Understanding the Linux Kernel: Core Points of Functional Composition

[Understanding the Linux kernel: core points of functional composition]

As the core of the operating system, the Linux kernel is responsible for managing the computer’s hardware resources, providing system call interfaces, and Coordinate the operation of applications. Understanding the functional structure of the Linux kernel is an important step in in-depth exploration of operating system principles and kernel development. The following will introduce the core points of the Linux kernel, focusing on the components of the kernel and specific code examples to help readers better understand the internal mechanism of the Linux kernel.

1. Process Management

A process is a representation of a program running in the computer. The Linux kernel is responsible for managing the creation, scheduling and destruction of processes. In the Linux kernel, each process is represented by a task_struct structure, which stores the status, priority, execution time and other related information of the process.

The following is a simple example code to create a process:

#include  #include  int main() { pid_t pid; pid = fork(); if (pid < 0) { fprintf(stderr, "Failed to fork "); return 1; } else if (pid == 0) { printf("Child process PID: %d ", getpid()); } else { printf("Parent process PID: %d ", getpid()); } return 0; }

2. Memory Management

The Linux kernel maps physical memory to the virtual address space of the process through the Memory Management Unit (MMU) to implement virtual memory management. Memory management includes functions such as memory allocation, release, and page table management to ensure that processes can access memory normally and avoid memory leaks.

The following is a simple memory allocation example code:

#include  #include  int main() { int *ptr = (int *)malloc(sizeof(int)); if (ptr == NULL) { fprintf(stderr, "Failed to allocate memory "); return 1; } *ptr = 10; printf("Value at the allocated memory: %d ", *ptr); free(ptr); return 0; }

3. File System

The Linux kernel supports various file systems, including common ext4, NTFS, etc. The file system module is responsible for file reading, writing, creation and deletion operations, ensuring that data is correctly stored and accessed on the disk.

The following is a simple sample code for file reading and writing:

#include  int main() { FILE *file = fopen("example.txt", "w"); if (file == NULL) { fprintf(stderr, "Failed to open file "); return 1; } fprintf(file, "Hello, World! "); fclose(file); return 0; }

Through the above sample code, readers can more intuitively understand the implementation of core functions such as process management, memory management, and file systems in the Linux kernel. In-depth study of the functional structure and implementation principles of the Linux kernel will help understand the operating mechanism of the operating system and provide strong support for kernel development and system optimization. I hope this article will inspire and help readers in learning the Linux kernel.

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