Is it necessary to update kernel & what is the advantage ?

Question

On my server, the kernel version is 2.6.18-164 but there is a new kernel version (2.6.18-194) available, Is it necessary to update the kernel and what is the benefit ?

What does "what she Interest" mean? – Dennis Williamson Oct 24 '10 at 15:09 — Dennis Williamson, Oct 24 '10 at 15:09

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Oct 24 '10 at 07:16

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Read the changelog for your kernel and see what changed between those two versions.

If you're affected by one of the resolved issues, do an upgrade. Otherwise keep your old kernel.

answered Oct 24 '10 at 07:16

joschi

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score 3 · Answer 2 · answered Oct 24 '10 at 07:29

Those are the same major release version of the kernel. The difference seems to be the patch level. You do not say what your distribution is, but mostly likely those patches are a mix of security and stability related updates. It is always a good idea to keep with the most current patch level.

That is a very old kernel version, but keeping the latest kernel version is not as important if your system is stable and supports everything you need. Patching for security issues however is a good idea, so given the little information you give, I would say yes it's a good idea to update.

Is it necessary to update kernel & what is the advantage ?

2 Answers2