Red Hat Bugzilla – Bug 253944
Can't control number of kernels to keep
Last modified: 2014-01-21 17:59:27 EST
Description of problem: I am dismayed to read this changelog for yum.noarch 3.2.2-1.fc7 * Fri Jul 20 2007 Seth Vidal <skvidal at fedoraproject.org> - 3.2.2 - disable unused installonlyn plugin - set installonly_limit to '2' A limit of 2 kernels is incompatible with the bug-ridden kernels we have today. (The latest kernel won't boot!) This limit needs to be increased. How??? Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable): yum.noarch 3.2.2-1.fc7 How reproducible: Steps to Reproduce: 1. 2. 3. Actual results: I fear what will happen at the next kernel release. Will my only bootable kernel be deleted? Expected results: Additional info: How can I increase the number of kernels kept?
You can change the number kept by modifying installonly_limit in /etc/yum.conf. And by keeping 2, we keep the currently running one which is good enough for getting more kernels as well as a new one, so it's a very reasonable default.
Thank you for pointing out this apparently new documentation. I had only found that /etc/yum/pluginconf.d/installonlyn.conf had gone away, but not that it had been replaced. A default of 2 is dangerously optimistic. I have manually installed 4 kernels on one machine trying to overcome bugzilla #254007, but only the oldest kernel allows the machine to boot. The next yum update would wipe me out if only the newest 2 were kept. I will set installonly_limit to a more generous level.