This FAQ should be a short term one, not worth adding to lkml faq.
Q. Why does make modules_install flag all symbols as missing?
make modules_install
...
depmod -ae -F /boot/System.map-2.4.19 2.4.19
All symbols are reported as missing.
A. binutils 2.12.90.0.15 changed the format of the output from the nm
command and broke modutils. You need modutils >= 2.4.17 if you are
running binutils >= 2.12.90.0.15.
For the curious, the symbol type for kstrtab and ksymtab in System.map
has been '?' since modules were added. binutils 2.12.90.0.15 changed
the symbol type to 'R'.