Yum does not install kernel-smp-devel (or kernel-hugemem-devel, kernel- largesmp-devel), but it upgrades them.
Yum does install kernel-devel, and it does not upgrade it.
Yum should be consistent in how kernel-devel files are handled.
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This issue is addressed in this CentOS bug:
http://bugs.centos.org/view.php?id=1549
and in this upstream bug:
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=155988
The upstream fix is rolled into FC >= 4 and RHEL >= 5 ... but it is not rolled into RHEL <= 4.
That leaves CentOS-4 with this bug.
----------------------------------- There are 3 options here:
1. Patch CentOS-4 yum to make yum install all kernel-*-devel files like it does for kernel-devel (or the reverse ... make kernel-devel and upgrade like the other files).
2. Modify the kernel-2.6.spec to do what FC >= 4 does.
3. Do nothing and tell people to choose what they want by updating this variable in /etc/yum.conf
installonlyn=
------------------------------------
I think that 2 is a bad choice as it makes the CentOS kernel deviate from the upstream kernel.
I think that 3 is a better choice than 2 ... but I think 1 is the optimal choice. That yum needs to be updated to treat kernel-*-devel files like it treats kernel-devel.
What does everyone else think?
----------------------------------- Note: This is my attempt to solicit input for package changes from the public and not make unilateral decisions and push them with only the developers present.
If there is no discussion of this item on this list by non-centos developers, then I will revert back to making bug changes based on only what the developers think :P
Therefore, the people who want input into how packages are updated need to speak up. ------------------------------------ Thanks, Johnny Hughes