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Kernel Compile issues with SAger 5320 & CentOS

post #1 of 9
5/15/06 at 2:33pm
Thread Starter 
I have successfully installed CentOS 4.3 on the laptop and it currently works. I found a how-to-install readme on installing and configuring the Intel Pro/Wireless 2915abg, but it suggests that I install a new kernel. Currently I have the 2.9.x and I would like to install 2.6.16. I have downoaded and untarred the newest kernel from www.kernel.org. Then I ran the following commands in the extracted directory:
make xconfig ( and try to configure all of the hardware my knowledge will let me)

make dep

make clean

make bzImage

make modules

make modules_install

Then I configure my /etc/grub.conf file for the "2.6.16" kernel. Then I save my configuration and reboot. Upon reboot I select the new kernel option and the system has a Kernel panic before the Interactive startup option is displayed.

If anyone has installed linux and has compiled the 2.6.16 kernel recently on a sager 5320...I would greatly appreciate any tips or steps that I may be missing. I have a hunch that there may be an issue with my SATA Controller for my Hard drive, where the kernel cannot be read until the sata controller driver is installed, but that is still a problem I could not fix either.

Here is a HOW-TO I used to attempt the kernel compile.http://www.digitalhermit.com/linux/K...ild-HOWTO.html
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post #2 of 9
5/15/06 at 3:00pm
Your hunch is most likely dead on. Either compile the controller module directly into your kernel or look into ramdisk (mkinitrd and the like) to get around this problem.

Seablade
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post #3 of 9
5/15/06 at 5:31pm
Thread Starter 
I was in my source directory (/root/src/Linux-2.6.16/) and used the command "mkinitrd /boot/initrd-2.6.16.16.img 2.6.16.16" AND this is what I get...

[root@cwh1116 linux-2.6.16]# mkinitrd /boot/initrd-2.6.16.16.img 2.6.16.16
/boot/initrd-2.6.16.16.img already exists.
[root@cwh1116 linux-2.6.16]#

I am a little fuzzy on compiling a RAMDISK. Does this procedure allow the IDE (SATA) driver to be loaded prior to the new kernel being read?

By the way the exact error I got during test boot of the new kernel is:

ENFORCING MODE REQUESTED BUT NO POLICY LOADED HALTING NOW
KERNEL PANIC-NOT SYNCING:ATTEMPTING TO KILL INIT

If this helps. Thanks for you time.
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post #4 of 9
5/15/06 at 6:22pm
Make dep is unnecessary with 2.6 kernels. However, I doubt that running it anyway is likely to cause any problems.

Since I can't see why you would want to fool around with initrd's if you don't have to, I recommend that when you configure the kernel, you specify that your boot media driver be compiled into the kernel (not as a module).

Though you said you followed the instructions, you didn't specifically say you installed your new kernal prior to re-configuring Grub. Kernel installation involves copying the new image and system map files to your /boot directory as per the instructions. Then you edit Grub to load the new kernel image you just copied into /boot.
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post #5 of 9
5/15/06 at 10:12pm
Starclub is correct. That HowTo you followed was for a 2.4.x kernel. Try these steps:

Code:
# make menuconfig
# make all
# make modules_install
# make install

If you get build errors then run make clean before these steps. If you still have problems, backup your .config file and run make mrproper.

In menuconfig, look for the SATA drivers under SCSI options:

Code:
Device Drivers --->
    SCSI device support  --->
        SCSI low-level drivers  --->
            <*> Serial ATA (SATA) support
            <*>   VIA SATA support

Be sure to choose your SATA controller. I only showed my VIA controller selected.

And remember that this is in addition to selecting your IDE controller under ATA drivers.


troymc
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post #6 of 9
5/16/06 at 2:36am
While Starcub and TroyMC are right in that if you compile the modules directly into your kernel you dont have to worry about a ramdisk, I typically have found it easier to teach people to use the ramdisk and the performance hit is minimal and only brief anyways.

In the case of what you posted, it seems as though the ramdisk is already made, is your menu.lst file set up with initrd pointing to it in your boot entry?

If not sure what that means feel free to try either starcub or TroyMCs methods as that will work just as well. Or post up your menu.lst.

Seablade
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post #7 of 9
5/16/06 at 8:05am
Thread Starter 
I have tried to troymc's sequence of make commands to build the new kernel. I followed all of the directions, BUT I ran into one Warning.

The warning states: "No module ata_piix found for kernel-2.6.16, continuing anyway"

I remember this driver being loader prior to my initial install of CentOS linux days ago. It definitely sounds like a Hard Driver( for SATA), especially since it was loaded prior to installing.

Does anyone know which selection the 'ata_piix' module is when I am configuring hardware in the menuconfig interface? Thanks again.
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post #8 of 9
5/16/06 at 8:18am
Thread Starter 
I did browse the driver names using 'make gconfig', this allowed me to look at each driver's name. I found one:

Serial ATA (SATA) support>
()Intel PIIX/ICH SATA support SCSI_ATA_IIX

I selected it during the origianl compile and still got the warning but have a feeling that I need to find a driver call ATA_IIX in order to not get the WARNING again.
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post #9 of 9
5/16/06 at 3:14pm
It almost sounds as though you are using a .config file from another kernel version to build your 2.6.16 kernel.

The generic kernels that are used by default with major distributions often build every available module into the kernel as a module. They do this in order to support the largest variety of hardware possible out of the box (the kernel calls the appropriate modules at run time). The nice thing about customizing the kernel is that you can streamline it to include only the modules for the hardware you use. You simply edit the .config file (using make menuconfig) building in support for only the hardware you have. In menuconfig you build a module directly into the kernel by marking it with an asterics "<*>"; you buil it in as a module with an M "<M>"; and you leave it out by clearing the field "<>".

So if your computer doesn't have an intel piix drive controller, just clear the field, actually, clear all the fields except the driver for the controller that you use and select it with the "<*>" method. You should do this this for all of the hardware on your machine.

I would recommend that you run make clean and make mrproper before configuring your kernel to ensure you're not using config options that the kernel will not recognize (or that have changed since a previous version). Then have another go at the process.
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