Customizing Your Kernel's Version Information
To determine if the running kernel is the one you've compiled and installed, you can use the uname -v command, which prints the version of the currently running kernel. This includes information about the build, which can be customized during the kernel compilation process to make it easily identifiable.
Customizing Your Kernel's Version Information
During the kernel configuration step (before compiling), you can customize the version information to make it distinct. This is done using the General setup -> Local version option in the menuconfig interface or by directly editing the .config file:
This string will be appended to the default kernel version, making it easy to identify.
Compiling and Installing Your Kernel
After setting a unique local version, proceed with compiling and installing your kernel as usual. Once your custom kernel is running, you can check it with:
uname -v
Example Output
If you set -mycustomkernel as your local version, and after successfully compiling and booting into your new kernel, the output of uname -v might look something like this:
#1 SMP PREEMPT Debian 1:6.6.51-1+rpt3-myownkernel (2024-10-08)
The part -mycustomkernel distinctly indicates that this is your custom-built kernel.
Verifying Without Custom Version String
If you did not set a local version string during compilation, it becomes harder but still possible to verify the source of the kernel. You would need to compare the compile time, configuration options, and possibly some git commit identifiers (if applicable) shown in uname -v against those expected from your custom kernel build. However, adding a local version string greatly simplifies this verification process.