BUILDING A NEW KERNEL FROM THE SLACKWARE TESTING TREE

This guide uses Slackware's testing/source kernel tree as a base
and upgrades it to a newer upstream version while preserving
Slackware structure.


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1. Mirror Slackware Testing Kernel Source

Mirror the current testing kernel tree:

   lftp -c "open https://mirrors.kernel.org/slackware/slackware64-current/source/k618/; mirror . k618"

This creates a local directory containing:

   doinst.sh/
   kernel-configs/
   slack-desc/
   build-all-kernels.sh
   kernel-generic.SlackBuild
   kernel-headers.SlackBuild
   kernel-source.SlackBuild
   linux-6.18.20.tar.xz
   linux-6.18.20.tar.sign


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2. Prepare New Kernel Version

Rename the directory to reflect the new branch:

   mv k618 linux-6.19.x
   cd linux-6.19.x

Remove the old tarball:

   rm linux-6.18.20.tar.*

Download the new upstream kernel:

   wget https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/linux-6.19.11.tar.{xz,sign}


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3. Update Kernel Config

Extract kernel sources to /usr/src:

   sudo tar -xf linux-6.19.11.tar.xz -C /usr/src
   sudo ln -sfn linux-6.19.11 /usr/src/linux

Copy existing Slackware config:

   sudo cp kernel-configs/config-6.18.20.x64 /usr/src/linux/.config

Update configuration:

   cd /usr/src/linux
   sudo make olddefconfig

Save updated config back to build tree:

   cp .config ~/linux-6.19.x/kernel-configs/config-6.19.11.x64


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3.1 Apply Patches (optional)

Patches from git.kernel.org must be downloaded manually using a
browser. The site is protected by Anubis, a proof-of-work bot
protection that blocks automated tools like curl and wget.

To apply a patch manually:

   cd /usr/src/linux
   sudo patch -p1 < your-fix.patch


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4. Build Slackware Kernel Packages

From inside linux-6.19.x directory:

   sudo ./kernel-source.SlackBuild

   sudo KERNEL_SOURCE=/usr/src/linux \
        KERNEL_CONFIG=./kernel-configs/config-6.19.11.x64 \
        BUILD=1 \
        ./kernel-generic.SlackBuild

   sudo VERSION=6.19.11 BUILD=1 ./kernel-headers.SlackBuild


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5. Install the New Kernel

   sudo upgradepkg --install-new /tmp/kernel-generic-6.19.11-x86_64-1.txz
   sudo upgradepkg --install-new /tmp/kernel-headers-6.19.11-noarch-1.txz


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Initrd Handling

Slackware's kernel-generic package includes doinst.sh,
which automatically runs geninitrd after installation
when appropriate.

Behavior is controlled by:

  /etc/default/geninitrd

Manual initrd generation is normally not required.


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Notes

- Do not rename package names.
- Do not modify SlackBuild naming.
- Use version number for differentiation.
- Testing directories may change; mirror once and maintain locally.
- Preserve Slackware directory layout for compatibility.
- git.kernel.org is protected by Anubis; patches must be downloaded
  manually via a browser.

This workflow mirrors Slackware's source/k structure
while allowing independent upstream kernel tracking.


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Last Modified: 2026-01-03 00:00:00 UTC