[ale] Building kernels w/ Redhat

[David A. De Graaf]

On Sun, Oct 12, 2003 at 04:59:49PM -0400, matty91 at bellsouth.net wrote:
> Does anyone have a set of instructions to build customized kernels on
> Redhat linux systems? Do folks use rpm to build a kernel from a SPEC file,
> or the old make menuconfig ... mechnism?
> 

I routinely have to rebuild kernels for my Red Hat systems because I
have a PCI-PCMCIA bridge adapter for a wireless card which requires
David Hinds' pcmcia-cs package instead of the kernel pcmcia package.

Here are the notes I wrote to myself, so I don't forget...


	Kernel Building


Be sure kernel-source is installed
	rpm -q kernel kernel-source
	    and see that it's there

For the benefit of the pcmcia-cs package configurator, make linux be a
symlink to the current source tree:
	cd /usr/src
	ln -s linux-2.4.18-10 linux 
	cd /usr/src/linux-2.4.18-10

Start cleanly
	make mrproper

Get a standard .config from configs for the HW
	cp configs/kernel-2.4.18-athlon.config  .config

Choose kernel features; run any of three pgms
	make config		- cmd line
	make menuconfig		- text menus
	make xconfig		- X
   Make whatever changes you like, including none, then exit & save
   To use the pcmcia package:
	turn PCMCIA off

Give the new kernel a suitable name.  Edit Makefile, eg,
for an i586-based, NoPCMCIA:
    EXTRAVERSION=-10nPfrSWN

Make the kernel

This can be done in rapid sequence in a single command line:
  ( time make dep clean bzImage modules modules_install install ) \
	2>&1 | tee mk1nPfrswn.out
  
This will create the new vmlinuz and initrd files and a new paragraph
in /boot/grub/grub.conf, but will not make it the default boot.
Verify that /boot contains both files and edit grub.conf to change the 
default.

If necessary, in /boot, make sure the initrd image was created.
If not, create a new initrd image:
	mkinitrd  initrd-2.4.18-10nPfrSWN.img  2.4.18-10nPfrSWN

Verify that /boot/grub/grub.conf uses all the ingredients:
	title Red Hat Linux (2.4.18-10nPfrSWN)
	        root (hd0,0)
	        kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.4.18-10nPfrSWN ro root=/dev/sda1
	        initrd /boot/initrd-2.4.18-10nPfrSWN.img

pcmcia

If the pcmcia package is needed to handle, eg, the PCI-PCMCIA bridge,
build it now.
Make sure to use the new kernel source tree and new modules.

FreeSWAN

In /usr/src, unpak and build...


REBOOT

Make a new emergency boot disk
	mkbootdisk 2.4.18-10nPfrSWN


-- 
	David A. De Graaf    DATIX, Inc.    Hendersonville, NC
	dad~@~datix~.~2y~.~net    (828) 696-8646;  fax (828) 694-1037