161 lines
7 KiB
Markdown
161 lines
7 KiB
Markdown
# Arch Linux Kernel Manager
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A GTK4 Python application which installs and removes Linux Kernels on Arch Linux based systems.
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Installation and removal of Kernels is carried out using Pacman.
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Kernel packages are sourced from the [Arch Linux Archive](https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Arch_Linux_Archive) (ALA)
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Both official and un-official community based Kernels are supported.
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# Official Kernels
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- linux
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- linux-lts
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- linux-zen
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- linux-hardened
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- linux-rt
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- linux-rt-lts
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Since the ALA has a lot of kernel packages any versions found older than 2 years or more are ignored.
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These kernels are considerably out of date and have shown to fail to install properly with issues related to missing modules.
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## What happens if a kernel installation fails
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The application will show a message that it has encountered an issue, and the log inside the progress window, should have the information required to understand why.
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In the event of a failure, the application will try to reinstall the kernel using the version previously installed.
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# Community based kernels
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As long as the necessary Pacman repositories are configured these are supported.
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- linux-xanmod
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- linux-xanmod-lts
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- linux-cachyos
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- linux-lqx
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- linux-clear
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- linux-amd
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- linux-nitrous
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Most of these are sourced from the [Chaotic AUR](https://aur.chaotic.cx)
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See updating the [configuration file](#Adding-new-community-based-kernels) for adding new kernels.
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# Installed kernels
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# Progress window
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# Bootloader
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Only Grub and systemd-boot bootloaders are supported.
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After a successful install/removal of a kernel the relevant bootloader entries are updated.
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By default, the application will use `bootctl` to distinguish which bootloader (Grub/systemd-boot) is currently being used.
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## Grub
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`grub-mkconfig` is run to update the grub.cfg file.
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## systemd-boot
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`bootctl --no-variables ---graceful update` is run to update systemd-boot entries
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# Advanced settings
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## Bootloader settings
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The bootloader settings can be overridden using the Advanced settings window.
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Or you can manually update the configuration file (see the custom bootloader example).
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## Latest kernel versions
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Based on the latest information taken from the configured pacman mirrors.
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# Default configuration file
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This file can be found inside `$HOME/.config/archlinux-kernel-manager`
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```toml
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title = "ArchLinux Kernel Manager Settings"
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[kernels]
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# Kernels which are sourced from the ALA (Arch Linux Archive) https://archive.archlinux.org
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official = [
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{ name = "linux", description = "The Linux kernel and modules (Stable)", headers = "linux-headers" },
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{ name = "linux-lts", description = "The LTS Linux kernel and modules (Longterm)", headers = "linux-lts-headers" },
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{ name = "linux-zen", description = "The Linux ZEN kernel and modules (Zen)", headers = "linux-zen-headers" },
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{ name = "linux-hardened", description = "The Security-Hardened Linux kernel and modules (Hardened)", headers = "linux-hardened-headers" },
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{ name = "linux-rt", description = "The Linux RT kernel and modules (Realtime)", headers = "linux-rt-headers" },
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{ name = "linux-rt-lts", description = "The Linux RT LTS kernel and modules (Realtime Longterm)", headers = "linux-rt-lts-headers" },
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]
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# Kernels which are sourced from unofficial repositories, these won't work if you haven't updated your pacman configuration
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# https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Unofficial_user_repositories
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community = [
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{ name = "linux-xanmod", description = "The Linux kernel and modules with Xanmod patches", headers = "linux-xanmod-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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{ name = "linux-xanmod-lts", description = "The Linux kernel and modules with Xanmod patches", headers = "linux-xanmod-lts-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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{ name = "linux-amd", description = "Linux kernel aimed at the ZNVER4/MZEN4 AMD Ryzen CPU based hardware", headers = "linux-amd-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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{ name = "linux-cachyos", description = "The Linux EEVDF-BORE scheduler Kernel by CachyOS with other patches and improvements kernel and modules", headers = "linux-cachyos-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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{ name = "linux-ck", description = "The Linux kernel and modules with ck's hrtimer patches", headers = "linux-ck-headers", repository = "repo-ck" },
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{ name = "linux-clear", description = "The Clear Linux kernel and modules", headers = "linux-clear-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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{ name = "linux-lts-tkg-bmq", description = "The Linux-tkg kernel and modules", headers = "linux-lts-tkg-bmq-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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{ name = "linux-tkg-pds", description = "The Linux-tkg kernel and modules", headers = "linux-tkg-pds-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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{ name = "linux-lqx", description = "The Linux Liquorix kernel and modules", headers = "linux-lqx-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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{ name = "linux-nitrous", description = "Modified Linux kernel optimized for Skylake and newer, compiled using clang", headers = "linux-nitrous-headers", repository = "chaotic-aur" },
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]
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# custom bootloader example
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#[bootloader]
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#name = "grub"
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#grub_config = "/boot/grub/grub.cfg"
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```
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## Adding new community based kernels
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Further Kernels can be added using the same format.
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When adding new community based un-official kernels, the repository name should match the one defined inside the pacman `/etc/pacman.conf` file under `[repo-name]`.
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Further details on un-official kernels can be found on https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Kernel#Unofficial_kernels
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# Cache
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Kernel data retrieved from the ALA is stored inside a toml based file inside `$HOME/.cache/archlinux-kernel-manager/kernels.toml`
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This cached file is updated automatically every 5 days to ensure the application is kept up to date with the latest kernels.
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Using the Update switch inside Advanced Settings, will force the application to update the cache.
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This cache file may take a little while to generate since archived Arch kernel package data is being retrieved from the ALA.
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# Logs
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Logs can be found inside `/var/log/archlinux-kernel-manager`
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# Required Python modules
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- python-tomlkit
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- python-gobject
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- python-requests
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- python-distro
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- python-psutil
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# Running the application
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Run `akm` or `archlinux-kernel-manager` to launch the application.
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