Re: Stock vs. Debian kernel sources
John O'Hagan wrote:
>Hi all,
>
>I'm looking for a brief summary of the differences between Debian kernel
>sources (such as those provided by the linux-source-2.6* packages), and the
>stock source from kernel.org.
>
>The reason I ask is that I'm always keen to get the latest kernel,
>particularly for ACPI improvements (I run testing on a laptop). I compile my
>own from Debian sources, taking out features I don't use, so it's about a
>quarter the size of the standard Debian one. I have to build the ipw2100 and
>ieee80211 modules externally from source for networking anyway, and I use the
>realtime-lsm and latest alsa-modules for audio work. I use kernel-package and
>module-assistant to do it.
>
>What do I need to be aware of if I use stock sources?
>
>Thanks,
>
>John
>
>
I also have a laptop (Dell 600m) and find things work better if I build
my own kernel. I use the kernel.org "vanilla" source because I can then
upgrade to the newest kernel (if the need arises) without having to wait.
Configuring and building the kernel.org source takes some extra time to
get it right, but once you do, you just save your /usr/src/linux/.config
file, and you won't have to go to most of the trouble again. Plus, I
get some satisfaction knowing that my kernel has everything I need, and
nothing I don't.
Here are two pointers for kernel building newbies:
1. Be sure that the code for your IDE chipset (if you're using IDE) is
built in to the kernel, rather than being built as a module.
2. Be sure that the code for your / (root) filesystem (ext3, reiserfs,
etc.) is built into the kernel, rather than being built as a module.
Doing these things will allow you to skip using an initial ram disk
(initrd).
These are the two most common issues that foiled my first kernel
building attempts. :)
--
Mitch Wiedemann
Webmaster - Ithaca Free Software Association
http://ithacafreesoftware.org
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