Description:

The kernel package contains the Linux kernel (vmlinuz), the core of your
Mandriva Linux operating system. The kernel handles the basic functions
of the operating system: memory allocation, process allocation, device
input and output, etc. This kernel is compiled for laptop use, single or
multiple i686 processor(s)/core(s) and less than 4GB RAM, using HZ_100
to save battery, voluntary preempt, CFS cpu scheduler, cfq i/o scheduler
and some other laptop-specific optimizations. If you want to sacrifice
battery life for performance, you better use the kernel-desktop.
This kernel relies on in-kernel smp alternatives to switch between up & smp
mode depending on detected hardware. To force the kernel to boot in single
processor mode, use the "nosmp" boot parameter.

For instructions for update, see:
http://www.mandriva.com/security/kernelupdate