Linux Kernel Configuration

General Instructions

Use Linux kernel 2.4.23 or later.

Instructions on compiling the kernel can be found in the kernel compilation section of our RAID and LVM HOWTO.

We recommend using Debian's kernel-package tool. We recommend compiling everything into the kernel, rather than using loadable modules; it makes life simpler.

Keep kernel sources are in /usr/src; make /usr/src/linux a symlink to the source for the kernel you're running.

Once your server is up and running with RAID and LVM, if you want to compile a new kernel, be sure to follow the instructions for upgrading your kernel in RaidLvmHowto.

Things you won't need

• General setup
  • PCMCIA/CardBus support
• Memory Technology Device support
• Networking options
  • QoS and/or fair queueing
  • Network testing
• Telephony support
• SCSI support (unless you have SCSI drives)
• I2O device support
• Multimedia devices
• Sound

Things you will need

• Network device support
  • Ethernet (10 or 100Mbit)
    • the driver for your network card

See also RaidLvmHowto.

Incompatibility with Woody's procps Package

If after installing the kernel, you find that ps produces errors like this:

$ ps
{sk_chk_filter} {sk_chk_filter_R__ver_sk_chk_filter}
Warning: /boot/System.map-2.4.20 does not match kernel data.
{sk_chk_filter} {sk_chk_filter_R__ver_sk_chk_filter}
Warning: /boot/System.map does not match kernel data.
{sk_chk_filter} {sk_chk_filter_R__ver_sk_chk_filter}
Warning: /usr/src/linux/System.map does not match kernel data.
  PID TTY          TIME CMD
  740 pts/0    00:00:00 bash
 1606 pts/0    00:00:00 ps

You can fix this by compiling and installing propcs from source. Let it install itself in its default directories; this is a necessary exception to the policy in StandardSourceInstalls.
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