Kernel

Summary Chapter Summary A partition is a logical part of the disk. A filesystem is a method of storing/finding files on a hard disk. By dividing the hard disk into partitions, data can be grouped and separated as needed. When a failure or mistake occurs, only the data in the affected partition will be damaged, while the data on the other partitions will likely survive. The boot process has multiple steps, starting with BIOS, which triggers the boot loader to start up the Linux kernel....

Linux Distribution Installation Choosing a Linux Distribution Questions to Ask when Choosing a Distribution What is the main function of the system (server or desktop)? What types of packages are important to the organization? For example, web server, word processing, etc. How much hard disk space is required and how much is available? For example, when installing Linux on an embedded device, space is usually constrained. How often are packages updated?...

3-4. Linux FileSystem Basics Linux FileSystem Conventional disk filesystems: ext3, ext4, XFS, Btrfs, JFS, NTFS, vfat, exfat, etc. Flash storage filesystems: ubifs, jffs2, yaffs, etc. Database filesystems Special purpose filesystems: procfs, sysfs, tmpfs, squashfs, debugfs, fuse, etc. Partitions and Filesystems A partition is physically contiguous section of disk, or what appears to be so in some advanced setups. A filesystem is a method of storing/finding files on the hard disk (usually in a partition)....

Kernel, init and Services The Linux Kernel boot loader loads kernel and an initial RAM-based file system (initramfs) into memory, so it can be used directly by the kernel. kernel loaded, it immediately initializes and configures the computer’s memory and also configures all the hardware attached to the system. also load user space applications. /sbin/init and Services Once kernel has set up all its hardware and mounted the root filesystem, the kernel runs sbin/init....

The Boot Process The Linux boot process is the procedure for initializing the system. from when the computer power is first swithced on until the user interface is fully operational. having a good understanding of the steps in the boot process may help you with troubleshooting problems, as well as with tailoring the computer’s performance to your needs. On the other hand, the boot process can be rather technical, and you can start using Linux without knowing all the details....