The Linux Source Tree

The kernel source code lives in a group of directories called the kernel source tree. This tree’s structure is important because the process of compiling the kernel is automated.

When you compile a kernel, make is actually running a series of scripts. The scripts, makefiles, expect to find pieces of the kernel code in specific places. If they are not there, the makefile breaks, and the kernel is incomplete. You will learn how to compile a kernel with make later in the chapter.