# Compile kernel and make yourself notes

## Alan Turing

Meanwhile, I am configuring the kernel of my linux machines by myself for serveral years. But I seems to me that I am doing the same mistakes several times. At least I am searching the same information over and over again.

Therefore I started to make myself some notes about options that were necessary for a device to work or that caused problems.

Unfortunately this is teadious and ended in a mess.

One option would be to write my notes consequently in the .config file. But these comments might get lost while doing

make oldconfig and I prefer make menuconfig over editing the .config file with a texteditor.

Is there some tool like make menuconfig that allows to write own comments to configuration options?

How do you solve the problem of remembering the effect of every single configuration option to your computer?

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## NeddySeagoon

Alan Turing,

You must never edit the .config with a text editor. Many options in make menuconfig flip as many as four flags in the .config file.

If you don't get them all, correct, you will end up with a broken very hard to diagnose kernel.

I rarely configure a kernel from scratch, unless its a new system.  Copying the .config  to the new kernel, then running make oldconfig works. make menuconfig can be used for a last check.

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## XQYZ

 *NeddySeagoon wrote:*   

> I rarely configure a kernel from scratch, unless its a new system.  Copying the .config  to the new kernel, then running make oldconfig works. make menuconfig can be used for a last check.

 

this mostly. I just make oldconfig and look over what's changed (usually nothing that concerns me).

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## d2_racing

Yeah I use that method too.

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## Alan Turing

I thought about it for a while and got an idea of a tool that solves my problem.

Screenshot of the tool I would like to have.

The tool should be like menuconfig but the 'Help page' of every option should provide the following additional information:

 blue information

List of decisions made in other configurations.

Therefore the input of this tool has to be also a list of kernel configurations.

 green information

Comments added by myself about this options.

Since they are not related to a specific kernel version or machine, this information has to be stored on a central server.

Now the question is: Does this tool, or something similar already exist?

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## XQYZ

 *Alan Turing wrote:*   

> The tool should be like menuconfig but the 'Help page' of every option should provide the following additional information

 

So you would comment all the thousand of config options like this and opening the help menu for each option each time you configure the kernel? I can't imagine anybody ever wanted to do it, but it might not be impossible to do.

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## Alan Turing

No, of corse not all.   :Wink: 

The green information, should be only comments for myself about options that I had chosen wrong once. Maybe also options that took me several minutes of investigation before I made my decision.

The blue information should be generated automatically (given some .config files, e.g. configuration of a Live-CD)

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## bear24rw

I feel like it would be easier to just keep all your notes in a text file... how are you going to find them again out of the hundreds of menu options?

Something like:

 *Quote:*   

> Device Drivers -> [*] I2C support -> <*> I2C device interface
> 
> Make sure this is selected for blah blah blah

 

I feel would be much easier and organized, when configuring a new kernel you can run down your notes really quick

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## aCOSwt

 *Alan Turing wrote:*   

> But I seems to me that I am doing the same mistakes several times. At least I am searching the same information over and over again.

 

 :Laughing:   :Laughing:   :Laughing:  I thought I was the only one like this...   :Embarassed: 

 *Alan Turing wrote:*   

> Therefore I started to make myself some notes about options that were necessary for a device to work or that caused problems.
> 
> Unfortunately this is teadious and ended in a mess.

 

 :Laughing:   :Laughing:   :Laughing:  Well, the only difference being that with me, it does not end in a mess...

It ends I do not know where because I loose my notes...

I nevertheless suspect my wife putting these in the dustbin...   :Rolling Eyes: 

 *Alan Turing wrote:*   

> One option would be to write my notes consequently in the .config file.

 

++1 !! INDEED !!

That is exactly the way I do for my FreeBSD kernel configuration file. (And everybody actually does that way)

That is how I started doing with gentoo ! (Before knowing the number of options   :Shocked:   :Shocked:   and learning that these comments were lost   :Evil or Very Mad:   :Evil or Very Mad: 

I do second your request heartedly !

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