Arch Linux

markbabc

Member

Registered: 2010-11-06

Posts: 157

Kernel compiling

Ok so iv heard alot of people saying that to speed up their boot-time they compiled their own kernel. So i was wondering if this was true and why? I was following this from the wiki: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Kernel_Compilation and im currently running makepkg -s and i thought that the wiki article was missing some things but i might be wrong. So before i go and replace my current working setup i wanted to make sure that the article wasnt missing anything.

tomk

Forum Fellow

From: Ireland

Registered: 2004-07-21

Posts: 9,839

Re: Kernel compiling

Firstly - you don't have to - in fact you shouldn't - replace anything. Install your custom kernel alongside the stock one, so that its always available when you mess up.

Ok so iv heard alot of people saying that to speed up their boot time they compiled their own kernel. So i was wondering if this was true and why?

I reckon you should ask them if its true - or rather, ask them to show you it's true by comparing boot times with the stock kernel. I build my own kernels, but not with the intention of decreasing boot time, so I can't comment.

If you believe the related wiki page(s) need some improvement, please go ahead and do it. If you're not sure, use the Talk tab to add some comments and/or use the wiki discussion sub-forum here.

graysky

Wiki Maintainer

From: :wq

Registered: 2008-12-01

Posts: 10,597

Website

Re: Kernel compiling

+1 for a custom kernel not booting faster.  Try quick init in the AUR if you want boot up speed.

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CPU-optimized Linux-ck packages @ Repo-ck  • AUR packages • Zsh and other configs

dyscoria

Member

Registered: 2008-01-10

Posts: 1,007

Re: Kernel compiling

Well in my case, my custom kernel does shave off maybe 4-5 seconds (down from ~20 seconds). I compile modules I need into the kernel and do not require an initrd image.

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flack 2.0.6: menu-driven BASH script to easily tag FLAC files (AUR)
knock-once 1.2: BASH script to easily create/send one-time sequences for knockd (forum/AUR)

markbabc

Member

Registered: 2010-11-06

Posts: 157

Re: Kernel compiling

Ok cool thanks for the replies. @tomk is there any book or website you would suggest for learning more about the linux kernel?