sworkflow

Streamlined Linux Kernel Compilation Tool

sworkflow (sw) is an automated kernel compilation tool designed to streamline the process of compiling the Linux kernel and significantly reduce the overhead involved in setting up the development environment.

Features

• Device-specific build configurations
• Cross-compiler management for ARM64/ARM32/x86
• Clang/LLVM build support
• DTBO image generation
• AnyKernel3 packaging integration
• Interactive config generation

Installation

From Debian Package (Recommended)

Download the latest .deb from Releases:

sudo dpkg -i sworkflow_*.deb
sudo apt-get install -f  # Install dependencies if needed

From Source (User Install)

Installs to ~/.local/ - no root required:

git clone https://github.com/sworkflow-project/sworkflow.git
cd sworkflow
make install

Ensure ~/.local/bin is in your PATH:

export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"

From Source (System-wide)

Installs to /usr/:

git clone https://github.com/sworkflow-project/sworkflow.git
cd sworkflow
sudo make install

Uninstall

make uninstall        # Remove user installation
sudo make uninstall   # Remove system installation

Dependencies

Required:

• bash (>= 4.0)
• python3
• git
• make

Recommended (for kernel building):

• build-essential
• bc, flex, bison
• libssl-dev, libelf-dev

Optional:

• clang (for LLVM builds)
• device-tree-compiler (for DTBO)

Usage

sw <command> [device]

Commands

Command	Description
sw build <device>	Build kernel for specified device
sw doctor [device]	Show available configs and current settings
sw init	Generate new device configuration
sw help	Display help message
sw version	Display version

Examples

Build kernel for a device:

cd /path/to/kernel-source
sw build mainline

Generate a new device config:

sw init

Man Page

After installation, view the full manual:

man sw

Configuration

Device configurations are stored as shell scripts named sworkflow.<device>.config.

Search order:

1. /etc/sworkflow/ (system installation)
2. ~/.local/sw/configs/ (user installation)
3. Current directory
4. ./configs/ subdirectory

Configuration Variables

Variable	Description
device_arch	Target architecture (arm64, x86_64)
kernel_defconfig	Kernel defconfig file
cross_compile	Cross-compiler prefix
cross_compile_arm32	32-bit ARM cross-compiler
use_clang	Use Clang/LLVM (set to 1)
do_modules	Install kernel modules
create_dtbo	Create DTBO image
do_anykernel	Package with AnyKernel3

See configs/sworkflow_template.config for all options.

Building Debian Package

sudo apt-get install devscripts debhelper shellcheck
dpkg-buildpackage -us -uc -b

The package will be created in the parent directory.

Development

make tests          # Run all tests
make format         # Format scripts
make docs           # Build documentation
make docs-clean     # Clean documentation build
make help           # Show all targets

Project Structure

sworkflow/
├── sw                 # Main executable
├── src/               # Source modules
├── configs/           # Device configurations
├── utils/             # Python utilities (mkdtboimg.py)
├── man/               # Man pages
├── docs/              # Sphinx documentation
├── debian/            # Debian packaging
├── tests/             # Test scripts
└── Makefile           # Build system

License

GPL-3.0-or-later

Copyright (c) 2019 Saalim Quadri

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please check issues for a good starting point.

Links

• Documentation
• Issues
• Releases