2 kernels on the same machine
Hi, Can I use two kernels (for example 2.4 and 2.2.17) on the same machine? I mean can I use kernel 2.2.17 as the normal kernel I boot with and then still compile kernels in the 2.4 version (not for this computer but for others) - or will with cause more problems than it would solve? :) Will there be any problem when I have two kernel sources in /usr/src? Will there be any conflicts with the modules of either version? Does anybody know any site where I can find information about this? TIA! Philipp
Re: 2 kernels on the same machine
To quote Philipp Bliedung [EMAIL PROTECTED], # Hi, # Can I use two kernels (for example 2.4 and 2.2.17) on the same machine? # I mean can I use kernel 2.2.17 as the normal kernel I boot with and # then still compile kernels in the 2.4 version (not for this computer but # for others) - or will with cause more problems than it would solve? :) # Will there be any problem when I have two kernel sources in /usr/src? # Will there be any conflicts with the modules of either version? # Does anybody know any site where I can find information about this? Yes and no. You can have more than one kernel stored on a machine at any one time, and with some special software, you can even have more than one kernel *running* at the same time. Watch how you compile your kernel, though. Don't use 'make install' or anything that'll install anything anywhere(except maybe 'make modules_install'). To make the kernel, just do 'make bzImage'. Not 'make install' or 'make lilo' or anything like it. Your kernel will be in /usr/src/linux-version, or wherever you unpacked the source/arch/i386/boot/bzImage(assuming you're on an Intel-compat machine. Now, I don't know if you can compile kernels for other machines without some special work. For instance, if your other machine(s) are different architectures(ie: PowerPC as opposed to Intel-compat), then you'll have to set up a cross-compiling environment. There are other concerns, though, even if your host architecture(where you build the kernel) and target architecture(where the kernel will be used) are the same. Try it to find out, though :) David Barclay Harris, Clan Barclay Aut agere, aut mori. (Either action, or death.)
Re: 2 kernels on the same machine
On Sun, Jan 21, 2001 at 06:06:05PM +0100, Philipp Bliedung wrote: Can I use two kernels (for example 2.4 and 2.2.17) on the same machine? Yes, you can. I mean can I use kernel 2.2.17 as the normal kernel I boot with and then still compile kernels in the 2.4 version (not for this computer but for others) - or will with cause more problems than it would solve? :) You should have a look at make-kpkg from the package kernel-package. With that you can create debian packages of custom kernels that you can easily transfer to other machines, even if they are different archi- tectures. Will there be any problem when I have two kernel sources in /usr/src? Will there be any conflicts with the modules of either version? If you use different kernel versions (like 2.2.17 vs 2.4.0) you should not have any problems. Does anybody know any site where I can find information about this? make-kpkg has been mentioned on this list a lot lately. Have a look at http://lists.debian.org search for the archives of debian-user and look at the kernel related questions. Diego Biurrun
Re: 2 kernels on the same machine
On Sun, Jan 21, 2001 at 06:06:05PM +0100, Philipp Bliedung wrote: Hi, Can I use two kernels (for example 2.4 and 2.2.17) on the same machine? I mean can I use kernel 2.2.17 as the normal kernel I boot with and then still compile kernels in the 2.4 version (not for this computer but for others) - or will with cause more problems than it would solve? :) Will there be any problem when I have two kernel sources in /usr/src? Will there be any conflicts with the modules of either version? Does anybody know any site where I can find information about this? Of course you can. The kernel is, after all, just code. Somebody else mentioned cross compiling, which is probably not what you care about. Sure, compiling a PPC kernel on intel is probably going to be a major pain. But compiling a kernel for your 386 on your dual P-III (or vice versa, if you're masochistic) is just fine, and the binaries should be completely indistinguishable if you're using the same compilers and stuff. One thing that will make this easier for you is the Debian tool 'make-kpkg' in the kernel-package package. It allows you to make a .deb file out of your kernel. So if you want to compile a new kernel for your 386 on your P-III, just use make-kpkg to create a .deb out of it, copy it over to the 386 and use dpkg to install it. The kernel sources should be completely self-contained in their own source tree, so there's no reason you can't have /usr/src/linux-2.2.18 and linux-2.4.0 and linux-2.5.0 when it comes out. noah -- ___ | Web: http://web.morgul.net/~frodo/ | PGP Public Key: http://web.morgul.net/~frodo/mail.html pgpdw5oEuvdio.pgp Description: PGP signature
