--- title: Linux Kernel Developers Considering Removal Of KGDB... description: Linux kernel developer Peter Zijlstra has proposed removing KGDB, the kernel debugging feature merged back in Linux 2.6.26 in 2008. KGDB requires a second... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/linux-kernel-developers-considering-removal-of-kgdb-debugging-functionality-uzotwwrny twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Linux Kernel Developers Considering Removal Of KGDB Debugging Functionality | daily.dev og:description: Linux kernel developer Peter Zijlstra has proposed removing KGDB, the kernel debugging feature merged back in Linux 2.6.26 in 2008. KGDB requires a second... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/linux-kernel-developers-considering-removal-of-kgdb-debugging-functionality-uzotwwrny og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/uzOTWWRnY.png og:image:alt: Linux Kernel Developers Considering Removal Of KGDB Debugging Functionality og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Linux Kernel Developers Considering Removal Of KGDB Debugging Functionality **[Phoronix](https://daily.dev/sources/phoronix)** · 2 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Linux kernel developer Peter Zijlstra has proposed removing KGDB, the kernel debugging feature merged back in Linux 2.6.26 in 2008. KGDB requires a second computer connected via serial or network cable and isn't widely used anymore. Zijlstra argues virtualization makes it unnecessary, recommending QEMU's gdb-server instead. He says KGDB stays stuck in NMI context, can break timekeeping code, trigger watchdogs, and causes problems with code patching and breakpoints. One suggestion is to disable it via Kconfig first and remove it a few releases later. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Why are Linux kernel developers removing KGDB? Peter Zijlstra proposed removing KGDB because virtualization now makes it unnecessary, recommending QEMU's gdb-server instead. He argues KGDB causes serious problems: it gets stuck in NMI context, can break timekeeping code, trigger watchdogs, and creates ongoing issues with code patching and breakpoints. He says it's barely used, having tried it himself only once in about 20 years. _Kernel maintainers weighing tooling changes like this can follow the debate on daily.dev._ ### What should I use instead of KGDB to debug the Linux kernel? QEMU's gdb-server is recommended as the cleaner alternative to KGDB for kernel debugging. Unlike KGDB, which requires a second physical computer connected via serial or network cable, QEMU's gdb-server works through virtualization, avoiding the null-modem cable setup and the NMI-context problems KGDB introduces. _Developers choosing a kernel debugging setup can track tooling shifts like this on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Linux Dropping Old Drivers, AI Detected Vulnerabilities & Other Kernel Highlights Of Q2](https://daily.dev/posts/linux-dropping-old-drivers-ai-detected-vulnerabilities-other-kernel-highlights-of-q2-knezzxntg) · Phoronix · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [What gdb frontend do you prefer \(linux\)](https://daily.dev/posts/what-gdb-frontend-do-you-prefer-linux--veesuqfem) · Lobsters · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [How a Kernel Bug Froze My Machine: Debugging an Async-profiler Deadlock](https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-kernel-bug-froze-my-machine-debugging-an-async-profiler-deadlock-mnkvo9jw7) · Hacker News · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#linux](https://daily.dev/tags/linux) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/linux-kernel-developers-considering-removal-of-kgdb-debugging-functionality-uzotwwrny) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Linux Kernel Developers Considering Removal Of KGDB Debugging Functionality","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/linux-kernel-developers-considering-removal-of-kgdb-debugging-functionality-uzotwwrny","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/linux-kernel-developers-considering-removal-of-kgdb-debugging-functionality-uzotwwrny"},"datePublished":"2026-10-28T19:26:23.402Z","dateModified":"2026-10-28T19:42:23.014Z","description":"Linux kernel developer Peter Zijlstra has proposed removing KGDB, the kernel debugging feature merged back in Linux 2.6.26 in 2008. 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