x-kernel (prepared)

Downstream X-branded Arch kernels: linux-x builds from Arch's packaging recipe for the stable/testing channels, and linux-x-mainline builds from the AUR linux-mainline recipe for the mainline channel. Neither is a fork of the Linux source tree.

Status: published as source and binaries; not default. The source repo is public at https://github.com/equislinux/x-kernel with an active watcher. Stable 7.3.4 and mainline 7.4rc1 packages were built, signed and uploaded to SourceForge with public-byte verification. Both kernel images booted to userspace in QEMU, and the new ISO installer passes interactive installs for all Arch kernels plus the two X kernels across KDE, Niri and Hyprland. Arch's linux/linux-lts/linux-zen remain the default supported kernels.

Channels

channel	upstream	X package	repo	current upstream
stable	Arch core/linux	linux-x	[x-kernel]	7.3.4.arch1-1
testing	Arch core-testing/linux	linux-x	not published	7.3.4.arch1-2
mainline	AUR linux-mainline	linux-x-mainline	[x-kernel-mainline]	7.4rc1-1

stable follows whatever Arch ships as stable. Arch promoted 7.3.4 during this work, so the current X stable build is 7.3.4; the same command will follow the next Arch stable bump. testing is a local preview (currently 7.3.4.arch1-2). mainline is the 7.4 line; the AUR recipe currently says 7.4rc1, not rc2.

What it does

• Fetches archlinux/packaging/packages/linux at a tag for stable/testing, or the current AUR linux-mainline HEAD for mainline.
• Applies a tiny variant delta:
  • stable/testing: pkgbase=linux-x, pkgdesc='Linux X';
  • mainline: pkgbase=linux-x-mainline, pkgdesc="Linux X Mainline". Sources, config.x86_64, patches, checksums and localversion logic stay as upstream provides them. The kernel release ends in -x or -x-mainline.
• Builds the main, headers and docs packages in a clean makechrootpkg chroot.
• Signs packages and the variant database with the project key.
• Publishes binaries to SourceForge FRS because they exceed GitHub Pages' 100 MB/file limit. Stable and mainline have separate repos and directories.
• CI is only a watcher (.github/workflows/kernel-watch.yml). Builds and publication are manual.
• The 2026-11-14 X ISO ships the signed X kernels; full installs keep Arch linux as the default entry and expose the X kernel as an additional entry.
• Repo: https://github.com/equislinux/x-kernel.
• Practical guide: docs/MANUAL.md.

Layout

delta/apply.py              minimal stable/mainline recipe delta (fails on drift)
scripts/check-upstream.sh   Arch stable/testing or AUR mainline vs last build
scripts/prepare-recipe.sh   clone upstream + apply variant delta
scripts/build.sh            clean chroot build + signing + static checks
scripts/publish.sh          signed variant DB + SourceForge upload/verify
scripts/release.sh          check -> prepare -> build [-> publish]
scripts/watch-upstream.sh   report all channels; never builds or publishes
scripts/verify-package.sh   package content/signature checks
.github/workflows/kernel-watch.yml  CI watcher (no build/publish)
docs/MANUAL.md              practical install/build/test guide
config.env.example          local paths and SourceForge settings

Outputs are isolated: out/linux-x/stable/, out/linux-x/testing/ and out/linux-x-mainline/mainline/.

Prerequisites

Arch host with devtools (makechrootpkg, mkarchroot), git, gpg, rsync, sftp, curl, jq, python3, bsdtar, and a normal user with sudo access for the chroot steps.

Secrets stay outside the repository:

• signing keyring and X_REPO_SIGN_KEY: keys/env.sh
• SourceForge upload key: ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_sourceforge (default)

Usage

cp config.env.example config.env   # optional; edit paths/URLs
./scripts/check-upstream.sh --channel stable
./scripts/check-upstream.sh --channel mainline
./scripts/prepare-recipe.sh --channel mainline
./scripts/build.sh --channel mainline       # sudo for mkarchroot/makechrootpkg
./scripts/publish.sh --channel mainline --dry-run
./scripts/publish.sh --channel mainline --yes

Or the orchestrator:

./scripts/release.sh --channel stable
./scripts/release.sh --channel mainline --publish --yes

build.sh only signs and writes under out/; it never installs the kernel. release.sh without --publish never touches SourceForge.

Updating from Arch/AUR

There is no merge step. Fetch the new upstream tag (stable/testing) or AUR HEAD (mainline) and reapply the tiny delta; delta/apply.py aborts if the upstream layout changed and needs review. Then rebuild and publish manually:

./scripts/release.sh --channel stable --publish --yes

Monthly manual cadence is enough. The GitHub Actions watcher only checks the three upstream versions and writes a step summary.

Known SourceForge pacman caveat

The SourceForge binary repos are published, but a direct pacman -Sy against downloads.sourceforge.net currently hits a SourceForge redirect bug: pacman builds the .db.sig URL by appending .sig to the redirected query string. The X ISO avoids this by bundling the signed kernel packages: the xpm backend installs them with xpm install <local-package>, and the pacman backend uses pacman -U. The client stanzas below are the intended online configuration once the DB is mirrored on a non-redirecting host.

SourceForge setup (first time)

Create both FRS directories once (the publish script also tries):

/home/frs/project/equislinux/kernel/x86_64/
/home/frs/project/equislinux/kernel-mainline/x86_64/

Client configurations:

[x-kernel]
SigLevel = Required
Server = https://downloads.sourceforge.net/project/equislinux/kernel/x86_64

[x-kernel-mainline]
SigLevel = Required
Server = https://downloads.sourceforge.net/project/equislinux/kernel-mainline/x86_64

Install explicitly, keeping Arch's kernel as fallback:

sudo xpm install --needed linux-x linux-x-headers
sudo xpm install --needed linux-x-mainline linux-x-mainline-headers

On a full X ISO install, Arch linux and the selected X kernel can coexist; the Arch entry remains the default. Select the X entry at boot to use it.

Safety

• linux-x/linux-x-mainline do not replace or provide Arch linux; install them alongside.
• NVIDIA/ZFS/VirtualBox must use DKMS and the matching -headers package; Arch's prebuilt NVIDIA packages target linux and are not compatible.
• Watch /boot: X stores kernel/initramfs copies under /boot/x/kernels; the ESP is 1 GiB. Test with a minimal initramfs if needed.
• Test in QEMU, then a live USB on the laptop, then the internal install. Keep the Arch kernel entry and a live USB available.
• Never publish automatically: scripts require --yes; CI is watcher-only.
• Do not modify x/, x-repo/, web/, xpm/, xpm-aur/, scripts/ or the ISO while this remains a prepared project.

License

The scripts are GPL-3.0-or-later (see LICENSE). The kernel recipes follow Arch/AUR packaging and upstream Linux licenses.