Kernel modules extend the Red Hat Enterprise Linux kernel with optional functionality without rebooting the system. On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, they package extra kernel code in compressed <replaceable>.ko.xz` object files.

Loadable Kernel Modules (LKMs)

LKMs can be dynamically loaded into and unloaded from the running Linux kernel. You can add device drivers or filesystem support without requiring a system reboot or recompiling the entire kernel.

The most common functionality enabled by kernel modules are:

• Device driver which adds support for new hardware
• Support for a file system such as GFS2 or NFS
• System calls

On modern systems, kernel modules are automatically loaded when needed. However, in some cases it is necessary to load or unload modules manually.

Similarly to the kernel, modules accept parameters that customize their behavior.

You can use the kernel tools to perform the following actions on modules:

• Inspect modules that are currently running.
• Inspect modules that are available to load into the kernel.
• Inspect parameters that a module accepts.
• Enable a mechanism to load and unload kernel modules into the running kernel.