Linux (Posix) Systems Programming - Course Syllabus

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This Course is intended for programmers who wish to write programs which interface with the Linux kernel through the system call interface. Such programs may constitute a turnkey system where Linux is embedded.

Introduction

Facilities and Concepts

Input and Output

Low level I/O; read, write, open, close

The standard I/O library

File status and fcntl

File locking; advisory and mandatory

Standard I/P and O/P; getchar and putchar

Devices and the ioctl call

Streams

Directories management

Processes

Description of a process, creation with fork

Running programs with exec

Command line arguments and environment variables

Waiting for processes

Altering process attributes

Real and effective users

Pipes

Description, creation, use for process communication

Pipes and the standard I/P and O/P, the dup system call, FIFO's

Signals

Normal usage, catching, use as a communications method

The non- local goto, longjmp

Enhanced signal mechanism of System V.3 and Posix

System V IPC

Message passing, Shared memory, Semaphores

Notes

1. Participants receive copies of all slide material.
2. A comprehensive list of exercises is provided along with worked solutions.
3. The Course is regularly updated to include new material.
4. Emphasis on different aspects will change according to the participants interests.
5. The Course is geared towards Unix System V or POSIX.1 though most is applicable to other variants.
6. A knowledge of programming in C and a basic knowledge of Unix are prerequisites to this course.
7. The length of the Course is normally four days.