1 Introduction
The Linux Kernel Module Programming Guide is a free book; you may repro-
duce and/or modify it under the terms of the Open Software License, version
3.0.
This book is distributed in the hope that it would be useful, but without
any warranty, without even the implied warranty of merchantability or fitness
for a particular purpose.
The author encourages wide distribution of this book for personal or com-
mercial use, provided the above copyright notice remains intact and the method
adheres to the provisions of the Open Software License. In summary, you may
copy and distribute this book free of charge or for a profit. No explicit permis-
sion is required from the author for reproduction of this book in any medium,
physical or electronic.
Derivative works and translations of this document must be placed un-
der the Open Software License, and the original copyright notice must remain
intact. If you have contributed new material to this book, you must make
the material and source code available for your revisions. Please make revi-
sions and updates available directly to the document maintainer, Jim Huang
<jserv@ccns.ncku.edu.tw>. This will allow for the merging of updates and
provide consistent revisions to the Linux community.
If you publish or distribute this book commercially, donations, royalties,
and/or printed copies are greatly appreciated by the author and the Linux
Documentation Project (LDP). Contributing in this way shows your support for
free software and the LDP. If you have questions or comments, please contact
the address above.
1.1 Authorship
The Linux Kernel Module Programming Guide was initially authored by Ori
Pomerantz for Linux v2.2. As the Linux kernel evolved, Ori’s availability to
maintain the document diminished. Consequently, Peter Jay Salzman assumed
the role of maintainer and updated the guide for Linux v2.4. Similar constraints
arose for Peter when tracking developments in Linux v2.6, leading to Michael
Burian joining as a co-maintainer to bring the guide up to speed with Linux v2.6.
Bob Mottram contributed to the guide by updating examples for Linux v3.8 and
later. Jim Huang then undertook the task of updating the guide for recent Linux
versions (v5.0 and beyond), along with revising the LaTeX document.
1.2 Acknowledgements
The following people have contributed corrections or good suggestions:
Andy Shevchenko, Arush Sharma, Benno Bielmeier, Bob Lee, Brad Baker,
Che-Chia Chang, Chih-En Lin, Chih-Hsuan Yang, Chih-Yu Chen, Ching-Hua
(Vivian) Lin, Chin Yik Ming, Cyril Brulebois, Daniele Paolo Scarpazza, David
