Genkernel currently generates an initramfs that works for booting into a basic system or as a rescue shell, but it is missing or has incomplete support for "advanced" configurations like encrypted roots, non-standard filesystems, or live media.

There have been some discussions elsewhere about what should and should not be included in an initramfs, and hopefully this improvement request can serve as a central point of discussion about the purpose and requirements of Funtoo's initramfs.

Things that are currently missing are:

• Proper support for encrypted root filesystems.
• Proper support for overlay filesystems required for advanced live media functions.
• Incomplete support for btrfs root filesystems.

Things that are implemented, but potentially unnecessary:

• AUFS support [which requires a non-standard kernel]
• Niche filesystems such as JFS.

Genkernel does a number of things. This issue is not an attempt to address all of them, but only those concerned with the initramfs and bootstrapping.