Not reducing kernel version is causing issues.
Not reducing kernel version is causing issues.
I'm using Arch and need to reduce the kernel to 4.20 for testing. Initially, I asked pacman to handle it by giving the ALA URL, but after installation I encountered a mkinitcpio error saying no modules were found. I checked and confirmed there was no kernel directory, which was normal. When I tried booting the older kernel, the system froze. Disabling quiet mode and enabling debug logging (level 7) caused a panic and an error about mounting the root filesystem on an unknown block. Fixing the initramfs earlier resolved the issue. I also accidentally deleted my current initramfs backup, but restoring it fixed things. I attempted to install the kernel with linux-headers for version 4.20, but compilation failed due to missing Makefile and a missing package. I tried compiling from scratch but got an error about a missing directory. Now I'm unsure if I should compile my own modules or if the older kernel is still usable. Is it necessary to install a newer Arch release?
You're not sure about Arch or compiling kernels recently. Usually, updating the kernel means importing the new setup from your distro's source, but switching back to an older one is unlikely. If you really need the old version, you might install a compatible Arch release. I don't know what kind of experiment you're running that requires it.
Start with a live boot into an arch setup, chroot your machine, and then use pacman to reinstall the kernel and other components to get your system back on track. This approach is straightforward and often effective. For your specific problem, consider why you require such an outdated kernel—compiling your own might be more reliable. You can find guidance here: https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Kernel/...ompilation
I don’t know how to locate it. I assumed the linux-headers package was sufficient, but it isn’t working.
I confirmed I resolved the issue before it caused another failure. I understand this. First, I've built a Linux Kernel multiple times and it seems the build process creates those modules automatically. However, in my view, there should be no need to compile the Kernel if the binaries already exist. I'm unsure where to obtain the modules either. Also, for my experimental work, I don't want to waste 3-4 hours stressing my laptop's processor unless I really need to test the older version.
There was an issue during the package installation. The main problem stems from compatibility issues between current kernel APIs and older kernels. Filesystems may not support older versions, and the way the initial ramdisk is created has likely changed since the package included its own mkinitcpio settings. Newer kernels no longer recognize these defaults. This situation isn't ideal unless you're prepared to manually compile each version from the archive—typically around 200 packages are needed for a base installation.