红帽全球峰会第 3 章 Managing kernel modules
Learn about kernel modules, including how to obtain module information and perform basic administrative tasks.
3.1. Introduction to kernel modules
The Red Hat Enterprise Linux kernel can be extended with kernel modules, which provide optional additional pieces of functionality, without having to reboot the system. On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, kernel modules are extra kernel code built into compressed <KERNEL_MODULE_NAME>.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.
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