Which LINUX Kernel should I use to BOOST Performance?

People wonder which Linux Kernel is best to use to boost performance on your system. Let's talk about the various different available Kernels and what the benchmarks are on Arch Linux.
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[@DarkGT]

While stock kernel is mostly the best solution for the desktop users, the Android users get to experience some different results, because phone makers don't let their kernels to reach full potential.

[@SavvyNik]

Thanks for sharing

[@IIlI396]

Flash a caf kernel with thermal disabled and see (🔥)

[@godnyx117]

Source?

[@Psychx_]

"Performance" can mean different things in different situations. I.e. for a server it probably means IO, request and database throughput, while for an interactive desktop system latency and responsiveness (esp. when the system is under load) are valued more. For gaming it's a middleground kind of thing, where the latest kernels are preferrable on AMD and Intel GPUs. Hence, there'll never be a kernel that is the fastest throughout all test categories. The Arch stock kernel is fine for 90% of people. The 7% that is lazy and wants to game, can use the Zen kernel, and the other 3% that is not lazy and wants to game probably installs the CachyOS kernel. LTS kernels can be very valuable if you have older hardware and don't gain anything from newer kernel features. LTS recieves bugfixes throughout its lifetime, but no feature updates.

[@SavvyNik]

Great summary

[@orwennesfh4813]

I want to use CachyOS kernel, but it will crash my whole system when I start the QEMU virtual machine

[@RealMephres]

The only improvement you'll get from changing Linux kernels is by building your own that has certain features you *don't* need disabled or completely removed, while also removing most unnecessary drivers/modules that you will never use. All of these things and some slight tweaks with what schedulers and other I/O or CPU-related settings you would want to use to gain a bit extra performance will be superior to most other options. It's pretty much cheating in the comparison, but if you want to go that route, it can give proper gains and reduce strain on your system.

[@godnyx117]

Wow! A comment that says the truth isn't liked and popular! Never saw that before...

[@RealMephres]

@@godnyx117 It's really the standard procedure, in all honesty. I'm confused as to why people see this as a surprise.

[@godnyx117]

@@RealMephres Well, people go out to say that you are gonna get performance improvements, so people who never did it expect it to be true? 🤷

[@RealMephres]

@@godnyx117 True enough. I guess the main issue I have is with people who promote the idea that the zen kernel is 100% better than the mainline or stable release kernels, which is only really true in edge cases.

[@godnyx117]

@@RealMephres I have become more "serious" now, and I'm a programmer and I have stopped been obsessed with performance. There are other things to consider as well. Your time been one thing. Experimenting takes time, and it isn't worth it for a 2-3% performance different and that, one edge cases as you said!

[@user-ke1ct7wq4g]

I used to think the LTS kernel is faster, since it eats less memory, and was using that one. Thought there were less binaries than in current linux. Thanks for explaining :)

[@VEKTOR_87]

very good video , pls upload more videos like this about kernels . I started learning Linux 6 months ago and im really interested in learning the linux kernel in depth and also for building for my pc and android device , i use Xanmod 6.1.9 stable as my kernel

[@sTL45oUw]

Admirable reading skills

[@matthiasbendewald1803]

I have 2 Laptops (mine and my daughters one) that I just switched away from zen to the vanilla kernel. Issues with stability are now gone, no noticable performance difference.

[@rafapedziwiatr2386]

Most surprising for me is that every type is the best in some area. Also, after you explained this, I would expect that the realtime will be always the slowest one

[@SavvyNik]

More than likely

[@matiasm.3124]

I like this type of videos about kernels.. maybe you can nake one video for each stable release talking about new features and big fixes.. I think i saw those types of videos in your channel..

[@SavvyNik]

Thanks for the suggestion. Yeah, I’ve done videos similar to that before but only when there’s big changes were made in the kernel. Maybe I can refocus but make a monthly video with the latest updates or something.

[@1Iljo1]

very good and informative video, keep up the good work :D

[@1Iljo1]

the realtime kernel is also better for battery life

[@SavvyNik]

Thanks!

[@SavvyNik]

I can’t say I’ve seen that result before.

[@DJNebaJS]

You just glanced over the first chart, which shows that zen is, by far, the best. When it leads, it leads by a lot, and when it trails it trails by a tiny bit. The second graph shows nothing really meaningful.

[@SavvyNik]

Please look back at the chart because the purple and red overlap each other (stable rolling release and zen) for almost all tests. There are a couple of tests where there’s a slim margin between them but that also goes both ways.

[@DJNebaJS]

@@SavvyNik Yes I see that. And don't get me wrong, I do think it's a very valuable video. It would also be interesting to see how they compare in gaming and realtime audio latency. It would show if zen and realtime kernels are really necessary for those tasks. Thank you!

[@SavvyNik]

Yeah that would be nice to look at specific use case scenarios, because I would venture to say that zen would win out in gaming and audio. The realtime kernel won't make any difference in gaming and audio. More than likely it'll make things worse because the cpu can be preempted (interrupted) to do other tasks which would take away from audio and graphical processing since they're typically of higher priority on most basic kernels. With realtime you get to decide what is prioritized, but the task also has to be optimized to use realtime.

[@DJNebaJS]

Cool. Thanks for the info!

[@woodenbeast9337]

I saw Kernal and thought it was a cooking corn show. Het J/l Your channel is great. I want a kernal that is for OBS live streaming from your own server

[@SavvyNik]

lol

[@tandlose]

Isn't zen kernel for responsiveness and latency? Which wouldn't show up on this benchmark but does make your desktop feel faster

[@SavvyNik]

I’m not sure what you mean by latency but if you’re describing the time it takes for a processor to get an instruction before it acts on the instruction (a typical definition) then the benchmarks show there’s no real general performance boost. I did say in specific scenarios zen performs better but this is solely based on what zen developers want to focus on. Such as maybe a more responsive desktop.

[@tandlose]

@@SavvyNik ye sure but in the video it sounded like what they focused on was some small niece things, but i think everyone appreciates a responsive desktop. Basically these 100% cpu load for several minutes benchmarks dont accurately represents how it feels to use a computer. If my computer is 5% slower in all core workloads but significantly more responsive, id still say its faster. But great video anyway

[@SavvyNik]

I don’t agree. Those are 100 stress tests that run for extended period of time. Testing everything from memory, cpu, gpu, and storage. How else do you benchmark a system? Look up phoronix tools because it’s one of the staples in benchmarking and I think you’ll have a better understanding of how this is a decent representation of resource usage based on kernel.

[@Johnscompany]

i use kubuntu with a RT kernel, for music production, and when i put the kernel normal, the only difference that i see its on rt kernel its a better but no so much lower audio latency when I did recorded music, but on other things, the normal stable kernel it feels better. the responsive from the windows animations and things like that its a little better.

[@killzone3507]

there are also cachyos kernel which increase performance because of their schedulers

[@SouthFacedWindows]

So when you enable Zen kernel during the installation process on Arch it becomes the default kernel.

[@letmedwight]

Whats about this new 6.10 kernel? I heard a lot of news about it, with large performance improvements.

[@bobbyjohnson116]

CachyOS is pretty sweet!

[@jamegumb7298]

Just recompile if the little things matter that much. If it can be left out, leave it out, if you need it, put it in not as module if possible. Not liker ystems hurt for ram these days. Tune every detail for your system.

[@oraz.]

Number of first place finishes could be deceptive. It doesn't say anything about the magnitude of difference overall.

[@guilherme5094]

👍

[@jordan2869]

New to linux here just started a few weeks ago. I have made a custom kernel for my mini pc M93P Thinkcentre, I compiled 6.1.8 Stable on Linux Mint 20.3. Do I need to keep updating each time there is a new release? I noticed there is now a 6.1.9 Stable.

[@SavvyNik]

I personally wouldn't bother unless you find that you're missing something driver wise / you need some sort of a vulnerability update that may effect your hardware.

[@jordan2869]

@@SavvyNik thanks, as I had already started compiling the new 6.1 .9. I think I will finish making that build and leave it there for a while. I noticed 6.1.8 is not even on kernelorg anymore?

[@AkosiJeThro]

Heroic games launcher won't on linux hardened kernel

[@Sweetfart444]

why is it my ram and ssd getting soo hot even when the laptop is idle? my battery and cpu side is much cooler than the ram and ssd side

[@TsjuunTze]

In my humble opinion the LTS is fastest. More important for me personal is that it also provides the best mix between secutity and stability. Thank you!

[@SavvyNik]

Yeah I think that applies to most people. Unless for some reason they’re keeping up with the latest and greatest in hardware

[@VollkinSea]

​@@SavvyNikeither that or if someone is using nonstandard hardware, sometimes LTS may just not have the support yet for certain laptops or other specialized devices, requiring a more up to date kernel for better compatibility, performance, and ironically, stability.

[@greatwavefan397]

Is there a kernel for low power usage?

[@LovecraftianGodsKiller]

Not really. It all comes down to what you are running for say your desktop environment, or window manager. Like if you use gnome and have quite a few extensions the power usage is going to be considerably higher. Or if you use KDE and have quite a few widgets and applets that refresh very often the power usage is also going to be higher. You could install auto-cpufreq (exact name of the package available from the aur) which will automatically set your CPU to a higher or lower frequency depending on what you are doing and will allow the CPU to run at full power when your computer is plugged into a power source.

[@aiisnice1453]

switch to arm?

[@bhaijaan7052]

I have poco x3 pro Android Wich is best for gaming performance Kali nethunter kernel or kangaroo kernel? Please reply

[@TheKevinGDX]

???

[@bhaijaan7052]

@@TheKevinGDX wich kernel is best performance in gaming? Kangaroo kernel or Kali net hunter kernel?

[@shringe9769]

If you use a dual-kernel configuration like me, you can find a good balance for performance, and use one of the many tools out there to custom compile a kernel with the best of both worlds.

[@OneTwoThreeFour56]

​@@bhaijaan7052 This video is about kernels on desktop linux and not android.

[@Akronn]

​@@OneTwoThreeFour56Yeah lmao. On android, you can't freely switch kernel versions or patch levels.

[@Aoitori365]

Not everyone uses arch

[@Akronn]

i use arch btw

[@slavic_commonwealth]

i use arch too, btw.

[@user-rc6mw9ju6m]

your icon seems like arch btw

[@oni741]

@@user-rc6mw9ju6m his icon looks like this Ⓐ btw 😂[LOL]

[@louisthomas8130]

Garuda might have seemed a little snappier with zen. But lts causes much less trouble