this post was submitted on 26 Sep 2026
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Linux
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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The running kernel is not removed. Most (if not all?) distros will keep multiple previous kernels for fallback purposes. Some relatively recent projects will wait for system calls to complete and redirect new ones to the updated equivalent (see Live Kernel Patching).
The reason some things stop working is because the kernel modules directory is replaced. The running (old) kernel tries to access a module for a newer version and says nope.
Arch Linux has the package kernel-modules-hook which backs up the old modules and points the old kernel to them while it's running. I'm not sure why it's not installed by default.