Kernel Compile

Making the Kernel Using make xconfig

The simpliest way to comfigure a new kernel or your current kernel is to use the xconfig utility. The xconfig utility provides a nice, graphical menu and submenus from which you can choose to include the various options as modules or compiled directly into the kernel. To use xconfig you need to have a function X windows session, Tcl script language package, the TK toolkit for tcl, and the Tk Desk package. Most likely, you already have these installed. Typically you need to run the program as root. If you have your kernel sources in a directory other than /usr/src and the user you are currently logged in as has rwx access to that directory, you can get away with executing xconfig as that user. Otherwise you must: Whatever method you choose, open an X-term, move to /usr/src/linux or where ever you decompressed the sources, and type:
make xconfig
You will then be presented with a window that looks like this:

2.2.17 Window


This is the xconfig window for kernel 2.2.17. Click 2.4.2 for an example of the 2.4.2 window. (Note: This link opens in a new window).

There are three other ways to configure the kernel which we will look at next before moving on to explaining the kernel categories. These options are:
  1. make menuconfig
  2. make config
  3. make oldconfig
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