Linux Kernel Resources

This page has references to various kernel resources (web sites and mailing lists) for developers. Most of this information was gathered over a year ago, and may not be accurate.

/\ Note: You should always look at the kernel MAINTAINERS file for up-to-date information

Vanilla Linux kernel

• www.kernel.org
• Linux Kernel Source Tarballs
• Linus' Git Repository

Mailing List (lkml)

• The Big List of Linux Kernel mailing lists, and where to find their archives
  • LKML - The Linux Kernel Mailing List (where the big boys hang out)
  • linux-embedded - Embedded Linux Kernel List
• How to subscribe to these lists

LKML summaries

• LWN Kernel page - Linux Weekly News kernel coverage

Repository access

• Kernel Git repositories
• Vanilla Linux Git Tree - This is "upstream". Get your code into here, please.
  • But this one has all the going back to 0.0.1, and updates itself from Linus's tree when you do a "git pull". (This is really cool. You want this.)

News

• Linux Weekly News, Kernel page

Changelog

• Comprehensible changelog of the linux kernel
  • http://wiki.kernelnewbies.org/LinuxChanges

• LWN atricles for spcific releases
  • 2.6.3 http://lwn.net/Articles/71669/
  • 2.6.10 http://lwn.net/Articles/117187/
  • 2.6.12 http://lwn.net/Articles/140165/
  • 2.6.15 http://lwn.net/Articles/166130/

• LWN aricles on 2.6 API changes
  • 2.6 API changes http://lwn.net/Articles/2.6-kernel-api/
  • 2.6.12 API changes http://lwn.net/Articles/140164/

Architecture Sites

MIPS

• web site = http://www.linux-mips.org/wiki/Main_Page
• mailing list = http://www.linux-mips.org/wiki/Net_Resources#Mailing_lists
• Maintainer = Ralph Baechle

• there's an alternate site on Source Forge
• the site is: http://sourceforge.net/projects/linux-mips
• Note that this is used for experimental stuff that hasn't been merged into the official mips tree by Ralph Baechle

ARM

• web site = http://www.arm.linux.org.uk/
• cvs access = http://cvs.arm.linux.org.uk/
• mailing list = http://www.arm.linux.org.uk/armlinux/mailinglists.php
• wiki = http://www.linux-arm.org/
• Maintainer = Russell King

PowerPC

• web site = http://penguinppc.org/
• mailing lists = http://penguinppc.org/about/community.php#lists
• Git repository = kernel.org:/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/paulus/powerpc.git
• Maintainer = Paul Mackerras
• Power Macintosh Maintainer = Benjamin Herrenschmidt

• cross-compiler mini-howto: http://penguinppc.org/embedded/cross-compiling/

See the following for information on different linuxppc source trees available: http://www.penguinppc.org/dev/kernel.shtml

SuperH (SH)

• www.linux-sh.org
• oss.renesas.com/
• Git repository = kernel.org:/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/lethal/sh-2.6.git
• mailing list address = linux-sh@vger.kernel.org
• mailing list page = http://vger.kernel.org/vger-lists.html#linux-sh
• mailing list archives = http://news.gmane.org/gmane.linux.ports.sh.devel
• wiki = http://linux-sh.org/shwiki/FrontPage
• Maintainer = Paul Mundt

Documentation

Online

• Rusty Russell's Unreliable Guide to Locking
• Embedded Linux kernel and driver development - Free Tutorials at Bootlin
• Linux USB drivers - USB Driver Tutorial at Bootlin

Books

• Linux Kernel Development by Robert Love
  • Good introduction to Linux kernel development
• Linux Device Drivers by Jonathan Corbet, Alessandro Rubini, and Greg Kroah-Hartman
  • Great book for getting started with Linux device drivers
  • Free online pdf edition: http://lwn.net/images/pdf/LDD3/
  • online html http://www.makelinux.net/ldd3/
• Essential Linux Device Drivers by Sreekrishnan Venkateswaran
  • Introduction to driver development for major subsystems
• Professional Linux Kernel Architecture by Wolfgang Mauerer
  • Introduction to the architecture, concepts and algorithms of the Linux kernel
• Understanding the Linux Kernel by Daniel Bovet and Marco Cesati
  • Guided tour of the code that forms the core of all Linux operating systems
• Linux Kernel in a Nutshell by Greg Kroah-Hartman
  • Overview of kernel configuration and building
  • Free online edition: http://www.kroah.com/lkn/

Cross-reference / code online

• http://www.makelinux.net/kernel_map
• https://elixir.bootlin.com/
• http://lxr.linux.no/source/
• Find a kernel function line