Re: rebuild kernel and modules
Ron Rademaker <ron@wep.tudelft.nl> writes:
> How are you guys compiling your kernel???
> Why don't you 'just' config the thing and do:
> make dep && make clean && make bzImage && make modules && make
> modules_install
>
> After that, simply edit your /etc/lilo.conf, run lilo and add your modules
> using modprobe or insmod (you could also use modconf) and done.....
>
> No package needed (except of course for gcc and all that....)
The main reason NOT to do that is that it confuses Debian package
management. For example, suppose you install kernel-image-2.2.13-2
from your favorite Debian mirror, but then decide you want to
customize it so you use your method. You install it, as you stated,
and you're off to the races. Now suppose the kernel maintainer finds a
bug and decides to install a patch and releases
kernel-image-2.2.13-3. 'apt-get upgrade' dutifully notices this and
upgrades your kernel-image. BAM! Your custom kernel and all the
changes are wiped in one fell swoop. Of course you could manually put
the kernel-image-2.2.13-2 on hold, but that's not really what's
installed on your system, since you bypassed Debian's package
management.
This is one of the reasons for the kernel-package package. With it you
assign your own version number for the kernel image and it can live
quite nicely with any of the stock kernel-image files you wish to
keep and won't be overwritten when the stock kernel-image gets
upgraded.
In addition, make-kpkg automates many, if not all, of the steps you
give above. I simply do a 'make menuconfig', 'make-kpkg ...',
'dpkg -i kernel-image-whatever' and it prompts me for the necessary
changes to /etc/lilo.conf and asks me if I want to run lilo, etc.
make-kpkg is a nice piece of software, and IMHO, well worth looking
into if you're using Debian and like keeping up your own kernels.
Gary
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