Program Overview

This course is designed to equip aspiring engineers with the knowledge and skills required to develop character device drivers in the Linux environment. Through a blend of theory and practical application, participants will learn about the Linux kernel, device driver architecture, and the essential techniques for developing, testing, and debugging character device drivers.

* Aspiring engineers with 0 to 1 years of relevant experience interested in kernel development or low-level programming.
* Computer science students seeking practical experience in device driver development.
* Junior software developers looking to specialize in Linux kernel programming.

* 20 sessions of 1 hour each.

* The course will conclude with a hands-on project that involves developing a character device driver using C, Linux Internals, Linux command-line tools, and Bash scripting.

Participants will:

* Understand the architecture of the Linux kernel and its module programming.
* Learn the fundamentals of device driver development, focusing on character devices.
* Gain practical experience with kernel module programming, including device registration, file operations, and communication between user space and kernel space.
* Master debugging and testing techniques specific to Linux kernel modules and device drivers.
* Complete a project that demonstrates their ability to develop a fully functional Linux character device driver.

* Basic knowledge of C programming.
* Familiarity with Linux/UNIX command-line interfaces.
* Understanding of fundamental programming concepts and data structures.

* The candidate should hava already finished following training modules...

* Module.000: Linux System Administration...
* Project.001.C Programming and Data Structures on Linux...
* Module.011: Shell Scripting using Bash...
* Project.003: Linux System Programming...

Introduction to Linux Kernel Development

Overview of the Linux kernel, kernel space vs. user space, and the role of device drivers.

Setting Up the Development Environment

Configuring a Linux development environment, including necessary tools and kernel sources.

Basics of Kernel Modules

Writing, compiling, inserting, and removing kernel modules.

Introduction to Device Drivers

Role of device drivers, types of device drivers, and the structure of a character device driver.

Character Device Registration

Allocating device numbers, registering a device, and making device table ebtries.

Character Device Classes

The Kbuild Beast. 
Kernel Makefiles vs User-Space Makefiles 
The Kbuild System: The Engine Behind the Linux Kernel 
The device Class. class_create 
The device Class. device_create 
Injecting DNA into a Living Kernel Module 
Hands-On Lab: The Blowhard Module

File Operations in Device Drivers

implementing open and close operations.

Implementing read, write, trim, seek operations.

Debugging Tools for Linux Character Device Drivers

Logging and Message Tools : 

The Modern Arsenal 
Detailed Breakdown of pr_* Macros 
The dev_* Logging Macros 
The dmesg Utility and the Kernel Ring Buffer 
pr_debug()

Filesystem-Based Interfaces: 

Introduction to debugfs 
Implementation of debugfs 

Tracing and Profiling:

Tracing Linux Drivers with ftrace
trace-cmd & kernelshark
Reprogramming the Kernel with eBPF & bpftrace

Synchronization and Concurrency in Device Drivers

Understanding race conditions, using mutexes, spinlocks, semaphores, busy-wait, atomic variabls, bitwaise operations, seq_locks, RCU, wait-queues..

Control Operations in Device Drivers

implementing ioctl and proc operations.

Debugging and Testing Device Drivers

Debugging techniques, including printk, kernel debuggers, and user-space debugging tools.

Project Implementation and Completion

Developing a character device driver project with incremental milestones.
Testing and debugging the driver.
Finalizing the project and documentation.

Online: Live interactive sessions via video conferencing platforms for theoretical lessons.
In-person: Hands-on labs and debugging sessions for practical, real-world application.
Hybrid: A combination of online theory classes and in-person or virtual lab sessions for comprehensive learning.

Lectures: Presentations covering both foundational concepts and advanced topics in device driver development.
Hands-On Labs: Real-world programming exercises to develop and test device drivers on Linux.
Reading Assignments: Curated resources, including kernel documentation, programming books, and articles.
Videos: Visual content to supplement learning and demonstrate coding techniques and solutions.

Deliverables

Upon completion of the course, participants will have:

* A strong foundation in C programming tailored to Linux kernel and device driver development.
* Comprehensive knowledge of Linux character device drivers, including how to develop, test, and debug them.
* Proficiency in using Linux command-line tools and Bash scripting for development and automation tasks.
* A project showcasing their ability to create a real-world Linux-based character device driver.

About Character Device Driver Development ...

Training Resources. click here...

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