| Article Index |
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| 1. Device Files and Device Drivers |
| 2. Examples of Device Files |
This article provides an indroduction to Device Files and Device Drivers.
1. Device Files and Device Drivers
Linux is utilizing device files to interface with device drivers. They are also known as special files. Device files appear as and are accessible like ordinary files. They allow custom software to interact with hardware attached to the computer system.
Device files provide a standardized way to interact with hardware, which simplifies programming and unifies I/O mechanisms of applications in user-space (these are applications, that are running in the context of user accounts). Device files are distinguished in block or character special files. If you are interested in details, you may consult article An Introduction to Device Drivers (Linux 2.6) to get an idea about the difference of both file types.
2. Examples of Device Files
The following summary provides a brief overview of common hardware to be accessed by special files.
- printers
- graphics cards
- memory modules
- serial ports (USB, Firewire, ...)
- disk partitions
- network adaptors
- system clock
- random number generators
In addition to the special files there are special file types available in Linux/ Unix. Quite often there is an mix-up of terminology. Special files are just a subset of special file types. Named pipes, are another example of special file types. If you are interested in details, please take a look at the article Linux Special File Types.
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