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Diffstat (limited to 'Documentation/tty/tty_ldisc.rst')
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diff --git a/Documentation/tty/tty_ldisc.rst b/Documentation/tty/tty_ldisc.rst new file mode 100644 index 000000000000..5144751be804 --- /dev/null +++ b/Documentation/tty/tty_ldisc.rst @@ -0,0 +1,85 @@ +.. SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0 + +=================== +TTY Line Discipline +=================== + +.. contents:: :local: + +TTY line discipline process all incoming and outgoing character from/to a tty +device. The default line discipline is :doc:`N_TTY <n_tty>`. It is also a +fallback if establishing any other discipline for a tty fails. If even N_TTY +fails, N_NULL takes over. That never fails, but also does not process any +characters -- it throws them away. + +Registration +============ + +Line disciplines are registered with tty_register_ldisc() passing the ldisc +structure. At the point of registration the discipline must be ready to use and +it is possible it will get used before the call returns success. If the call +returns an error then it won’t get called. Do not re-use ldisc numbers as they +are part of the userspace ABI and writing over an existing ldisc will cause +demons to eat your computer. You must not re-register over the top of the line +discipline even with the same data or your computer again will be eaten by +demons. In order to remove a line discipline call tty_unregister_ldisc(). + +Heed this warning: the reference count field of the registered copies of the +tty_ldisc structure in the ldisc table counts the number of lines using this +discipline. The reference count of the tty_ldisc structure within a tty counts +the number of active users of the ldisc at this instant. In effect it counts +the number of threads of execution within an ldisc method (plus those about to +enter and exit although this detail matters not). + +.. kernel-doc:: drivers/tty/tty_ldisc.c + :identifiers: tty_register_ldisc tty_unregister_ldisc + +Other Functions +=============== + +.. kernel-doc:: drivers/tty/tty_ldisc.c + :identifiers: tty_set_ldisc tty_ldisc_flush + +Line Discipline Operations Reference +==================================== + +.. kernel-doc:: include/linux/tty_ldisc.h + :identifiers: tty_ldisc_ops + +Driver Access +============= + +Line discipline methods can call the methods of the underlying hardware driver. +These are documented as a part of struct tty_operations. + +TTY Flags +========= + +Line discipline methods have access to :c:member:`tty_struct.flags` field. See +:doc:`tty_struct`. + +Locking +======= + +Callers to the line discipline functions from the tty layer are required to +take line discipline locks. The same is true of calls from the driver side +but not yet enforced. + +.. kernel-doc:: drivers/tty/tty_ldisc.c + :identifiers: tty_ldisc_ref_wait tty_ldisc_ref tty_ldisc_deref + +While these functions are slightly slower than the old code they should have +minimal impact as most receive logic uses the flip buffers and they only +need to take a reference when they push bits up through the driver. + +A caution: The :c:member:`tty_ldisc_ops.open()`, +:c:member:`tty_ldisc_ops.close()` and :c:member:`tty_driver.set_ldisc()` +functions are called with the ldisc unavailable. Thus tty_ldisc_ref() will fail +in this situation if used within these functions. Ldisc and driver code +calling its own functions must be careful in this case. + +Internal Functions +================== + +.. kernel-doc:: drivers/tty/tty_ldisc.c + :internal: |