Jetson Orin Nano SCTP Kernel

Reproducible native build and safe installation of an SCTP-enabled kernel for the Jetson Orin Nano Developer Kit.

At a glance

Category	Configuration
Target	Jetson Orin Nano Developer Kit
Platform	Jetson Linux R36.4.4 / JetPack 6.2.1
Kernel change	CONFIG_IP_SCTP=m
Build	Native aarch64 build from pinned NVIDIA sources
Boot strategy	Separate oai-sctp entry with the stock primary entry preserved
Purpose	SCTP support with NVIDIA OOT driver compatibility

Why a custom kernel

The stock NVIDIA kernel does not enable SCTP. Applications that rely on SCTP therefore need a custom kernel, while the NVIDIA out-of-tree and display modules must remain aligned with that kernel build.

The scripts therefore build the kernel, in-tree modules, NVIDIA OOT modules, and display modules from one verified source bundle. They also account for the Jetson's memory constraints and preserve a stock boot path.

Built so a Jetson Orin Nano can run an OpenAirInterface 5G DU, whose F1-C interface runs over SCTP. See kaust-5G-research.

Quick start

Requirements: a Jetson Orin Nano running Jetson Linux R36.4.4 / JetPack 6.2.1, internet access, sudo, sufficient free storage, and a serial-console or filesystem recovery path before activating the custom kernel.

git clone https://github.com/promaaa/jetson-kernel-sctp.git
cd jetson-kernel-sctp

./scripts/build_kernel.sh
./scripts/install_kernel.sh

The first install preserves the current default boot entry. Review /boot/extlinux/extlinux.conf and its timestamped backup, then activate the custom entry when ready:

./scripts/install_kernel.sh --activate
sudo reboot
./scripts/verify_kernel.sh

Commands

Task	Command
Build the kernel and modules	./scripts/build_kernel.sh
Install without changing the default entry	./scripts/install_kernel.sh
Install and select the custom entry	./scripts/install_kernel.sh --activate
Verify after reboot	./scripts/verify_kernel.sh
Check shell scripts	shellcheck scripts/*.sh tests/*.sh
Test boot-entry updates	tests/extlinux.test.sh

Pinned inputs

sources.env records the Jetson Linux and JetPack versions, official NVIDIA source URL, archive size, SHA-256 checksum, and custom kernel local version.

The build verifies the archive before extraction. If NVIDIA changes the bytes at the same URL, it stops until the source pin is reviewed and updated deliberately.

The default external workspace is ~/jetson-kernel-build. Override build settings without changing the repository:

Variable	Default	Purpose
JETSON_KERNEL_WORKSPACE	~/jetson-kernel-build	Downloads, extracted sources, and build records
JETSON_KERNEL_BUILD_JOBS	4	Parallel build jobs
JETSON_KERNEL_SWAP_FILE	/swapfile_build	Dedicated build swapfile
JETSON_KERNEL_SWAP_SIZE_GB	4	Build swapfile size

Example:

JETSON_KERNEL_WORKSPACE=/mnt/nvme/jetson-kernel-build \
  ./scripts/build_kernel.sh

The build derives the final release with make kernelrelease and writes source, compiler, package, and kernel-release metadata to build-inputs.txt beside the external source tree.

Installation safeguards

• Installs a versioned kernel image and initrd instead of replacing the stock files.
• Preserves the stock primary boot entry.
• Creates a timestamped backup of extlinux.conf.
• Adds or updates one idempotent oai-sctp entry.
• Changes the default entry only when --activate is supplied.

Do not activate the custom kernel without a tested recovery path.

Rollback

At boot, select the stock primary entry. If SSH still works, restore it as the default and reboot:

sudo sed -i 's/^DEFAULT.*/DEFAULT primary/' /boot/extlinux/extlinux.conf
sudo reboot

If the board does not reach userspace, use the serial console or mount the boot filesystem on another host and restore the timestamped extlinux.conf backup.

Validation

Repository checks validate the shell scripts, pinned source metadata, and boot-entry transformation without compiling the Jetson kernel in CI:

shellcheck scripts/*.sh tests/*.sh
tests/extlinux.test.sh

After boot, verify_kernel.sh confirms the expected kernel-release marker, loads the SCTP module, queries SCTP support, and checks NVIDIA userspace.