mkinitrd fails with error message "awk: cmd. line:2: fatal: match: third argument is a gawk extension".

Solution Unverified - Updated -

Issue

  • Following actions produces inconsistent initrd image file and complains during the process:

    • yum update kernel\*
    • yum install kernel
    • mkinitrd -f /boot/initrd-`uname -r` `uname -r`

  • RHEL 4

"awk: cmd. line:2: fatal: match: third argument is a gawk extension"
  • RHEL 5
"awk: (FILENAME=- FNR=1) fatal: function `gensub' not defined"

Environment

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5

Subscriber exclusive content

A Red Hat subscription provides unlimited access to our knowledgebase of over 48,000 articles and solutions.

Current Customers and Partners

Log in for full access

Log In

New to Red Hat?

Learn more about Red Hat subscriptions

Close

Welcome! Check out the Getting Started with Red Hat page for quick tours and guides for common tasks.