The Linux kernel is the beating heart of any Linux distribution. It is a strange and complex beast and to many people somewhat mystical in nature. I intend to shed light on some of that mystical shroud and show how simple and easy compiling a Linux kernel really is.

There are several ways of configuring a Linux kernel for compilation and it is not really much different to a standard CMMI (Configure, Make, Make Install) for most program compilation from source code. The kernel compilation doesn't use the GNU configure method and relies entirely on make (read "man make" for info) for its configuration, compilation and optional installation. I say optional for the installation as it is just as easy to copy the compiled kernel to where you wish it to go.

I am going to concentrate more on the why instead of the how. If you understand the why then the how makes sense and you can tell who is on first and whats on second.

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