32 / 64 bit kernel

New features which should be implemented in Porteus; suggestions are welcome. All questions or problems with testing releases (alpha, beta, or rc) should go in their relevant thread here, rather than the Bug Reports section.
dstarke
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32 / 64 bit kernel

Post#1 by dstarke » 26 Aug 2013, 14:16

Hi everyone -

I am coming over from the Knoppix community. I've been (rather unsuccessfully) trying to modularize Knoppix, something that you all have obviously accomplished. Porteus 2.1 is almost perfect for my needs. My only problem is that I currently carry my Knoppix stick with me everywhere and because it is based on the DVD version of Knoppix 7.2, it contains the kernel for both 32 and 64-bit versions. Therefore no matter what machine I come to, I can utilize it fully.

I take it from the choice presented in the build website (very nice, BTW) that there is currently no version of Porteus that has both kernels. I am willing to work on this, once I have familiarized myself with Porteus. I looked through the forum to see if this work may already have been done and did not find it. If anyone knows of a version of Porteus with both kernels, it will obviously save me some time, and I would appreciate a link or reference to a forum post. If not, once I have come up to speed, it is something I will attempt.

I realize that it goes against the minimalist theme of Porteus, but I feel that the universality of a portable, personal OS that works to the max on any system (32 or 64 bit) makes this a worthwhile project.

TIA for any information or help. Great OS you've made!

Dave

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fanthom
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Re: 32 / 64 bit kernel

Post#2 by fanthom » 26 Aug 2013, 16:45

hi dstarke,

try to follow this tutorial:
http://www.porteus.org/component/conten ... ition.html

mind that some cheatcodes are deprecated (for example 'lxde') so please have a look on /boot/syslinux/porteus.cfg and /boot/docs/cheatcodes.txt and then construct your own bootloader config.
Please add [Solved] to your thread title if the solution was found.

dstarke
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Re: 32 / 64 bit kernel

Post#3 by dstarke » 03 Nov 2013, 13:19

The problem with the method described is that it appears that two separate filesystems are necessary. I think this means that two separate desktops are maintained with manual coordination between them, home for the 32-bit is not home for 64-bit, etc.

OTOH, I have combined the kernels in a single filesystem and, as long as I don't include the NVIDIA drivers, it seems to work. I made modifications to the start screen to choose between them, defaulting to the 32-bit version. I have not extensively tested this.

The minute I add either driver, or both, the X-session goes wonky. Don't completely understand that.

For those who are concerned about 64-bit software, I was advised that very little software utilizes advantages of 64-bit filespace (the exception being software that either manipulates large databases or large graphics) so that there is little advantage to 64-bit compiled software. If fact, it was suggested that 32-bit compiled software runs faster in 64-bit OS environment than (native) 64-bit compiled software. I have not tested this.

I don't mean to denigrate those who are working diligently on 64-bit software. Personally, I will be content to have a hybrid 32/64 bit system running 32-bit compiled software that utilizes all the memory on board whatever computer it runs on. If I can work out the driver issue, I will be in heaven.

Anyone interested in the resulting porteus derivative, e-mail me. Anyone who understands how (and when) the NVIDIA driver modules load and would like to help, TIA.

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Re: 32 / 64 bit kernel

Post#4 by fanthom » 03 Nov 2013, 15:20

i dont think you will be able to use 32bit nVidia driver with 64bit kernel as kernel modules strictly depends on the kernel version they were compiled against.
maybe you could unpack both ISOs to the subfolders and use 'from=' cheatcode?
For those who are concerned about 64-bit software, I was advised that very little software utilizes advantages of 64-bit filespace (the exception being software that either manipulates large databases or large graphics) so that there is little advantage to 64-bit compiled software. If fact, it was suggested that 32-bit compiled software runs faster in 64-bit OS environment than (native) 64-bit compiled software. I have not tested this.
you should read these:
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=a ... 3264&num=1
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=a ... 3264&num=1
Please add [Solved] to your thread title if the solution was found.

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