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Linux Kernel 2.4.21 Released

Posted by michael on from the load-average-increasing dept.

An anonymous reader writes "After > 6 months of waiting, 2.4.21 is here. Lots of cleanups, and a patch which gives a MAJOR boost to the 'feel' of the system under heavy disk IO, especially on IDE systems. As usual, available from your local kernel.org mirror or ftp.COUNTRYCODE.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v2.4/! Tidbit: 'Current bandwidth utilization 131.72 Mbit/s '." See the Changelog for new stuff.

4 of 539 comments (clear)

  1. Started to think 2.4.x was dead by phathead296 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I was seriously starting to think the 2.4 series was dead in preparation for 2.6.0. The ChangeLog is impressive though.

    Phathead

    1. Re:Started to think 2.4.x was dead by mahdi13 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Far from dead...hell, the 2.2 kernel is still being maintained and patched (mostly by Alan Cox, but still...it's active)

      --
      "Some things have to be believed to be seen." - Ralph Hodgson
  2. BitTorrent by Dreadlord · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I wonder if they are planning on an official BitTorrent.

    --
    The IT section color scheme sucks.
  3. Re:Quick Question by Osty · · Score: 5, Interesting

    When is it worth upgrading kernel versions?

    When there's a compelling reason to upgrade. Those fall into two categories:

    • The kernel fixes a previous security problem, or
    • The kernel provides new features that you require for your product (not "want", but "need").

    Any other reason is superfluous, especially for a server machine.

    Is there a way I can easily use the old configuration?

    The kernel config writes a .config file in the source root. Use that. If you patch rather than grabbing completely new sources, you won't even need to worry about copying that file around (unless you do a make mrproper, which you probably don't need to do unless stuff starts breaking during compile).


    I must say I am very reluctant to upgrade the kernel.. especially when I don't have physical access to the machine. But I would of course love to the the fastest and most secure server as possible. Just curious what rules and procedures others use.

    Years ago, back when the kernel was being updated nearly every other week rather than once every few months (2.0/2.2 time frame), I would always download the very latest kernel and compile that. Coincidentally, I was also learning Linux at the time, so I didn't mind spending time on stuff like that, and I was in school which meant a lot more free time. These days, my only linux box is a server, so unless there's a security fix I'm inclined to just leave the box alone. It's certainly easer not to upgrade than it is to upgrade.