about virtualbox, linux-headers and build-essential

[fdelval]

Hello all!,

New here, but i have been following heaps of good tutorials.

This time, i got a doubt about this one:
http://www.howtoforge.com/vboxheadle...tu-9.04-server

In the line referring to the virtualbox instalation:

sudo aptitude install linux-headers-$(uname -r) build-essential virtualbox-3.0 dkms


The question is, what are linux-headers used for, and what is build-essential for?

Thank you

[till]

Linux headers are the development files that are nescessary to build / compile kernel modules.

[fdelval]

Hello till,

Then i guess that build-essentials are necessary for linux-headers.

I have seen another how-to's which didnt specified about those commands.
Are they really important? having in mind that DKMS package is not available in debian (not in an easy way), are they necessary?

[till]

Are they really important? having in mind that DKMS package is not available in debian (not in an easy way), are they necessary?

Yes. Otherwise they wont be listed in the tutorial. Some other titorial might assume that you have installed a build enviroment before or that you installed a full debian system with all packages selected and not a minimal install as we assume in the howtoforge tutorials.

[fdelval]

and when are they necessary? always? or for some programs like vbox?

how to differenciate them?