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Diffstat (limited to 'kernel/Documentation/i2c/writing-clients')
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diff --git a/kernel/Documentation/i2c/writing-clients b/kernel/Documentation/i2c/writing-clients new file mode 100644 index 000000000..a755b141f --- /dev/null +++ b/kernel/Documentation/i2c/writing-clients @@ -0,0 +1,403 @@ +This is a small guide for those who want to write kernel drivers for I2C +or SMBus devices, using Linux as the protocol host/master (not slave). + +To set up a driver, you need to do several things. Some are optional, and +some things can be done slightly or completely different. Use this as a +guide, not as a rule book! + + +General remarks +=============== + +Try to keep the kernel namespace as clean as possible. The best way to +do this is to use a unique prefix for all global symbols. This is +especially important for exported symbols, but it is a good idea to do +it for non-exported symbols too. We will use the prefix `foo_' in this +tutorial. + + +The driver structure +==================== + +Usually, you will implement a single driver structure, and instantiate +all clients from it. Remember, a driver structure contains general access +routines, and should be zero-initialized except for fields with data you +provide. A client structure holds device-specific information like the +driver model device node, and its I2C address. + +static struct i2c_device_id foo_idtable[] = { + { "foo", my_id_for_foo }, + { "bar", my_id_for_bar }, + { } +}; + +MODULE_DEVICE_TABLE(i2c, foo_idtable); + +static struct i2c_driver foo_driver = { + .driver = { + .name = "foo", + .pm = &foo_pm_ops, /* optional */ + }, + + .id_table = foo_idtable, + .probe = foo_probe, + .remove = foo_remove, + /* if device autodetection is needed: */ + .class = I2C_CLASS_SOMETHING, + .detect = foo_detect, + .address_list = normal_i2c, + + .shutdown = foo_shutdown, /* optional */ + .command = foo_command, /* optional, deprecated */ +} + +The name field is the driver name, and must not contain spaces. It +should match the module name (if the driver can be compiled as a module), +although you can use MODULE_ALIAS (passing "foo" in this example) to add +another name for the module. If the driver name doesn't match the module +name, the module won't be automatically loaded (hotplug/coldplug). + +All other fields are for call-back functions which will be explained +below. + + +Extra client data +================= + +Each client structure has a special `data' field that can point to any +structure at all. You should use this to keep device-specific data. + + /* store the value */ + void i2c_set_clientdata(struct i2c_client *client, void *data); + + /* retrieve the value */ + void *i2c_get_clientdata(const struct i2c_client *client); + +Note that starting with kernel 2.6.34, you don't have to set the `data' field +to NULL in remove() or if probe() failed anymore. The i2c-core does this +automatically on these occasions. Those are also the only times the core will +touch this field. + + +Accessing the client +==================== + +Let's say we have a valid client structure. At some time, we will need +to gather information from the client, or write new information to the +client. + +I have found it useful to define foo_read and foo_write functions for this. +For some cases, it will be easier to call the i2c functions directly, +but many chips have some kind of register-value idea that can easily +be encapsulated. + +The below functions are simple examples, and should not be copied +literally. + +int foo_read_value(struct i2c_client *client, u8 reg) +{ + if (reg < 0x10) /* byte-sized register */ + return i2c_smbus_read_byte_data(client, reg); + else /* word-sized register */ + return i2c_smbus_read_word_data(client, reg); +} + +int foo_write_value(struct i2c_client *client, u8 reg, u16 value) +{ + if (reg == 0x10) /* Impossible to write - driver error! */ + return -EINVAL; + else if (reg < 0x10) /* byte-sized register */ + return i2c_smbus_write_byte_data(client, reg, value); + else /* word-sized register */ + return i2c_smbus_write_word_data(client, reg, value); +} + + +Probing and attaching +===================== + +The Linux I2C stack was originally written to support access to hardware +monitoring chips on PC motherboards, and thus used to embed some assumptions +that were more appropriate to SMBus (and PCs) than to I2C. One of these +assumptions was that most adapters and devices drivers support the SMBUS_QUICK +protocol to probe device presence. Another was that devices and their drivers +can be sufficiently configured using only such probe primitives. + +As Linux and its I2C stack became more widely used in embedded systems +and complex components such as DVB adapters, those assumptions became more +problematic. Drivers for I2C devices that issue interrupts need more (and +different) configuration information, as do drivers handling chip variants +that can't be distinguished by protocol probing, or which need some board +specific information to operate correctly. + + +Device/Driver Binding +--------------------- + +System infrastructure, typically board-specific initialization code or +boot firmware, reports what I2C devices exist. For example, there may be +a table, in the kernel or from the boot loader, identifying I2C devices +and linking them to board-specific configuration information about IRQs +and other wiring artifacts, chip type, and so on. That could be used to +create i2c_client objects for each I2C device. + +I2C device drivers using this binding model work just like any other +kind of driver in Linux: they provide a probe() method to bind to +those devices, and a remove() method to unbind. + + static int foo_probe(struct i2c_client *client, + const struct i2c_device_id *id); + static int foo_remove(struct i2c_client *client); + +Remember that the i2c_driver does not create those client handles. The +handle may be used during foo_probe(). If foo_probe() reports success +(zero not a negative status code) it may save the handle and use it until +foo_remove() returns. That binding model is used by most Linux drivers. + +The probe function is called when an entry in the id_table name field +matches the device's name. It is passed the entry that was matched so +the driver knows which one in the table matched. + + +Device Creation +--------------- + +If you know for a fact that an I2C device is connected to a given I2C bus, +you can instantiate that device by simply filling an i2c_board_info +structure with the device address and driver name, and calling +i2c_new_device(). This will create the device, then the driver core will +take care of finding the right driver and will call its probe() method. +If a driver supports different device types, you can specify the type you +want using the type field. You can also specify an IRQ and platform data +if needed. + +Sometimes you know that a device is connected to a given I2C bus, but you +don't know the exact address it uses. This happens on TV adapters for +example, where the same driver supports dozens of slightly different +models, and I2C device addresses change from one model to the next. In +that case, you can use the i2c_new_probed_device() variant, which is +similar to i2c_new_device(), except that it takes an additional list of +possible I2C addresses to probe. A device is created for the first +responsive address in the list. If you expect more than one device to be +present in the address range, simply call i2c_new_probed_device() that +many times. + +The call to i2c_new_device() or i2c_new_probed_device() typically happens +in the I2C bus driver. You may want to save the returned i2c_client +reference for later use. + + +Device Detection +---------------- + +Sometimes you do not know in advance which I2C devices are connected to +a given I2C bus. This is for example the case of hardware monitoring +devices on a PC's SMBus. In that case, you may want to let your driver +detect supported devices automatically. This is how the legacy model +was working, and is now available as an extension to the standard +driver model. + +You simply have to define a detect callback which will attempt to +identify supported devices (returning 0 for supported ones and -ENODEV +for unsupported ones), a list of addresses to probe, and a device type +(or class) so that only I2C buses which may have that type of device +connected (and not otherwise enumerated) will be probed. For example, +a driver for a hardware monitoring chip for which auto-detection is +needed would set its class to I2C_CLASS_HWMON, and only I2C adapters +with a class including I2C_CLASS_HWMON would be probed by this driver. +Note that the absence of matching classes does not prevent the use of +a device of that type on the given I2C adapter. All it prevents is +auto-detection; explicit instantiation of devices is still possible. + +Note that this mechanism is purely optional and not suitable for all +devices. You need some reliable way to identify the supported devices +(typically using device-specific, dedicated identification registers), +otherwise misdetections are likely to occur and things can get wrong +quickly. Keep in mind that the I2C protocol doesn't include any +standard way to detect the presence of a chip at a given address, let +alone a standard way to identify devices. Even worse is the lack of +semantics associated to bus transfers, which means that the same +transfer can be seen as a read operation by a chip and as a write +operation by another chip. For these reasons, explicit device +instantiation should always be preferred to auto-detection where +possible. + + +Device Deletion +--------------- + +Each I2C device which has been created using i2c_new_device() or +i2c_new_probed_device() can be unregistered by calling +i2c_unregister_device(). If you don't call it explicitly, it will be +called automatically before the underlying I2C bus itself is removed, as a +device can't survive its parent in the device driver model. + + +Initializing the driver +======================= + +When the kernel is booted, or when your foo driver module is inserted, +you have to do some initializing. Fortunately, just registering the +driver module is usually enough. + +static int __init foo_init(void) +{ + return i2c_add_driver(&foo_driver); +} +module_init(foo_init); + +static void __exit foo_cleanup(void) +{ + i2c_del_driver(&foo_driver); +} +module_exit(foo_cleanup); + +The module_i2c_driver() macro can be used to reduce above code. + +module_i2c_driver(foo_driver); + +Note that some functions are marked by `__init'. These functions can +be removed after kernel booting (or module loading) is completed. +Likewise, functions marked by `__exit' are dropped by the compiler when +the code is built into the kernel, as they would never be called. + + +Driver Information +================== + +/* Substitute your own name and email address */ +MODULE_AUTHOR("Frodo Looijaard <frodol@dds.nl>" +MODULE_DESCRIPTION("Driver for Barf Inc. Foo I2C devices"); + +/* a few non-GPL license types are also allowed */ +MODULE_LICENSE("GPL"); + + +Power Management +================ + +If your I2C device needs special handling when entering a system low +power state -- like putting a transceiver into a low power mode, or +activating a system wakeup mechanism -- do that by implementing the +appropriate callbacks for the dev_pm_ops of the driver (like suspend +and resume). + +These are standard driver model calls, and they work just like they +would for any other driver stack. The calls can sleep, and can use +I2C messaging to the device being suspended or resumed (since their +parent I2C adapter is active when these calls are issued, and IRQs +are still enabled). + + +System Shutdown +=============== + +If your I2C device needs special handling when the system shuts down +or reboots (including kexec) -- like turning something off -- use a +shutdown() method. + +Again, this is a standard driver model call, working just like it +would for any other driver stack: the calls can sleep, and can use +I2C messaging. + + +Command function +================ + +A generic ioctl-like function call back is supported. You will seldom +need this, and its use is deprecated anyway, so newer design should not +use it. + + +Sending and receiving +===================== + +If you want to communicate with your device, there are several functions +to do this. You can find all of them in <linux/i2c.h>. + +If you can choose between plain I2C communication and SMBus level +communication, please use the latter. All adapters understand SMBus level +commands, but only some of them understand plain I2C! + + +Plain I2C communication +----------------------- + + int i2c_master_send(struct i2c_client *client, const char *buf, + int count); + int i2c_master_recv(struct i2c_client *client, char *buf, int count); + +These routines read and write some bytes from/to a client. The client +contains the i2c address, so you do not have to include it. The second +parameter contains the bytes to read/write, the third the number of bytes +to read/write (must be less than the length of the buffer, also should be +less than 64k since msg.len is u16.) Returned is the actual number of bytes +read/written. + + int i2c_transfer(struct i2c_adapter *adap, struct i2c_msg *msg, + int num); + +This sends a series of messages. Each message can be a read or write, +and they can be mixed in any way. The transactions are combined: no +stop bit is sent between transaction. The i2c_msg structure contains +for each message the client address, the number of bytes of the message +and the message data itself. + +You can read the file `i2c-protocol' for more information about the +actual I2C protocol. + + +SMBus communication +------------------- + + s32 i2c_smbus_xfer(struct i2c_adapter *adapter, u16 addr, + unsigned short flags, char read_write, u8 command, + int size, union i2c_smbus_data *data); + +This is the generic SMBus function. All functions below are implemented +in terms of it. Never use this function directly! + + s32 i2c_smbus_read_byte(struct i2c_client *client); + s32 i2c_smbus_write_byte(struct i2c_client *client, u8 value); + s32 i2c_smbus_read_byte_data(struct i2c_client *client, u8 command); + s32 i2c_smbus_write_byte_data(struct i2c_client *client, + u8 command, u8 value); + s32 i2c_smbus_read_word_data(struct i2c_client *client, u8 command); + s32 i2c_smbus_write_word_data(struct i2c_client *client, + u8 command, u16 value); + s32 i2c_smbus_read_block_data(struct i2c_client *client, + u8 command, u8 *values); + s32 i2c_smbus_write_block_data(struct i2c_client *client, + u8 command, u8 length, const u8 *values); + s32 i2c_smbus_read_i2c_block_data(struct i2c_client *client, + u8 command, u8 length, u8 *values); + s32 i2c_smbus_write_i2c_block_data(struct i2c_client *client, + u8 command, u8 length, + const u8 *values); + +These ones were removed from i2c-core because they had no users, but could +be added back later if needed: + + s32 i2c_smbus_write_quick(struct i2c_client *client, u8 value); + s32 i2c_smbus_process_call(struct i2c_client *client, + u8 command, u16 value); + s32 i2c_smbus_block_process_call(struct i2c_client *client, + u8 command, u8 length, u8 *values); + +All these transactions return a negative errno value on failure. The 'write' +transactions return 0 on success; the 'read' transactions return the read +value, except for block transactions, which return the number of values +read. The block buffers need not be longer than 32 bytes. + +You can read the file `smbus-protocol' for more information about the +actual SMBus protocol. + + +General purpose routines +======================== + +Below all general purpose routines are listed, that were not mentioned +before. + + /* Return the adapter number for a specific adapter */ + int i2c_adapter_id(struct i2c_adapter *adap); |