Install and Manage Multiple Kernels on Arch Linux

There are a few different kernel options available. Here is how you can install some of them.

Stable kernel - default, primary kernel:

pacman -Sy linux linux-headers

LTS kernel - Long term supported kernel:

pacman -Sy linux-lts linux-lts-headers

Hardened kernel - This kernel is more secure. It has had patches applied to harden it:

pacman -Sy linux-hardened linux-hardened-headers

Zen kernel - This is faster and provides better performance than the default, stable kernel:

pacman -Sy linux-zen linux-zen-headers

Regenerate the grub config file:

grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

Next reboot:

reboot

When the system boots up you will need to select the kernel you want from the grub menu. It is a submenu item.

• Select “Advanced options for Arch Linux”.
• Select the kernel you want

Remove Linux Kernels on Arch Linux

You can remove any of these kernels with these commands. Remove whichever of these that you installled:

pacman -Rsu linux linux-headers
pacman -Rsu linux-lts linux-lts-headers
pacman -Rsu linux-hardened linux-hardened-headers
pacman -Rsu linux-zen linux-zen-headers

Regenerate your grub config and reboot:

grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg
reboot