1 This is a small guide for those who want to write kernel drivers for I2C
4 To set up a driver, you need to do several things. Some are optional, and
5 some things can be done slightly or completely different. Use this as a
6 guide, not as a rule book!
12 Try to keep the kernel namespace as clean as possible. The best way to
13 do this is to use a unique prefix for all global symbols. This is
14 especially important for exported symbols, but it is a good idea to do
15 it for non-exported symbols too. We will use the prefix `foo_' in this
16 tutorial, and `FOO_' for preprocessor variables.
22 Usually, you will implement a single driver structure, and instantiate
23 all clients from it. Remember, a driver structure contains general access
24 routines, a client structure specific information like the actual I2C
27 static struct i2c_driver foo_driver = {
29 .name = "Foo version 2.3 driver",
30 .flags = I2C_DF_NOTIFY,
31 .attach_adapter = &foo_attach_adapter,
32 .detach_client = &foo_detach_client,
33 .command = &foo_command /* may be NULL */
36 The name can be chosen freely, and may be upto 40 characters long. Please
37 use something descriptive here.
39 Don't worry about the flags field; just put I2C_DF_NOTIFY into it. This
40 means that your driver will be notified when new adapters are found.
41 This is almost always what you want.
43 All other fields are for call-back functions which will be explained
46 There use to be two additional fields in this structure, inc_use et dec_use,
47 for module usage count, but these fields were obsoleted and removed.
53 The client structure has a special `data' field that can point to any
54 structure at all. You can use this to keep client-specific data. You
55 do not always need this, but especially for `sensors' drivers, it can
58 An example structure is below.
61 struct semaphore lock; /* For ISA access in `sensors' drivers. */
62 int sysctl_id; /* To keep the /proc directory entry for
64 enum chips type; /* To keep the chips type for `sensors' drivers. */
66 /* Because the i2c bus is slow, it is often useful to cache the read
67 information of a chip for some time (for example, 1 or 2 seconds).
68 It depends of course on the device whether this is really worthwhile
70 struct semaphore update_lock; /* When we are reading lots of information,
71 another process should not update the
73 char valid; /* != 0 if the following fields are valid. */
74 unsigned long last_updated; /* In jiffies */
75 /* Add the read information here too */
82 Let's say we have a valid client structure. At some time, we will need
83 to gather information from the client, or write new information to the
84 client. How we will export this information to user-space is less
85 important at this moment (perhaps we do not need to do this at all for
86 some obscure clients). But we need generic reading and writing routines.
88 I have found it useful to define foo_read and foo_write function for this.
89 For some cases, it will be easier to call the i2c functions directly,
90 but many chips have some kind of register-value idea that can easily
91 be encapsulated. Also, some chips have both ISA and I2C interfaces, and
92 it useful to abstract from this (only for `sensors' drivers).
94 The below functions are simple examples, and should not be copied
97 int foo_read_value(struct i2c_client *client, u8 reg)
99 if (reg < 0x10) /* byte-sized register */
100 return i2c_smbus_read_byte_data(client,reg);
101 else /* word-sized register */
102 return i2c_smbus_read_word_data(client,reg);
105 int foo_write_value(struct i2c_client *client, u8 reg, u16 value)
107 if (reg == 0x10) /* Impossible to write - driver error! */ {
109 else if (reg < 0x10) /* byte-sized register */
110 return i2c_smbus_write_byte_data(client,reg,value);
111 else /* word-sized register */
112 return i2c_smbus_write_word_data(client,reg,value);
115 For sensors code, you may have to cope with ISA registers too. Something
116 like the below often works. Note the locking!
118 int foo_read_value(struct i2c_client *client, u8 reg)
121 if (i2c_is_isa_client(client)) {
122 down(&(((struct foo_data *) (client->data)) -> lock));
123 outb_p(reg,client->addr + FOO_ADDR_REG_OFFSET);
124 res = inb_p(client->addr + FOO_DATA_REG_OFFSET);
125 up(&(((struct foo_data *) (client->data)) -> lock));
128 return i2c_smbus_read_byte_data(client,reg);
131 Writing is done the same way.
134 Probing and attaching
135 =====================
137 Most i2c devices can be present on several i2c addresses; for some this
138 is determined in hardware (by soldering some chip pins to Vcc or Ground),
139 for others this can be changed in software (by writing to specific client
140 registers). Some devices are usually on a specific address, but not always;
141 and some are even more tricky. So you will probably need to scan several
142 i2c addresses for your clients, and do some sort of detection to see
143 whether it is actually a device supported by your driver.
145 To give the user a maximum of possibilities, some default module parameters
146 are defined to help determine what addresses are scanned. Several macros
147 are defined in i2c.h to help you support them, as well as a generic
150 You do not have to use this parameter interface; but don't try to use
151 function i2c_probe() if you don't.
153 NOTE: If you want to write a `sensors' driver, the interface is slightly
154 different! See below.
161 All parameters are given as lists of unsigned 16-bit integers. Lists are
162 terminated by I2C_CLIENT_END.
163 The following lists are used internally:
165 normal_i2c: filled in by the module writer.
166 A list of I2C addresses which should normally be examined.
167 probe: insmod parameter.
168 A list of pairs. The first value is a bus number (-1 for any I2C bus),
169 the second is the address. These addresses are also probed, as if they
170 were in the 'normal' list.
171 ignore: insmod parameter.
172 A list of pairs. The first value is a bus number (-1 for any I2C bus),
173 the second is the I2C address. These addresses are never probed.
174 This parameter overrules the 'normal_i2c' list only.
175 force: insmod parameter.
176 A list of pairs. The first value is a bus number (-1 for any I2C bus),
177 the second is the I2C address. A device is blindly assumed to be on
178 the given address, no probing is done.
180 Additionally, kind-specific force lists may optionally be defined if
181 the driver supports several chip kinds. They are grouped in a
182 NULL-terminated list of pointers named forces, those first element if the
183 generic force list mentioned above. Each additional list correspond to an
184 insmod parameter of the form force_<kind>.
186 Fortunately, as a module writer, you just have to define the `normal_i2c'
187 parameter. The complete declaration could look like this:
189 /* Scan 0x37, and 0x48 to 0x4f */
190 static unsigned short normal_i2c[] = { 0x37, 0x48, 0x49, 0x4a, 0x4b, 0x4c,
191 0x4d, 0x4e, 0x4f, I2C_CLIENT_END };
193 /* Magic definition of all other variables and things */
195 /* Or, if your driver supports, say, 2 kind of devices: */
196 I2C_CLIENT_INSMOD_2(foo, bar);
198 If you use the multi-kind form, an enum will be defined for you:
199 enum chips { any_chip, foo, bar, ... }
200 You can then (and certainly should) use it in the driver code.
202 Note that you *have* to call the defined variable `normal_i2c',
206 Attaching to an adapter
207 -----------------------
209 Whenever a new adapter is inserted, or for all adapters if the driver is
210 being registered, the callback attach_adapter() is called. Now is the
211 time to determine what devices are present on the adapter, and to register
212 a client for each of them.
214 The attach_adapter callback is really easy: we just call the generic
215 detection function. This function will scan the bus for us, using the
216 information as defined in the lists explained above. If a device is
217 detected at a specific address, another callback is called.
219 int foo_attach_adapter(struct i2c_adapter *adapter)
221 return i2c_probe(adapter,&addr_data,&foo_detect_client);
224 Remember, structure `addr_data' is defined by the macros explained above,
225 so you do not have to define it yourself.
227 The i2c_probe function will call the foo_detect_client
228 function only for those i2c addresses that actually have a device on
229 them (unless a `force' parameter was used). In addition, addresses that
230 are already in use (by some other registered client) are skipped.
233 The detect client function
234 --------------------------
236 The detect client function is called by i2c_probe. The `kind' parameter
237 contains -1 for a probed detection, 0 for a forced detection, or a positive
238 number for a forced detection with a chip type forced.
240 Below, some things are only needed if this is a `sensors' driver. Those
241 parts are between /* SENSORS ONLY START */ and /* SENSORS ONLY END */
244 Returning an error different from -ENODEV in a detect function will cause
245 the detection to stop: other addresses and adapters won't be scanned.
246 This should only be done on fatal or internal errors, such as a memory
247 shortage or i2c_attach_client failing.
249 For now, you can ignore the `flags' parameter. It is there for future use.
251 int foo_detect_client(struct i2c_adapter *adapter, int address,
252 unsigned short flags, int kind)
256 struct i2c_client *new_client;
257 struct foo_data *data;
258 const char *client_name = ""; /* For non-`sensors' drivers, put the real
261 /* Let's see whether this adapter can support what we need.
262 Please substitute the things you need here!
263 For `sensors' drivers, add `! is_isa &&' to the if statement */
264 if (!i2c_check_functionality(adapter,I2C_FUNC_SMBUS_WORD_DATA |
265 I2C_FUNC_SMBUS_WRITE_BYTE))
268 /* SENSORS ONLY START */
269 const char *type_name = "";
270 int is_isa = i2c_is_isa_adapter(adapter);
272 /* Do this only if the chip can additionally be found on the ISA bus
277 /* Discard immediately if this ISA range is already used */
278 if (check_region(address,FOO_EXTENT))
281 /* Probe whether there is anything on this address.
282 Some example code is below, but you will have to adapt this
283 for your own driver */
285 if (kind < 0) /* Only if no force parameter was used */ {
286 /* We may need long timeouts at least for some chips. */
287 #define REALLY_SLOW_IO
288 i = inb_p(address + 1);
289 if (inb_p(address + 2) != i)
291 if (inb_p(address + 3) != i)
293 if (inb_p(address + 7) != i)
295 #undef REALLY_SLOW_IO
297 /* Let's just hope nothing breaks here */
298 i = inb_p(address + 5) & 0x7f;
299 outb_p(~i & 0x7f,address+5);
300 if ((inb_p(address + 5) & 0x7f) != (~i & 0x7f)) {
307 /* SENSORS ONLY END */
309 /* OK. For now, we presume we have a valid client. We now create the
310 client structure, even though we cannot fill it completely yet.
311 But it allows us to access several i2c functions safely */
313 /* Note that we reserve some space for foo_data too. If you don't
314 need it, remove it. We do it here to help to lessen memory
316 if (! (new_client = kmalloc(sizeof(struct i2c_client) +
317 sizeof(struct foo_data),
323 /* This is tricky, but it will set the data to the right value. */
324 client->data = new_client + 1;
325 data = (struct foo_data *) (client->data);
327 new_client->addr = address;
328 new_client->data = data;
329 new_client->adapter = adapter;
330 new_client->driver = &foo_driver;
331 new_client->flags = 0;
333 /* Now, we do the remaining detection. If no `force' parameter is used. */
335 /* First, the generic detection (if any), that is skipped if any force
336 parameter was used. */
338 /* The below is of course bogus */
339 if (foo_read(new_client,FOO_REG_GENERIC) != FOO_GENERIC_VALUE)
343 /* SENSORS ONLY START */
345 /* Next, specific detection. This is especially important for `sensors'
348 /* Determine the chip type. Not needed if a `force_CHIPTYPE' parameter
351 i = foo_read(new_client,FOO_REG_CHIPTYPE);
353 kind = chip1; /* As defined in the enum */
354 else if (i == FOO_TYPE_2)
357 printk("foo: Ignoring 'force' parameter for unknown chip at "
358 "adapter %d, address 0x%02x\n",i2c_adapter_id(adapter),address);
363 /* Now set the type and chip names */
365 type_name = "chip1"; /* For /proc entry */
366 client_name = "CHIP 1";
367 } else if (kind == chip2) {
368 type_name = "chip2"; /* For /proc entry */
369 client_name = "CHIP 2";
372 /* Reserve the ISA region */
374 request_region(address,FOO_EXTENT,type_name);
376 /* SENSORS ONLY END */
378 /* Fill in the remaining client fields. */
379 strcpy(new_client->name,client_name);
381 /* SENSORS ONLY BEGIN */
383 /* SENSORS ONLY END */
385 data->valid = 0; /* Only if you use this field */
386 init_MUTEX(&data->update_lock); /* Only if you use this field */
388 /* Any other initializations in data must be done here too. */
390 /* Tell the i2c layer a new client has arrived */
391 if ((err = i2c_attach_client(new_client)))
394 /* SENSORS ONLY BEGIN */
395 /* Register a new directory entry with module sensors. See below for
396 the `template' structure. */
397 if ((i = i2c_register_entry(new_client, type_name,
398 foo_dir_table_template,THIS_MODULE)) < 0) {
404 /* SENSORS ONLY END */
406 /* This function can write default values to the client registers, if
408 foo_init_client(new_client);
411 /* OK, this is not exactly good programming practice, usually. But it is
412 very code-efficient in this case. */
415 i2c_detach_client(new_client);
418 /* SENSORS ONLY START */
420 release_region(address,FOO_EXTENT);
421 /* SENSORS ONLY END */
432 The detach_client call back function is called when a client should be
433 removed. It may actually fail, but only when panicking. This code is
434 much simpler than the attachment code, fortunately!
436 int foo_detach_client(struct i2c_client *client)
440 /* SENSORS ONLY START */
441 /* Deregister with the `i2c-proc' module. */
442 i2c_deregister_entry(((struct lm78_data *)(client->data))->sysctl_id);
443 /* SENSORS ONLY END */
445 /* Try to detach the client from i2c space */
446 if ((err = i2c_detach_client(client)))
449 /* HYBRID SENSORS CHIP ONLY START */
450 if i2c_is_isa_client(client)
451 release_region(client->addr,LM78_EXTENT);
452 /* HYBRID SENSORS CHIP ONLY END */
454 kfree(client); /* Frees client data too, if allocated at the same time */
459 Initializing the module or kernel
460 =================================
462 When the kernel is booted, or when your foo driver module is inserted,
463 you have to do some initializing. Fortunately, just attaching (registering)
464 the driver module is usually enough.
466 /* Keep track of how far we got in the initialization process. If several
467 things have to initialized, and we fail halfway, only those things
468 have to be cleaned up! */
469 static int __initdata foo_initialized = 0;
471 static int __init foo_init(void)
474 printk("foo version %s (%s)\n",FOO_VERSION,FOO_DATE);
476 if ((res = i2c_add_driver(&foo_driver))) {
477 printk("foo: Driver registration failed, module not inserted.\n");
485 void foo_cleanup(void)
487 if (foo_initialized == 1) {
488 if ((res = i2c_del_driver(&foo_driver))) {
489 printk("foo: Driver registration failed, module not removed.\n");
496 /* Substitute your own name and email address */
497 MODULE_AUTHOR("Frodo Looijaard <frodol@dds.nl>"
498 MODULE_DESCRIPTION("Driver for Barf Inc. Foo I2C devices");
500 module_init(foo_init);
501 module_exit(foo_cleanup);
503 Note that some functions are marked by `__init', and some data structures
504 by `__init_data'. Hose functions and structures can be removed after
505 kernel booting (or module loading) is completed.
510 A generic ioctl-like function call back is supported. You will seldom
511 need this. You may even set it to NULL.
513 /* No commands defined */
514 int foo_command(struct i2c_client *client, unsigned int cmd, void *arg)
520 Sending and receiving
521 =====================
523 If you want to communicate with your device, there are several functions
524 to do this. You can find all of them in i2c.h.
526 If you can choose between plain i2c communication and SMBus level
527 communication, please use the last. All adapters understand SMBus level
528 commands, but only some of them understand plain i2c!
531 Plain i2c communication
532 -----------------------
534 extern int i2c_master_send(struct i2c_client *,const char* ,int);
535 extern int i2c_master_recv(struct i2c_client *,char* ,int);
537 These routines read and write some bytes from/to a client. The client
538 contains the i2c address, so you do not have to include it. The second
539 parameter contains the bytes the read/write, the third the length of the
540 buffer. Returned is the actual number of bytes read/written.
542 extern int i2c_transfer(struct i2c_adapter *adap, struct i2c_msg *msg,
545 This sends a series of messages. Each message can be a read or write,
546 and they can be mixed in any way. The transactions are combined: no
547 stop bit is sent between transaction. The i2c_msg structure contains
548 for each message the client address, the number of bytes of the message
549 and the message data itself.
551 You can read the file `i2c-protocol' for more information about the
558 extern s32 i2c_smbus_xfer (struct i2c_adapter * adapter, u16 addr,
559 unsigned short flags,
560 char read_write, u8 command, int size,
561 union i2c_smbus_data * data);
563 This is the generic SMBus function. All functions below are implemented
564 in terms of it. Never use this function directly!
567 extern s32 i2c_smbus_write_quick(struct i2c_client * client, u8 value);
568 extern s32 i2c_smbus_read_byte(struct i2c_client * client);
569 extern s32 i2c_smbus_write_byte(struct i2c_client * client, u8 value);
570 extern s32 i2c_smbus_read_byte_data(struct i2c_client * client, u8 command);
571 extern s32 i2c_smbus_write_byte_data(struct i2c_client * client,
572 u8 command, u8 value);
573 extern s32 i2c_smbus_read_word_data(struct i2c_client * client, u8 command);
574 extern s32 i2c_smbus_write_word_data(struct i2c_client * client,
575 u8 command, u16 value);
576 extern s32 i2c_smbus_write_block_data(struct i2c_client * client,
577 u8 command, u8 length,
580 These ones were removed in Linux 2.6.10 because they had no users, but could
581 be added back later if needed:
583 extern s32 i2c_smbus_read_i2c_block_data(struct i2c_client * client,
584 u8 command, u8 *values);
585 extern s32 i2c_smbus_read_block_data(struct i2c_client * client,
586 u8 command, u8 *values);
587 extern s32 i2c_smbus_write_i2c_block_data(struct i2c_client * client,
588 u8 command, u8 length,
590 extern s32 i2c_smbus_process_call(struct i2c_client * client,
591 u8 command, u16 value);
592 extern s32 i2c_smbus_block_process_call(struct i2c_client *client,
593 u8 command, u8 length,
596 All these transactions return -1 on failure. The 'write' transactions
597 return 0 on success; the 'read' transactions return the read value, except
598 for read_block, which returns the number of values read. The block buffers
599 need not be longer than 32 bytes.
601 You can read the file `smbus-protocol' for more information about the
602 actual SMBus protocol.
605 General purpose routines
606 ========================
608 Below all general purpose routines are listed, that were not mentioned
611 /* This call returns a unique low identifier for each registered adapter,
612 * or -1 if the adapter was not registered.
614 extern int i2c_adapter_id(struct i2c_adapter *adap);
617 The sensors sysctl/proc interface
618 =================================
620 This section only applies if you write `sensors' drivers.
622 Each sensors driver creates a directory in /proc/sys/dev/sensors for each
623 registered client. The directory is called something like foo-i2c-4-65.
624 The sensors module helps you to do this as easily as possible.
629 You will need to define a ctl_table template. This template will automatically
630 be copied to a newly allocated structure and filled in where necessary when
631 you call sensors_register_entry.
633 First, I will give an example definition.
634 static ctl_table foo_dir_table_template[] = {
635 { FOO_SYSCTL_FUNC1, "func1", NULL, 0, 0644, NULL, &i2c_proc_real,
636 &i2c_sysctl_real,NULL,&foo_func },
637 { FOO_SYSCTL_FUNC2, "func2", NULL, 0, 0644, NULL, &i2c_proc_real,
638 &i2c_sysctl_real,NULL,&foo_func },
639 { FOO_SYSCTL_DATA, "data", NULL, 0, 0644, NULL, &i2c_proc_real,
640 &i2c_sysctl_real,NULL,&foo_data },
644 In the above example, three entries are defined. They can either be
645 accessed through the /proc interface, in the /proc/sys/dev/sensors/*
646 directories, as files named func1, func2 and data, or alternatively
647 through the sysctl interface, in the appropriate table, with identifiers
648 FOO_SYSCTL_FUNC1, FOO_SYSCTL_FUNC2 and FOO_SYSCTL_DATA.
650 The third, sixth and ninth parameters should always be NULL, and the
651 fourth should always be 0. The fifth is the mode of the /proc file;
652 0644 is safe, as the file will be owned by root:root.
654 The seventh and eighth parameters should be &i2c_proc_real and
655 &i2c_sysctl_real if you want to export lists of reals (scaled
656 integers). You can also use your own function for them, as usual.
657 Finally, the last parameter is the call-back to gather the data
658 (see below) if you use the *_proc_real functions.
664 The call back functions (foo_func and foo_data in the above example)
665 can be called in several ways; the operation parameter determines
668 * If operation == SENSORS_PROC_REAL_INFO, you must return the
669 magnitude (scaling) in nrels_mag;
670 * If operation == SENSORS_PROC_REAL_READ, you must read information
671 from the chip and return it in results. The number of integers
672 to display should be put in nrels_mag;
673 * If operation == SENSORS_PROC_REAL_WRITE, you must write the
674 supplied information to the chip. nrels_mag will contain the number
675 of integers, results the integers themselves.
677 The *_proc_real functions will display the elements as reals for the
678 /proc interface. If you set the magnitude to 2, and supply 345 for
679 SENSORS_PROC_REAL_READ, it would display 3.45; and if the user would
680 write 45.6 to the /proc file, it would be returned as 4560 for
681 SENSORS_PROC_REAL_WRITE. A magnitude may even be negative!
685 /* FOO_FROM_REG and FOO_TO_REG translate between scaled values and
686 register values. Note the use of the read cache. */
687 void foo_in(struct i2c_client *client, int operation, int ctl_name,
688 int *nrels_mag, long *results)
690 struct foo_data *data = client->data;
691 int nr = ctl_name - FOO_SYSCTL_FUNC1; /* reduce to 0 upwards */
693 if (operation == SENSORS_PROC_REAL_INFO)
695 else if (operation == SENSORS_PROC_REAL_READ) {
696 /* Update the readings cache (if necessary) */
697 foo_update_client(client);
698 /* Get the readings from the cache */
699 results[0] = FOO_FROM_REG(data->foo_func_base[nr]);
700 results[1] = FOO_FROM_REG(data->foo_func_more[nr]);
701 results[2] = FOO_FROM_REG(data->foo_func_readonly[nr]);
703 } else if (operation == SENSORS_PROC_REAL_WRITE) {
704 if (*nrels_mag >= 1) {
705 /* Update the cache */
706 data->foo_base[nr] = FOO_TO_REG(results[0]);
707 /* Update the chip */
708 foo_write_value(client,FOO_REG_FUNC_BASE(nr),data->foo_base[nr]);
710 if (*nrels_mag >= 2) {
711 /* Update the cache */
712 data->foo_more[nr] = FOO_TO_REG(results[1]);
713 /* Update the chip */
714 foo_write_value(client,FOO_REG_FUNC_MORE(nr),data->foo_more[nr]);