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- <sect1 id="ch01-how">
- <title>How things are going to be done</title>
- <?dbhtml filename="how.html" dir="chapter01"?>
- <para>You are going to build your LFS system by using a previously installed
- Linux distribution (such as Debian, Mandrake, Red Hat, or SuSE). This existing
- Linux system (the host) will be used as a starting point, because you will need
- programs like a compiler, linker and shell to build the new system. Normally
- all the required tools are available if you selected <quote>development</quote>
- as one of the options when you installed your distribution.</para>
- <para>In Chapter 3 you will first create a new Linux native partition and file
- system, the place where your new LFS system will be compiled and installed. Then
- in Chapter 4 you download all the packages and patches required to build an LFS
- system, and store them on the new file system.</para>
- <para>Chapter 5 will then discuss the installation of a number of packages that
- will form the basic development suite (or toolchain) which is used to build the
- actual system in Chapter 6. Some of these packages are needed to resolve
- circular dependencies. For example, to compile a compiler you need a
- compiler.</para>
- <para>The first thing to be done in Chapter 5 is build a first pass of the
- toolchain, which is made up of Binutils and GCC. The programs from these
- packages will be linked statically in order for them to be used independently
- of the host system. The second thing to do is build Glibc, the C library. Glibc
- will be compiled by the toolchain programs we just built in the first
- pass. The third thing to do is build a second pass of the toolchain. This time
- the toolchain will be dynamically linked against the newly built Glibc. The
- remaining Chapter 5 packages are all built using this second pass toolchain and
- dynamically linked against the new host-independent Glibc. When this is done,
- the LFS installation process will no longer depend on the host distribution,
- with the exception of the running kernel.</para>
- <para>You may be asking yourself <quote>that seems like a lot of work, just to
- get away from my host distribution?</quote>. A full technical and in-depth
- explanation is provided at the start of Chapter 5, including some notes on the
- differences between statically and dynamically linked programs.</para>
- <para>In Chapter 6 your real LFS system will be built. The chroot (change root)
- program is used to enter a virtual environment and start a new shell whose root
- directory will be set to the LFS partition. This is very similar to rebooting
- and instructing the kernel to mount the LFS partition as the root partition.
- The reason that you don't actually reboot, but instead chroot, is that creating
- a bootable system requires additional work which isn't necessary just yet.
- Another advantage is that chrooting allows you to continue using the host while
- LFS is being built. While waiting for package compilation to complete, you can
- simply switch to a different VC (Virtual Console) or X desktop and continue
- using the computer as you normally would.</para>
- <para>When all the software from Chapter 6 is installed, the temporary tools
- built in Chapter 5 are removed. In Chapters 7, 8 and 9 the installation will
- then be finalized. The bootscripts are set up in Chapter 7, the kernel and
- bootloader are set up in Chapter 8, and Chapter 9 has some pointers to help
- you after you finish the book. Then, finally, you're ready to reboot your
- computer into your new LFS system.</para>
- <para>This is the process in a nutshell. Detailed information on the steps you
- will take are discussed in the chapters and package descriptions as you
- progress through them. If something isn't completely clear now, don't worry,
- everything will fall into place soon.</para>
- <para>Please read Chapter 2 carefully as it explains a few important things you
- should be aware of before you begin to work through Chapters 5 and
- beyond.</para>
- </sect1>
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