plano

   1 intro
   2         linux
   3                 version history/evolution DO?
   4                 modules
   5                 constant change, book is already outdated
   6                 current versioning/development model
   7                 build dependencies
   8                 running new/bleeding-edge kernels
   9
  10 concepts
  11         kernel/user space
  12                 rings/levels/modes
  13                 memory protection/segmentation/pagination
  14                 library calls
  15                 allowed uses (floating point forbidden)
  16         libc/system calls
  17         operating system functions
  18                 process management
  19                         concurrency
  20                         communication/IPC, scheduling
  21                 memory management
  22                         address space
  23                         virtual memory
  24                 filesystems
  25                 networking
  26                 device, I/O
  27         robustness/security
  28                 error checking
  29                 kernel space code
  30                 programming errors and bugs
  31                 restrict some operations to privileged users
  32                 do not send unzeored data (information leak)
  33                 do not trust received data (malformed data) (exploit)
  34                 risks for the machine/system/data
  35
  36 basics
  37         Makefile
  38         Kconfig DO?
  39         building linux DO?
  40         build
  41         init/exit
  42         module macros
  43         module parameters
  44         config/build time options/parameters
  45         sysfs interface for modules DO?
  46         printk
  47
  48 VFS
  49         center/hub/interface
  50         char/block/procfs/sysfs: all go through VFS to device
  51         fops is the main structure in linux
  52         FS on top of block devices
  53                 block layer
  54                 exception: some on top of MTD devices
  55
  56 device driver subsystem
  57         buses
  58         device classes
  59         interfaces
  60                 dev file
  61                 sysfs
  62                 procfs
  63                 sysctl DO?
  64                 netlink DO?
  65
  66 char device
  67 procfs
  68 sysfs
  69 block device DO? STUDY
  70 network device DO? STUDY
  71 terminal/serial device DO? STUDY
  72
  73 debugging techniques
  74         printk/procfs
  75         debugfs DO? STUDY
  76         kgdb DO?
  77         trace DO?
  78         kprobe DO?
  79
  80 C basics
  81         container_of (struct embedding)
  82         fops/*ops (function pointers)
  83         IS_ERR (pointers and error values)
  84
  85 data structures
  86         list_head
  87         bitmap
  88         trees DO? STUDY rbtree
  89         idr DO?
  90         any hash implementation DO? STUDY
  91
  92 contexts
  93         user context (current, copy_from_user, schedule) STUDY schedule
  94         interrupt context
  95         workqueue is user context
  96         sleep == schedule
  97
  98 concurrency
  99         SMP systems
 100         locking
 101         spinlock: disable scheduler
 102         semaphore/mutex sleeps
 103         per-cpu variables STUDY
 104         atomic
 105         RCU DO?
 106
 107 memory allocation
 108         kobject refcount MENTION
 109         slab STUDY
 110                 multiple implementations
 111                 space efficient (tables for different object sizes)
 112                 concurrency efficient (per-cpu tables)
 113         kmalloc
 114                 uses slab STUDY
 115         vmalloc
 116                 linux memory layout
 117
 118 scheduling/timing
 119         schedule{,_timeout}
 120         timer
 121         workqueue
 122         completion/wait_head
 123         tasklets DO? STUDY
 124
 125 portability
 126         readl/writel/etc
 127         be16_to_cpu/etc
 128
 129 interrupt
 130         {request,free}_irq
 131         interrupt context
 132         tasklet/workqueue/postpone
 133
 134 buses
 135         PCI bus DO?
 136         USB bus DO?
 137         some bus: SPI, I2C, parport DO?
 138
 139 device classes
 140         some class: cdrom, backlight, input, misc DO?
 141
 142 kobject DO? advanced
 143         refcounting
 144
 145 STUDY:
 146         module owner, concurrency, reference counting