Linux Kernel in a Nutshell: A Desktop Quick Reference

by Greg Kroah-Hartman

Overview

Written by a leading developer and maintainer of the Linux kernel, Linux Kernel in a Nutshell is a comprehensive overview of kernel configuration and building, a critical task for Linux users and administrators.

No distribution can provide a Linux kernel that meets all users' needs. Computers big and small have special requirements that require reconfiguring and rebuilding the kernel. Whether you are trying to get sound, wireless support, and power management working on a laptop or incorporating enterprise features such as logical volume management on a large server, you can benefit from the insights in this book.

Linux Kernel in a Nutshell covers the entire range of kernel tasks, starting with downloading the source and making sure that the kernel is in sync with the versions of the tools you need. In addition to configuration and installation steps, the book offers reference material and discussions of related topics such as control of kernel options at runtime.

A key benefit of the book is a chapter on determining exactly what drivers are needed for your hardware. Also included are recipes that list what you need to do to accomplish a wide range of popular tasks.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780596100797
Publisher:	O'Reilly Media, Incorporated
Publication date:	12/28/2006
Series:	In a Nutshell (O'Reilly)
Pages:	198
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.43(d)

About the Author

Greg Kroah-Hartman has been building the Linux kernel since 1996 and started writing Linux kernel drivers in 1999. He is currently the maintainer of the USB, PCI, driver core and sysfs subsystems in the kernel source tree and is also one half of the -stable kernel release team. He created the udev program and maintains the Linux hotplug userspace project. He is a Gentoo Linux developer as well as the co-author of the third edition of the "Linux Device Drivers" book and a contributing editor to Linux Journal. He also created and maintains the Linux Device Driver Kit. He currently works for SuSE Labs/Novell, doing various Linux kernel related tasks.

Table of Contents

• Preface
• Chapter 1: Introduction
• Chapter 2: Requirements for building and using the kernel
• Chapter 3: Retrieving the kernel source
• Chapter 4: Configuring and Building
• Chapter 5: Installing and Booting From a Kernel
• Chapter 6: Upgrading a kernel
• Chapter 7: Customizing a Kernel
• Chapter 8: Kernel Configuration Recipes
• Chapter 9: Kernel boot command-line parameter reference The majority of this chapter is based on the in-kernel documentation for the different kernel boot command line reference options, which were written by the kernel developers and released under the GPL.
• Chapter 10: Kernel build command line reference
• Chapter 11: Kernel Configuration Option Reference This chapter lists the most important configuration options offered when you run make config or one of its graphical interfaces. The majority of the chapter is based on the in-kernel documentation for the different kernel configuration options, which were written by the kernel developers and released under the GPL.
• Helpful Utilities
• Chapter 12: Bibliography