nonGPL Kernel

[seeker]

I have a feeling that I made a serious error. Intending to do an online update of patches for SuSe 9.2, I hit the system update button instead. Oddly, it immediately gave me a window indicating two updates without identifying what they were and asking for the installation disk. Like a dummy, I did what it asked and it installed an item called the nonGPL kernel. I have been trying to avoid any updates or changes of the kernel, because the last time I did this, it messed up Grub and I couldn't boot to either SuSe or XP. It would not let me abort, so whatever that kernel is, it got installed. Now, I'm afraid to reboot, for fear of repeating the last fiasco. At this point, I believe that I need to copy any essential files that can be loaded on bootup from a floppy. As I indicated in another thread, I have not been able to make a Grub boot floppy, so I'm wondering if anyone can tell me speficially which files to copy and where they are located? Not that it probably matters, but I'm also wondering if anyone knows what this kernel is?

[mikedep333]

The nongpl package simply provides kernel modules that aren't GPL. I don't believe your bootloader is going to have any trouble if those kernel modules are loaded by the kernel, which is after the bootloader does it's job. From what I understand, the bootloader only really has trouble if the kernel itself is updated.

Nevertheless, you can almost definitely remove the package by going into the yast package management. Just search for nongpl and you'll find it.

[seeker]

I was forced to do a reboot earlier, and it went okay, so I guess that I will leave it alone. I don't suppose that you have any idea of what modules that this pertains to...do you?