Kernel modules

If you want to use kernel modules, in which case some parts of the kernel will be loaded into memory only if they are needed, select the options:

Loadable module support  --->
[*] Enable loadable module support
[*]   Automatic kernel module loading

The modularization allows the kernel to be smaller and work faster.

To compile a piece of the kernel code as a module, you need to mark it with M during the configuration, eg.

<M>   Check for non-fatal errors on AMD Athlon/Duron / Intel Pentium 4

If the ''Automatic kernel module loading'' option has been selected, the modules should be automatically loaded by the kernel when they are needed. That is, for example, if you want to mount a CD-ROM, the kernel should automatically load the module isofs.ko and this modules can be removed from memory after the CD-ROM has been unmounted. You can also load and unload kernel modules manually, using the commands modprobe, insmod or rmmod, eg.

• modprobe isofs (loads the module isofs.ko)
• modprobe -r isofs (removes isofs.ko from memory)

All of the modules available to the currently running kernel should be located in various subdirectories of /lib/modules/<kernel_version>/kernel .