On 02/13/2014 03:39 AM, Heiko Carstens wrote: >>> > > After the removal of the 31 bit kernel support it is not possible to run >>> > > new Linux kernels on old 31 bit only machines. The only supported 31 >>> > > bit >>> > > only machines were the G6 and Multiprise 3000 introduced in 1999. >>> > > However >>> > > after nearly 15 years it seems reasonable to remove support for these >>> > > old >>> > > machines. >> > >> > And that's the real question. For other primary architectures (eg: I386 >> > versus X86_64) there is a planet full of existing hardware. AMD and >> > INTEL don't have the vice-grip control over those deployments that IBM >> > enjoys with S390/S390X. > Well, it's not that for the x86 architecture support for old hardware doesn't > get removed. E.g. support for 80386 CPUs has been removed a year ago as well > for the same reason (removing complexity from a developer's perspective): > > http://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=743aa456c1834f76982af44e8b71d1a0b2a82e21
As it happens, I got rid of my real I386 just a year or three ago. Did not need full I386 viability in the apps and the machine was just too slow as a build box with contemporary GCC. (The astute reader will note that says more about GCC than about I386, but we're getting off topic.) -- R; <>< ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For LINUX-390 subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO LINUX-390 or visit http://www.marist.edu/htbin/wlvindex?LINUX-390 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For more information on Linux on System z, visit http://wiki.linuxvm.org/
