LinuxQuestions.org
Help answer threads with 0 replies.
Go Back   LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - Newbie
User Name
Password
Linux - Newbie This Linux forum is for members that are new to Linux.
Just starting out and have a question? If it is not in the man pages or the how-to's this is the place!

Notices


Reply
  Search this Thread
Old 10-12-2003, 02:52 PM   #1
Aldebaran
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2003
Location: Norway
Distribution: Slackware 13.1
Posts: 72

Rep: Reputation: 15
kernel compiling question


a wonderful day this is, i just compiled my first kernel, thanks to this forum.

one question thou, because what i did was that i copied the config file from my previous kernel (2.4.20) to the new directory (2.4.21) and did a "make menuconfig", and just did some minor adjustments. I added irda support and changed the processor family. my original kernel came with the slackware 9.0 cd.

so did i miss out on some new upgrades in the kernel by doing this? is this a way to do it right?

i read on previous posts here that you could type "make oldconfig" and just be prompted the new kernel features. is what i just did the same?

brgds
 
Old 10-12-2003, 03:04 PM   #2
Mara
Moderator
 
Registered: Feb 2002
Location: Grenoble
Distribution: Debian
Posts: 9,696

Rep: Reputation: 232Reputation: 232Reputation: 232
Copying the config from one version to another isn'tthe best idea, but it usually (when there's no big difference in versions) work fine. I don't think there were important upgrades you should choose in the configuration.
 
Old 10-12-2003, 03:14 PM   #3
Aldebaran
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2003
Location: Norway
Distribution: Slackware 13.1
Posts: 72

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 15
thanks.

brgds
 
Old 10-12-2003, 03:54 PM   #4
Aldebaran
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2003
Location: Norway
Distribution: Slackware 13.1
Posts: 72

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 15
but if i use the "make menuconfig" will the new kernel features not appear there?
 
Old 10-12-2003, 11:00 PM   #5
chii-chan
Member
 
Registered: Sep 2003
Location: chikyuu (E103N6)
Distribution: Redhat 8.0 (2.4.25-custom), Fedora Core 1 (2.4.30-custom)
Posts: 357

Rep: Reputation: 30
why don't u try 'make xconfig'?
 
Old 10-13-2003, 05:11 AM   #6
Aldebaran
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2003
Location: Norway
Distribution: Slackware 13.1
Posts: 72

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 15
i`ve never tried that. is it easier?
 
Old 10-13-2003, 06:08 AM   #7
praveenk
Member
 
Registered: Oct 2003
Location: /india/tn/chennai/vadapalani/hcl/networking
Distribution: Debian GNU/Linux SID, FreeBSD
Posts: 59

Rep: Reputation: 15
xconfig is much user friendlier. You should have X and Tk installed.
 
Old 10-13-2003, 08:00 PM   #8
J.W.
LQ Veteran
 
Registered: Mar 2003
Location: Boise, ID
Distribution: Mint
Posts: 6,642

Rep: Reputation: 87
From my point of view, loading up your existing config file is a useful starting point. If you don't then you'll end up with whatever default selections are present on the latest kernel, which may or may not be important to you. In other words, if you already spent a lot of time customizing your kernel on a previous recompile (and thus changed various default options to better fit your own rig), then I think you would run the risk of losing all that work if you didn't re-use your old config. To illustrate, if by default a lot of modules would get included to support things that you just don't need and so you unchecked them during your previous recompile, then if you were to reuse that old config those settings would be preserved. On the other hand, if you just went with whatever new defaults were present, you may find yourself with all those unneeded modules being recompiled back into your kernel.

This probably wouldn't hurt anything, but then again, if you want the sleekest and tightest kernel possible, then I think you could save yourself a lot of time by preserving any previous config decisions you've made in the past. At least that's the way I understand it, if my understanding is incorrect, please steer me in the right direction. -- J.W.
 
Old 10-13-2003, 08:10 PM   #9
littis
LQ Newbie
 
Registered: Dec 2002
Location: usa
Distribution: LMDE
Posts: 22

Rep: Reputation: 16
If you copy your old config file the options you have selected from your previous kernel will be preserved. All the new options will be selected as its defaults, so only the new options need to be modified to fit your needs. It's the same as make oldconfig except it's graphical




Scott
 
Old 10-16-2003, 07:25 PM   #10
Aldebaran
Member
 
Registered: Aug 2003
Location: Norway
Distribution: Slackware 13.1
Posts: 72

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 15
thanks again. as this was my first try at compiling a kernel, it seemed as a way to go. i tried to start out from scratch, but so many things went wrong, guess after some more practice things will work out better...
 
  


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 Off
HTML code is Off



Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
question about kernel compiling? slackwbas Slackware 2 03-02-2005 07:55 AM
kernel compiling question Jeebizz Slackware 6 10-14-2004 06:02 PM
question for my first kernel compiling Boby Linux - Newbie 6 09-12-2004 12:06 PM
another kernel compiling question twinkers Slackware 3 10-04-2003 05:33 AM
Kernel Compiling question... 65_289 Linux - Software 1 03-23-2003 11:41 PM

LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - Newbie

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 04:30 AM.

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