Debian Kernel Has No Proprietary Firmware
Debian developer Robert Millan is offering an alternative kernel for Debian's Lenny free Linux distro. Unlike the standard Lenny kernel, it contains no proprietary firmware.
In a message on the Debian developer mailing list, Robert Millan referred to the outcome of votes at the end of 2008: Debian developers decided back then that with the release of Debian 5.0 (Lenny), binary firmware would be allowed in the kernel where it wasn't clear if it truly lived up to the Debian Free Software Guidelines (DFSG).
For those developers and users that are used to putting a high value on a Linux distro totally under free licensing, Millan is now making a Debian package archive available with an alternative kernel. It can go into /etc/apt/sources.list as follows:
deb http://people.debian.org/~rmh/linux-libre lenny main
The archive key is signed in Millan's mail or can be extracted from the Web.
The free Lenny kernel is part of the Linux-libre initiative that advocates for 100% free licensed software for Linux distros. One of its supporters is the Free Software Foundation Latin America (FSFLA).
Comments
comments powered by DisqusSubscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
Gnome’s Dash to Panel Extension Gets a Massive Update
If you're a fan of the Gnome Dash to Panel extension, you'll be thrilled to hear that a new version has been released with a dock mode.
-
Blender App Makes it to the Big Screen
The animated film "Flow" won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature at the 97th Academy Awards held on March 2, 2025 and Blender was a part of it.
-
Linux Mint Retools the Cinnamon App Launcher
The developers of Linux Mint are working on an improved Cinnamon App Launcher with a better, more accessible UI.
-
New Linux Tool for Security Issues
Seal Security is launching a new solution to automate fixing Linux vulnerabilities.
-
Ubuntu 25.04 Coming Soon
Ubuntu 25.04 (Plucky Puffin) has been given an April release date with many notable updates.
-
Gnome Developers Consider Dropping RPM Support
In a move that might shock a lot of users, the Gnome development team has proposed the idea of going straight up Flatpak.
-
openSUSE Tumbleweed Ditches AppArmor for SELinux
If you're an openSUSE Tumbleweed user, you can expect a major change to the distribution.
-
Plasma 6.3 Now Available
Plasma desktop v6.3 has a couple of pretty nifty tricks up its sleeve.
-
LibreOffice 25.2 Has Arrived
If you've been hoping for a release that offers more UI customizations, you're in for a treat.
-
TuxCare Has a Big AlmaLinux 9 Announcement in Store
TuxCare announced it has successfully completed a Security Technical Implementation Guide for AlmaLinux OS 9.
how list non-free firmware at Debian
You can find a list of non-free firmware at
http://packages.debian.org/search?keywords=firmware
They are included into the non-free section of the repository, disabled by default at sources.list.
Sometimes, during the installation, one could need the deb files found inside the compressed files at
http://cdimage.debian.org/c...n-free/firmware/lenny/current/
that should be placed into a secondary removable media during the installation (usb, floppy, network, etc).
As general rule, software placed at the non-free section, and sometimes at contrib section, should be installed with conscious decision after analisys.
Regards.
Andre Felipe Machado
http://www.techforce.com.br
Question. .