Idea #10440: Reporting tool for Kernel Panics

Written by deadowl the 28 Jun 08 at 20:59. Category: System.
Related to: Nothing/Others. Status: New

Description

You know, I ran into a kernel panic coming out of suspend the other day using Ubuntu's kernel. The only other time I've had a kernel panic was when I was using my own compiled kernel for an Operating Systems class.

In any case, considering that kernel panics are a very bad, and they're very hard for an ordinary user to diagnose, there should be a tool (ex. a message in the notification area the next time the user logs in) that easily allows a user to report them.

Tags: kernel notification panic report reporting

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deadowl wrote on the 28 Jun 08 at 21:02

In essence, kernel panics should _never_ happen, and when they do, the problem ought to be either identified or fixed asafp.

Primož Papič wrote on the 28 Jun 08 at 21:13

I agree. I have proposed similar idea:
http://brainstorm.ubuntu.com/idea/10009/

If I would use two words to describe my idea it would be:
Super BSoD.

I think yours idea is a part of my idea.
Please comment if they are related or even if yours might be dupe.

+1

deadowl wrote on the 28 Jun 08 at 23:04

If you knew what a kernel panic was, I'm sure you'd have come up with this solution, however I don't believe it's a duplicate.

A kernel panic is a fatal error in the kernel from which it cannot safely recover. Meaning, restart or shutdown are your two options.

This idea is focused on reporting the kernel panic issue rather than having a friendly error message come up. The problem is that it's impossible for the large majority of users to make any sense out of a kernel panic or to solve the problem themselves unless they can troubleshoot what's causing it (some kind of server, for instance).

You can't actually load anything on top of the kernel if the kernel just isn't working, which means your idea in relation to this would be nice but wouldn't actually work because you can't interact with the operating system at the point of a kernel panic.

Primož Papič wrote on the 29 Jun 08 at 09:33

Thanks this explains a lot!
Then your idea is better than my, I really never encountered kernel panic, so I don't really know how it "works".
I just know that kernel panic is a "programme" that dumps the processes when a fatal error is encountered.

zooounds wrote on the 29 Jun 08 at 14:19

I have never had any kernel panic on any stabel ubuntu release. I think that's a waste of time.

Arnaudus wrote on the 29 Jun 08 at 15:39

Well, it might be great if there were some stats to know exactly how frequently it does happen? I've never frozen a kernel > 2.6, and it's clear that the frequency of such an event is *very* low. However, no one can say that it never happens --in particular, those f*** proprietary drivers we're all encouraged to use can corrupt the kernel. I would really like to have a stat such as "In average, a Ubuntu installed on a regular PC experience a kernel panic every 10000 hours". In particular, people generally know that the Windows blue screen happens much more often.

deadowl wrote on the 29 Jun 08 at 18:30

I'm not saying it's going to happen, I'm saying it shouldn't happen, and for the most part it doesn't. But when it does happen, the problem should be looked at immediately by Canonical.

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