Re: [PLUG] kernel config/compile sanity check

[Jason Stelzer <jason.stelzer@gmail.com>]

Couple quick thoughts....

You could compare the md5 of the running kernel(s) to what the source
tree(s) in question produce. That should help you narrow things down
somewhat and see what box is running which kernel from what source
tree.


As to building a centos kernel rpm, they probably do some minor tricks
with the initrd image. I would probably start with looking at one of
the official src rpms for a stock kernel and just look at how they are
doing things in the rpm spec file. That should set you well on your
way to building a custom rpm that plays nice with centos.

On Wed, Sep 15, 2010 at 4:42 AM, JP Vossen <jp@jpsdomain.org> wrote:
> I have to reverse engineer what someone at work did before he somewhat
> unexpectedly left (with no documentation). ÂAmong other things, there is a
> custom Linux kernel in the mix. ÂI have 10 different build dirs for 7
> different kernel versions (2.6.7 to 2.6.33) from 4 different build machines.
> Â(Sigh.)
>
> After talking about this at PLUG N a bit, the plan is something like:
> 1) tar 'em all up, just in case
> 2) Copy .../.config files & rename with kernel version
> 3) Try to figure out the original source
> 4) If I can, diff against that to detect patches (unlikely, but...)
> 5) Boot some of the devices and look for /proc/config.gz (doubt it)
> 6) Check ~/.bash_history files from the build machines
>
> Anything else I'm missing or that will bite me?
>
>
> Bonus question. ÂI used to be familiar with packaging software into RPMs,
> but it's been a few years and I've never packaged a kernel for CentOS-5.x.
> ÂWhat's the best HOWTO, and do you have any other hints?
>
> Lee reminded me of http://www.asic-linux.com.mx/~izto/checkinstall/, but
> what wasn't quite what I was thinking of. ÂI had something like this more in
> mind: http://wiki.centos.org/HowTos/Custom_Kernel
>
> Thanks,
> JP
> ----------------------------|:::======|-------------------------------
> JP Vossen, CISSP Â Â Â Â Â Â|:::======| Â Â Âhttp://bashcookbook.com/
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-- 
J.
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