linux/Documentation/ABI
Linus Torvalds 8065be8d03 Merge branch 'akpm' (second patchbomb from Andrew Morton)
Merge more incoming from Andrew Morton:
 "Two new syscalls:

     memfd_create in "shm: add memfd_create() syscall"
     kexec_file_load in "kexec: implementation of new syscall kexec_file_load"

  And:

   - Most (all?) of the rest of MM

   - Lots of the usual misc bits

   - fs/autofs4

   - drivers/rtc

   - fs/nilfs

   - procfs

   - fork.c, exec.c

   - more in lib/

   - rapidio

   - Janitorial work in filesystems: fs/ufs, fs/reiserfs, fs/adfs,
     fs/cramfs, fs/romfs, fs/qnx6.

   - initrd/initramfs work

   - "file sealing" and the memfd_create() syscall, in tmpfs

   - add pci_zalloc_consistent, use it in lots of places

   - MAINTAINERS maintenance

   - kexec feature work"

* emailed patches from Andrew Morton <akpm@linux-foundation.org: (193 commits)
  MAINTAINERS: update nomadik patterns
  MAINTAINERS: update usb/gadget patterns
  MAINTAINERS: update DMA BUFFER SHARING patterns
  kexec: verify the signature of signed PE bzImage
  kexec: support kexec/kdump on EFI systems
  kexec: support for kexec on panic using new system call
  kexec-bzImage64: support for loading bzImage using 64bit entry
  kexec: load and relocate purgatory at kernel load time
  purgatory: core purgatory functionality
  purgatory/sha256: provide implementation of sha256 in purgaotory context
  kexec: implementation of new syscall kexec_file_load
  kexec: new syscall kexec_file_load() declaration
  kexec: make kexec_segment user buffer pointer a union
  resource: provide new functions to walk through resources
  kexec: use common function for kimage_normal_alloc() and kimage_crash_alloc()
  kexec: move segment verification code in a separate function
  kexec: rename unusebale_pages to unusable_pages
  kernel: build bin2c based on config option CONFIG_BUILD_BIN2C
  bin2c: move bin2c in scripts/basic
  shm: wait for pins to be released when sealing
  ...
2014-08-08 15:57:47 -07:00
..
obsolete Merge branches 'for-3.7/upstream-fixes', 'for-3.8/hidraw', 'for-3.8/i2c-hid', 'for-3.8/multitouch', 'for-3.8/roccat', 'for-3.8/sensors' and 'for-3.8/upstream' into for-linus 2012-12-12 21:41:55 +01:00
removed netfilter: remove ip_queue support 2012-05-08 20:25:42 +02:00
stable Documentation: sysfs-bus-usb: update power/persist description 2014-07-09 16:11:11 -07:00
testing Merge branch 'akpm' (second patchbomb from Andrew Morton) 2014-08-08 15:57:47 -07:00
README Documentation/ABI: document the non-ABI status of Kconfig and symbols 2013-11-13 12:09:32 +09:00

This directory attempts to document the ABI between the Linux kernel and
userspace, and the relative stability of these interfaces.  Due to the
everchanging nature of Linux, and the differing maturity levels, these
interfaces should be used by userspace programs in different ways.

We have four different levels of ABI stability, as shown by the four
different subdirectories in this location.  Interfaces may change levels
of stability according to the rules described below.

The different levels of stability are:

  stable/
	This directory documents the interfaces that the developer has
	defined to be stable.  Userspace programs are free to use these
	interfaces with no restrictions, and backward compatibility for
	them will be guaranteed for at least 2 years.  Most interfaces
	(like syscalls) are expected to never change and always be
	available.

  testing/
	This directory documents interfaces that are felt to be stable,
	as the main development of this interface has been completed.
	The interface can be changed to add new features, but the
	current interface will not break by doing this, unless grave
	errors or security problems are found in them.  Userspace
	programs can start to rely on these interfaces, but they must be
	aware of changes that can occur before these interfaces move to
	be marked stable.  Programs that use these interfaces are
	strongly encouraged to add their name to the description of
	these interfaces, so that the kernel developers can easily
	notify them if any changes occur (see the description of the
	layout of the files below for details on how to do this.)

  obsolete/
  	This directory documents interfaces that are still remaining in
	the kernel, but are marked to be removed at some later point in
	time.  The description of the interface will document the reason
	why it is obsolete and when it can be expected to be removed.

  removed/
	This directory contains a list of the old interfaces that have
	been removed from the kernel.

Every file in these directories will contain the following information:

What:		Short description of the interface
Date:		Date created
KernelVersion:	Kernel version this feature first showed up in.
Contact:	Primary contact for this interface (may be a mailing list)
Description:	Long description of the interface and how to use it.
Users:		All users of this interface who wish to be notified when
		it changes.  This is very important for interfaces in
		the "testing" stage, so that kernel developers can work
		with userspace developers to ensure that things do not
		break in ways that are unacceptable.  It is also
		important to get feedback for these interfaces to make
		sure they are working in a proper way and do not need to
		be changed further.


How things move between levels:

Interfaces in stable may move to obsolete, as long as the proper
notification is given.

Interfaces may be removed from obsolete and the kernel as long as the
documented amount of time has gone by.

Interfaces in the testing state can move to the stable state when the
developers feel they are finished.  They cannot be removed from the
kernel tree without going through the obsolete state first.

It's up to the developer to place their interfaces in the category they
wish for it to start out in.


Notable bits of non-ABI, which should not under any circumstances be considered
stable:

- Kconfig.  Userspace should not rely on the presence or absence of any
  particular Kconfig symbol, in /proc/config.gz, in the copy of .config
  commonly installed to /boot, or in any invocation of the kernel build
  process.

- Kernel-internal symbols.  Do not rely on the presence, absence, location, or
  type of any kernel symbol, either in System.map files or the kernel binary
  itself.  See Documentation/stable_api_nonsense.txt.