normally be placed in /lib/modules/<version>
* If the compiled kernel is of the same version as an existing kernel, we better first back-up the modules library:

cp -rp /lib/modules/2.4.20-8 /lib/modules/2.4.20-8.old

* This assumes that the older kernel can boot into a working system without working loadable modules...
* ... or that we can boot from a rescue CD/floppy to restore the modules.
* And now install the modules:

make modules_install

The "initrd" (Init Ram-Disk) File

* Sometimes, we need to pack modules that are needed before the kernel can access the disk partitions, into the 'initrd' file.
* To do this, we need to use the 'mkinitrd' command:

mkinitrd /boot/initrd-2.4.20-8.img 2.4.20-8

This creates an initrd file named '/boot/initrd-2.4.20-8.img', containing hard-disk and file-system related modules, for kernel version 2.4.20-8.
* The initrd command uses the modules installed under /lib/modules/, so it must be executed after make modules_install.

Updating The Boot Loader

* Once we installed the new kernel and its new modules, we need to tell the boot loader about it.
* Generally, we need to supply the following information:
o Kernel image file path (e.g. /boot/vmlinuz-2.4.20-8).
o Partition of the root directory - copy it from the spec of the current kernel.
o Kernel parameters - may be copied from the current kernel, if it has not changed drastically.
o Optional initrd file path.
o Label.

Instructions For "lilo"

* If your system uses "lilo" as the boot loader, the config file is normally at /etc/lilo.conf
* A normal entry for our example kernel would look like this:

image = /boot/vmlinuz-2.4.20-8
initrd=/boot/initrd-2.4.20-8.img
label = rh9-mykernel
append="hdc=ide-scsi"
root=/dev/hda1

* the 'root' entry may be omitted, if we have 'root=current' in the global section.
* If we do not need initrd, the initrd entry may be omitted.

Instructions For "lilo" (Cont.)

* Finally, run "lilo" to make the actual update of the boot loader:

[root@simey ~]# lilo
Added linux-2.4.18
Added rh9-mykernel
Added dos

MANY people forget this step!

Instructions For "grub"

* For systems with "grub" as their boot loader, the config file is normally at /boot/grub/grub.conf
* An entry for our example kernel would look like this:

title Red Hat Linux (2.4.20-8)
root (hd0,0)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.4.20-8 ro root=/dev/hda1 hdc=ide-scsi
initrd /boot/initrd-2.4.20-8.img

* The disks and partitions are numbered by bus numbers, rather then by letters: hd0,0 means /dev/hda1.
* If we have /boot on its own partitions, the path names should NOT contain /boot, and the "root" entry should point to the /boot partition.
* No need to run anything after updating the config file - grub will read it during system boot.

Booting The New Kernel

* Once everything is set, reboot your machine.
* At the boot loader's prompt/menu, chose the new kernel.
* Watch the boot messages - are they similar to what you are familiar with? Are there any errors or failures?
* If boot fails - reboot again with the previous (working) kernel.
* If boot succeeds, check that everything works (including networking, sound card, modem...).

Troubleshooting The Boot Process

* The boot process logs all its messages into /var/log/messages
* Possibly also in /var/log/dmesg
* Look in those files for error messages, and try to analyze them or look them up on the Internet.
* Sometimes you'll notice a problem resulting from kernel configuration - reconfigure, recompile from scratch (make clean...), re-install and try again.
* If you see that all modules fail to load with unresolved symbols, make sure you compiled and installed the modules.

Boot Problems - No Root Device

* Symptom: you get the message that no root device was found.
* Reboot to the previous kernel.
* Check the exact syntax of your lilo/grub entry for the new kernel. Are you sure you specified the root device entry properly?
* Make sure you compiled the drivers for your hard-disk and the partitions into the kernel image, or you have them in the initrd image.

Boot Problems - "lilo" says "LI"

* Symptom: you get the message "LI" (or a similar message) and then nothing, or an endless loop of garbage.
* Reboot to the previous kernel.
* Check the syntax of the lilo entry for the kernel - something there is terribly wrong.
* If you can't see what is wrong, delete the entry, and create it again. Often mistakes done in the first copy+paste do not occur in the second attempt.

When Installing A Newer Kernel...

* Check the file 'Documentation/Changes' in the source directory, for packages that might need upgrading before booting the new kernel.
* Don't configure the new kernel from scratch - copy your previous kernel's '.config' file to the new kernel's source directory, and run make oldconfig - you will only need to answer questions about new features.
* If you used a distribution's kernel previously, it normally has a config file matching the installed kernel.
* On RedHat, this file is usually under /boot/config-<version>

External Device Drivers

* Various types of hardware might have drivers available not as part of the kernel sources.
* Perhaps this is a new driver, that didn't yet get accepted into the normal kernel.
* Or the driver is maintained by the manufacturer of the hardware...
* ... and possibly delivered in binary-only mode?
* We need to be able to install such drivers on our own, then.

External Device Drivers Formats

* An external device driver might come with full sources, that we need to compile. This is the best scenario.
* An external device driver might come as a binary-only module. In this case we need to get a driver that was compiled specifically for the kernel version we are using.
* If we use a less-commonly-used distribution, we might not find a driver for our distribution's kernel...
* At which time we either dumb the hardware, or take the best "vanilla" kernel for which there is a binary driver available.
* The driver could come as a hybrid - half source, and half binary. the Source-part need to be compiled against our kernel, and it'll make sure the binary part works.

Notes On External Device Drivers Compilation

* You need to have your kernel source tree configured properly, matching your running kernel.
* You don't have to actually compile the kernel source tree in this case.
* Sometimes the driver has a script that will compile the driver for you, hiding the actual compilation process.
* If it thinks your kernel sources are under /lib/modules/2.4.20-8/build, this is ok - this should be a symbolic link pointing to the right location of the sources....
* ... But it does not hurt to make sure.
* Otherwise, read the driver's installation instructions, and follow them carefully.

Originally written by Valid HTML 4.01!guy keren
======================================================================
======================================================================


Kindest
Muhammad Muzzamil Luqman
 
Old 03-03-2005, 11:35 AM   #311
marin_linuxer
LQ Newbie
 
Registered: Aug 2003
Location: San Rafael, CA U.S.A.
Distribution: Arch Linux (archlinux.org)
Posts: 8

Rep: Reputation: 1
Hi,

The way you installed the kernel is called 'manual-style', you do not see it when you query the RPM database, via 'rpm -qa', because you did not actually install the kernel as an _RPM_. The RPM database _only_ contains information on programs that were installed via the RPM installer.

Hope that helps.
 
Old 03-04-2005, 02:58 AM   #312
luqman
Member
 
Registered: Feb 2005
Posts: 43

Rep: Reputation: 15
thankx marin_linuxer,
is there any way to install the kernel as an rpm?
 
Old 03-04-2005, 06:23 PM   #313
marin_linuxer
LQ Newbie
 
Registered: Aug 2003
Location: San Rafael, CA U.S.A.
Distribution: Arch Linux (archlinux.org)
Posts: 8

Rep: Reputation: 1
No, .... I usually get upset with some aspect of the RPM distro's before I get to the point of learning how to use their packagers(rpmbuild).

slackware.com and archlinux.com keep luring me back to simpler ways.

cheers.
 
Old 03-10-2005, 11:38 PM   #314
larryteoh
LQ Newbie
 
Registered: Feb 2005
Posts: 9

Rep: Reputation: 0
DrOzz,
I followed your steps to upgragde my RH 9.0 from 2.4.20 to 2.6.9 and most of the steps were quite succesful until when running the command below:-
# /sbin/mkinitrd /boot/initrd-2.6.9.img 2.6.9y
No module qla2300 found for kernel 2.6.9

What is that mean? Followed your instruction, i just removed the initrd:-
# rm -rf /boot/initrd.2.4.20.img

Since i don't u/s bout that remark, i skipped it and i am not sure my system is GRUB or LILO, so i decided to change both:-
# vi /etc/grub.conf
Remove the initrd from grub.conf by adding #
saved n quit
# /sbin/grub-install
install_device not specified.
Usage: grub-install [OPTION] install_device
Install GRUB on your drive.

-h, -hh print this message and exit

<...blablabla>



Seem that grub.conf was not tat succesful but i proceed to the lilo.conf,
# vi /etc/lilo.conf
Configured everytin accordingly and
removed the initrd from lilo.conf by adding #
# /sbin/lilo
And it ran fine...

After i reboot and select the new kernel, before finished loading i met some errors sometin like "Can't locate root=LABEL=/"

WHY?? i just copy and paste the rest of the settings in lilo besides editing the image, label and disable the initrd.

Later, I also tried to disable the "root=LABEL=/" by adding # in front. This time the system boot succesfully until LOGIN but the problem is, it can't detect my USB keyboard! MY keyboard not functioning... =(

Q1. How to overcome the mkinitrd??
Q2. WHY linux booting hanged?
Q3. I removed initrd and root, and my keyboard is not responding, what to do next???

Please HELP!
Thanks
 
Old 08-27-2005, 09:01 PM   #315
ToothlessRebel
Member
 
Registered: Jun 2004
Location: FL, USA
Distribution: Slackware 9.1
Posts: 190

Rep: Reputation: 30
Did I miss what to do to transfer a newly compiled kernel to another machine? I.E. Like if I was building a new machine and wanted to compile 2.6 to run on it. I can't compile it on the new amchien, so how do I compile it to be installed on new one?
 
  


Reply


Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
I'm interested in compiling a 2.6.x kernel, is this is a decent guide? Erik_the_Red Linux - Newbie 7 08-14-2005 06:03 AM
Kernel compiling guide for newbies... DaOne Slackware 127 04-17-2005 04:20 AM
Acid Guide to compiling Kernel 2.6.10 on Slack 10.1 acidjuice Slackware 54 03-11-2005 05:16 PM
Quick newbie guide to rebuild kernel in FC3 borgware Fedora 0 12-29-2004 01:38 PM
: Kernel compiling guide for newbies Question Anibal Slackware 6 08-01-2003 07:06 AM

LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - General

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:23 PM.

Main Menu
Advertisement
My LQ
Write for LQ
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute content, let us know.
Main Menu
Syndicate
RSS1  Latest Threads
RSS1  LQ News
Twitter: @linuxquestions
Open Source Consulting | Domain Registration