Android mobiles have too many versions of things: operating system and its API, security patch, versions of applications and services … Some of these versions are more enigmatic, like kernel version, which you can check in the system settings. What is it?
Although in the vast majority of cases the kernel version of your mobile phone is not relevant to you as a user, curiosity or experiences with Custom ROM can cause you to stumble upon the idea of check or change the core of your mobile Android.
What is the Android kernel
Generally speaking, the kernel is basically the kernel of the operating system, so we have one in the vast majority of systems. In Android mobiles a modified version of Linux kernel, a monolithic kernel where all the work takes place in kernel space, unlike micronuclei like those in HarmonyOS.
Simply put, the kernel is responsible for connecting hardware components and applications, with a few steps in between. In the nucleus are the drivers for components such as display, audio, integrated cameras or energy management.
Android architecture, with the Android kernel at its core
The kernel takes care of manage CPU resources, memory, file systems and basically all the most basic tasks required for the operation of the mobile, including the processes of each application.
On Android, the Linux kernel is used, which is “clipped” from what does not apply to cell phones and then adds relevant components, both by Google and by the manufacturers. As a result, the kernel versions that we have on mobiles tend to go well behind the last one for Linux, although that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
The core of an Android mobile communicates with the hardware of the mobile and is much like the brain of the mobile
The original kernel ends with changes from Google, Qualcomm, Samsung, and more, which is an odd headache in the face of updates to the kernel itself, which hardly ever come. This is why Google raised the idea of create a generic kernel for android, on which custom modules are added for each case. At the moment this is just an idea.
In short, the core is simply the most basic part of the operating system, one that communicates directly with the hardware, including memory management and the processor. Android uses a highly customized Linux kernel which is rarely updated even after receiving a new version of Android.
How to know the mobile kernel version
Unlike the Android version, the kernel version we have in the mobile It is not too important for the users, because updating it is not something that will necessarily bring us any benefits. Yes, in some cases we might benefit from fixes in a later release, but the mobile kernel itself is changed so much that it is possible that they were not affected by the error in the first place.
However, you will find the data in the mobile settings, in the section of Device Info. Here, each layer of Android includes the data in a slightly different place, so you’ll always have to use the search engine at the top in case you can’t find it. It appears next to data such as the baseband version, in the section Kernel version.
Three different mobiles with three different core versions
While the Linux kernel has already passed version 5.0, the most common today will be a 4.x or 3.x version. The latter have become somewhat of a classic, since for many years the most common versions were 3.4, 3.10 and 3.18. As we mentioned earlier, having an “old” version is not necessarily a bad thing, although it can be useful to know if you are playing with the ROM on your mobile.
Third-party kernels
One of the best-known kernels is the kernel, with a corresponding application (also valid for other kernels)
Just as you can – in some cases – install a totally different version of Android on your mobile with a custom ROM, you can also modify the mobile core, in the same way. That is, with root in between, patience, another ADB command, help from XDA and TWRP forums or similar.
Besides installing a custom ROM, you can also change the kernel of the mobile for a third party
The custom kernel ecosystem is still very much alive, with several active projects such as ElementalX, blu_spark or Sultan Kernel. Some of these cores focus on increase mobile performance, other battery usage and there are those who simply give the user more options to adjust the settings as they wish instead of depending on what has been preset at the factory.
Change the mobile core at his riskincluding looping or clamping the phone, and while it’s technically possible to bring it back to life by reinstalling the original kernel, it also requires knowledge and practice. The one-line summary is that changing the core of the mobile to a custom one can have its benefits for advanced users, and those who maybe don’t do better to abstain.
