updating kernel image with GRUB loader--Solved!
 

Hi.
I am using MEPIS 6.5RC3 on my P3 i686 computer and I had a question about installing the kernel updates from the MEPIS repository. After I have successfully downloaded the new image from MEPIS (using synaptic), there is an interactive menu that instructs me to modify my initrd file such that it will read the new kernel on booting and the initrc must also be applied to lilo as well.

I hope somebody can understand this. Well, I decided to use GRUB as my bootloader in lieu of the initrc file and LILO. What does synaptic mean when it tells me to modify the lilo.conf file by changing the way initrc calls up the new, updates kernel image?

So far, I have only noticed a few configuration files for GRUB:
grub.floppy being one
and the others
initrd.img-2.6.15-1-586tsc
config-2.6.15-586tsc
vmlinuz-2.6.15-1-586tsc

I am unsure of which config file needs to be modified in order for the system to boot the updated kernel image.

I haven't touched the initrd because I thought that GRUB would do these things automatically. Is this wrong or which file needs to be changed in order for the new update to take effect? Thank you for your thoughts.

Rich

Grub has nothing to do with your kernel update. If you are using grub, you can ignore any instructions pertaining to lilo.

Your boot options will be in /boot/grub/menu.lst. This is the menu that grub displays for you at boot time. After the updated kernel, probably there is a new entry in the menu to specify the new kernel.

I don't know how Mepis does it; they might have handled changing links and making the new kernel your default kernel with the old kernel available as a backup boot option, or they might not have. You will learn a lot more by reading menu.lst.

altho I do not use mepis at the moment....I thought I would add some suggestions for you.

/boot/ is where you will find the kernel (vmlinuz) and or the initrd image files.

Then you can use a text editor with root powers to change
/boot/grub/menu.lst or it may be /etc/grub.conf if your new kernel etc are not in the new menus.

2) when you compile a new menu...my mdv make install command attempts to edit the grub file.

However I perversely always do a manual link to my preferred kernel in the /boot folder like this
su
cd /boot/
ln -s vmlinuz-versionx vmlinuz

and I do not use initrds as I compile my own kernel.

hope that helps. if not post your output of

ls -l /boot
and then the output of your menu.lst file

now I suggest you ignore the config file and link that
vmlinuz-2.6.15-1-586tsc to vmlinuz as above so you can have an easy to read grub file

ditto the initrd link it like
ln -s initrd.img-2.6.15-1-586tsc initrd.img

Thank you aus9 and jiml8. That really solved the problem. I'll change the title of the thread. Thank you so much for your help
Rich