Thanks - that is exactly the problem and solution (if I have to). Last quick question, if I went ahead and installed it by up2date would I lose the added on drivers?
Only if:
(a) the new kernel had the same name as your custom one (unlikely) and hence overwrote it, or
(b) you booted into the new kernel rather than your custom one. But you should still be able to boot back into your custom kernel and get your drivers back.
I'd suggest building your custom kernel RPM first and get that going so that you're comfortable with it. There wouldn't then be any chance of a new kernel overwriting your custom one because RPM won't let you install a new package if it has the same-named file in it as a currently-installed package (this doesn't apply to upgrades but new kernels are always installed rather than upgraded).
If your custom kernel appears to RPM to be "more recent" than the latest official kernel, up2date won't even try to install the official kernel.
Paul.
