Hello,

i've successfully compiled 2.4.24 (dl from www.kernel.org) from 2.4.16-32mdk (default come with mdk 9.0)
everything goes smooth and fine, but when i reboot. i got hit by a few errors:

these from: /var/log/boot.log

Jan 17 04:12:32 localhost mount: mount: fs type supermount not supported by kernel
Jan 17 04:12:31 localhost modprobe: modprobe: Can't locate module snd-ymfpciJan 17
Jan 17 22:31:04 localhost alsa: failed
Jan 17 22:32:18 localhost sound: Loading sound module (snd-ymfpci) failed
Jan 17 22:32:19 localhost netfs: Mounting other filesystems: failed
Jan 17 04:02:31 localhost devfsd: Starting devfsd daemon: failed
Jan 17 04:12:31 localhost sound: Loading sound module (snd-ymfpci) failed
Jan 17 04:12:32 localhost netfs: Mounting other filesystems: failed

before i compile my new kernel, i did:
cp /usr/src/linux-2.4.16-32mdk/.config /usr/src/linux

just to make sure my old setting was saved, i only added couple options. those are acpi, intel PIII enable, and framebuffering. that was it.

as for the supermount problem, while searching google, some suggest the system will run fine without it, we just need to manaully type the code in /etc/fstab and completely disable supermount.

=====================================================
but as for sound, right now its disappear. i tried:
insmod /lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o

(my soundcard is a YAMAHA Native DS1 WDM Driver, which was working fine before compile)

/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol ac97_probe_codec_Redf32a8e
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol register_sound_dsp_R7eaa0b62
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol unregister_sound_mixer_R7afc9d8a
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol register_sound_mixer_R7831ef44
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol unload_uart401_Recfdd9c9
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol ac97_release_codec_R0a40cae1
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol ac97_restore_state_R9488dccf
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol ac97_save_state_R8e399b5e
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol unregister_sound_dsp_Rcd083b10
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol ac97_alloc_codec_Ra481435a
/lib/modules/2.4.24custom_2.4.24_17jan04/kernel/drivers/sound/ymfpci.o: unresolved symbol probe_uart401_R63d781ea

i did, however, saved a backup kernel in my lilo, just in case if something goes wrong, i can always go back...however, bad thing kept happening:

1) 2.4.19 complains my filesystem needs to be sync (i dare not to touch anything yet)
2) after booted with old kernel, still has no sound
3) whenever i boot 2.4.19 it run into a safe mode (window language here).... ask me if i wanna fix this and that...

at this point, i just wanna get 2.4.24 works (that is fix sound problem and supermount problem)


thanks for ur time for reading this

Well, this may be the start of the problem. Just copying a .config file really isn't a safe way to do things as the new kernel source may have changes in the configuration that aren't addressed by the old .config file. The proper way to do this is to use the make oldconfig command. That will read the old .config file and then ask questions about the bits that the old .config file doesn't address.

That said, my experience is that even with make oldconfig, you need to spend some quality time in either make menuconfig or make xconfig to tweak the settings. And from the looks of your error messages I'd guess that you don't have all the options properly set.

When you run the various make commands, one of the things you can do is re-direct the errors to a text file like this

make 2> make_errors.txt

That way you have a record of any errors that get generated while your compiling and can check that for more info about what might be going wrong.

What this probably did was replace your old module directory too...check /lib/modules and see what versions are present; if you only have the one, both kernels could have problems now. Each different version kernel you compile sets up a directory with the necessary modules. Doing it your way probably isn't a good idea - I know from experience!
Does your old kernel boot alright? I think it's a good idea to start a new kernel from scratch with menuconfig. It took me about a million tries and now I know that menuconfig like that back of my hand!!
I also add a new directory for new kernels as not to have several of everything in one /boot directory. You just have to edit Makefile's INSTALL_PATH first.

thanks for ur advises, guys. in this situation, would it make sense for me to reinstall the whole system, and re-compile to 2.4.24?

or just keep re-compile 2.4.24? (dunno if re-compiling 2.4 will bring back my soundcard modules...)

another interesting thing i'd like to share with you guys, maybe you guys can see a better picture what has been happening:

i installed slack 9.1 on the exactly same box (hdb), and on slack, i experience the same problem. kernel (2.4.22) that come with slack 9.1, is unable to recongize my sound card, so far, i tried slack, mdk, redhat. and only mdk and redhat recongize my sound card. not slack.

and both mdk and redhat's kernel is under patch 22 (2.4.19 or something), it may sound dumb, but....newer patch has nothing to do with working modules ...right? :P

thanks for all ur expert opinion

Re-install the whole system? Nah. Not just for getting a kernel and a few drivers. If not having sound is driving you bonkers, go ahead, but personally, I don't see a reason to re-install the whole system. I'd also stick with either 2.4.24 or 2.6.1. Both of those kernels avoid the security issues that were found recently. My personal choice would be 2.6.1, but that is because my hardware is better supported by 2.6.1 than 2.4.24. As for bringing back your sound card, the quesiton is whether the soundcard is explicity supported by the kernel or needs separate drivers.


That's actually not that surprising. Mandrake and RH seem to focus on ease of installation while Slackware is expecting a higher degree of familiarity with your hardware and more post-installation work. That said, I've found Slackware to be MUCH more understandable than RH. As long as you know what hardware you've got and are willing to spend some time researching and reading, Slackware can be an unbeatable distro.

It depends on what you mean by this. Certainly any kernel version has the ability to create modules and patches are unlikely to affect the global ability to make and use modules. However, the patches are issued for a reason and those are frequently to fix bug with specific pieces of functionality.