How To Upgrade/Recompile a Kernel

How To Upgrade/Recompile a Kernel

See the Kernel HOWTO or the README files which come with the kernel
release on ftp.cs.helsinki.fi/pub/Software/Linux/Kernel/ and mirrors.
(See "Where Are the Linux FTP Archives?") You may already have a
version of the kernel source code installed on your system, but if it
is part of a standard distribution it is likely to be somewhat out of
date (this is not a problem if you only want a custom configured
kernel, but it probably is if you need to upgrade.)

With newer kernels you can (and should) make all of the following
targets. Don't forget that you can specify multiple targets with one
command.

$ make clean dep install modules modules_install

Also remember to update the module dependencies.

$ depmod -a

This command can be run automatically at boot time. On Debian/GNU
Linux systems, the command is part of the /etc/init.d/modutils script,
and can be linked appropriately in the /etc/rcx.d/ directories. For
more information on depmod, see the manual page.

Make sure you are using the most recent version of the modutils
utilities, as well as all other supporting packages. Refer to the file
Documentation/Changes in the kernel source tree for specifics, and be
sure to consult the README file in the modutils package.

Remember that to make the new kernel boot you must run lilo after
copying the kernel into your root partition. The Makefile in some
kernels have a special zlilo target for this; try:

$ make zlilo

On current systems, however, you can simply copy the zImage or bzImage
file (in arch/i386/boot/ to the /boot/ directory on the root file
system, or to a floppy using the dd command. Refer also to the
question, How do I get LILO to boot the kernel image?

Kernel version numbers with an odd minor version (ie, 1.1.x, 1.3.x)
are the testing releases; stable production kernels have even minor
versions (1.0.x, 1.2.x). If you want to try the testing kernels you
should probably subscribe to the linux-kernel mailing list. ("What
Mailing Lists Are There?")

The Web site http://www.kernelnotes.org/ has lots of information and
links to other sites that provide information about Linux kernel
updates.

Also refer to the questions, "The PCMCIA Card Doesn't Work after
Upgrading the Kernel." and "How To Get LILO to Boot the Kernel Image."


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