[WBEL-users] kernel-2.4.21-27.0.1.EL, re-compiling to support network bridging

[keith morse]

I'm hoping to get some feedback from list members.  My goal is to setup 
a host with three network interfaces (eth0, eth1, eth2) and have the 
eth1 and eth2 be used for a bridging firewall, with eth0 being used as 
the management interface.

In reviewing the config files for the above kernel source package it 
appears as though bridging should be enabled by support in the stock 
kernel. But any time I issue a "brctl" command I get the following message.

	br_add_bridge: Package not installed

When searching on google the items I find hints that bridging is not 
setup in the kernel and the bridge module is not loaded.  If I do a:

	"find /lib/modules -iname "*bridge*""

there are no resulting hits.

I've tried recompiling the kernel thusly:

	rpm -ivh kernel-2.4.21-27.0.1.EL.src.rpm
	cd /usr/src/redhat
	vi SOURCES/kernel-2.4.21-i686.config
		to verify that bridging is turned on in the kernel
		in fact,
			grep -i bridg SOURCES/kernel-2.4.21-i686.config
		results in
			CONFIG_BRIDGE=m
			CONFIG_BRIDGE_NF=y

	rpmbuild -ba --target i686 SPECS/kernel-2.4.spec

but for some reason the bridge module does not get built.

=========================================================================

I started the above this morning.  Subsequently I did find the answer in 
  a forum on www.linuxhelp.net by hughesjr.  All I really needed to do 
was install kernel-unsupported which contained the bridge.o I needed. 
Thanks to hughesjr.  Just wanted to post this here for future searches.