Kernel Configuration - Part III

Kernel Configuration - Part III

OK. So you understand the high-level view of the kernel - fundamentally, it’s an interpreter that takes commands from input or processes and passes them on to the hardware, in a way that the hardware can understand. It does much more than that, but let’s leave it at the high level for now. You also know where to find the kernel source - /usr/src/linux, or, in RedHat, /usr/src/linux-x.x. You also know how to find the newest kernel version and how to download and unzip it.

Today, we’re going to start into the actual configuration of the kernel. But, we’re taking this series in rather small steps. We’re going to discuss the different methods of selecting which elements you want in or out of your kernel.

When you’ve entered the /usr/src/linux diretory to configure your kernal, you have three choices for adding or removing kernel pieces. make config, make menuconfig or make xconfig. make config is the plain vanilla interface for configuring your kernel. It’s a text-based system that walks you through one step at a time. If you’re really into text, this would be the way to go, though it’s so plain that it can be a bit confusing.

make menuconfig is also a text-based configuration option, with a much more intuitive interface. To use make menuconfig, arrow up and down using the arrow keys, select the configuration item you’d like to see with the enter key, and add or remove components with the space bar. After you’ve done a few kernel configurations, this might become your chosen method, as it can be very quick.

The final choice is make xconfig. This is, as it appears, a full-blown GUI method for configuring your kernel. You can use the mouse or key around the menu. Select an area for configuration by mouse-clicking or pressing enter. All the subwindows operate on the same premise. This is the easiest method, though I always find reaching between the mouse and the keyboard to take more time than is necessary. make xconfig is a good choice if you’re new to kernel configuration.

Tomorrow, we’ll dig into the configuration choices from any of these methods.