Course Overview
Mark Stanovich
COP 5641 / CIS 4930
Instructors
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Lead Instructor: Mark Stanovich
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Office: 105-E Love Building
Office hours
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TA: Muye Liu
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After class and by appointment (email)
Office hours: TBA
Class Websites
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http://ww2.cs.fsu.edu/~stanovic/teaching/ldd/
Blackboard
Meeting Place and Times
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Tuesday/Thursday: 9:30am – 10:45am
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LOV 103 (sometimes at MCH 202)
You will work in lab MCH 202
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You will spend lots of time on projects
Projects will need to be done in the lab,
unless you have a PC that you:
 Don't mind corrupting
 Can bring into the lab for demos
Course Objectives
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Make yourself into a Linux kernel “hacker”,
who can:
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Configure, compile, and install a Linux kernel
Do the same for a kernel module
Understand and make changes to the sources
Use internal kernel services
Design and implement a kernel module
Modify/design and implement a device driver
Measure the performance of your implementation
Applicability of Kernel Hacking Skills
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Software engineering
Concurrent programming
Thesis and dissertation
Employment
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Final project can be added to your portfolio
Prerequisites
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COP 4610
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or, COP 5570
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Undergraduate Operating Systems
Concurrent, Parallel, and Distributed
Programming (old Advanced Unix Programming)
or,
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Proficiency in Unix environment and C, and
General knowledge of operating systems design
principles
Course Material
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Lecture notes (posted at the class website)
Required textbook
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Linux Kernel Development (3rd Ed)
ISBN: 978-0672329463
Course Material
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Recommended additional textbook
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Linux Device Drivers, 3rd Edition
ISBN: 0-596-00590-3
Online version (free)
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http://www.lwn.net/Kernel/LDD3
Class Grading
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Assignment 1 (individual):
Assignment 2 (prob. individual):
Assignment 3 (individual):
Assignment 4 (individual):
Assignment 5 (team + report):
Quizzes:
10%
5%
15%
15%
30%
25%
Assignments
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Reading
Programming
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You will be provided access to a PC (MCH 202)
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First four assignments: lab exercises
Last assignment: team projects
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It may need to be shared
Each member will evaluate the contribution of the other
team members
Warning: they get more difficult, exponentially
Some Possible Team Projects
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Device drivers
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Raspberry pi
Cellular phone sensors
Virtual devices (virtual machine pass-through)
Solid-state storage (e.g., flash)
Future course lab project
Add functionality to an existing device driver
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May partially include upgrading to a recent version of the
kernel
Some Possible Team Projects
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New kernel features/optimizations
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Optimize storage management routines
Security
Assist with ongoing research projects
Scheduling (CPU, block layer)
Your ideas?
BEWARE
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Assignments may be very time consuming
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Non-deterministic error
Obscure error symptoms
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May not have much information about where/when an
error occurred
Fewer and more difficult to setup debugging tools
Need frequent reboots and OS reinstallations
Implications
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Start your projects early
You are responsible for backing up your work
BEWARE
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If you plan to use your own computer
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You will need to bring in your machine to
demonstrate your code
You might trash your hard drives
Some Useful Tools
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Good editor, IDE (search code)
Git (backup, versions)
General knowledge of Linux logging
subsystem
Knowledge of grub usage
Kernel debugging tools
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Kdb, gdb (on modules)
“Kernel hacking” configuration menu items
“Magic SysRq”
Quizzes
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Several short quizzes
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Not necessarily announced in advance
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Will throw out one quiz (worst score)
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Missed quizzes
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For excused absences or lateness
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No make-ups for missed quizzes
For excused absences or lateness
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The missing quizzes will be dropped
Class Grading
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91% - 100%
89% - 90%
85% - 88%
81% - 84%
79% - 80%
75% - 78%
71% - 74%
69% - 70%
64% - 68%
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
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61% - 63%
59% - 60%
0% - 58%
D
DF
Computer Accounts, etc.
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Blackboard account (@my.fsu.edu)
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Grade posting via Blackboard
Card activation for MCH 202 lab
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Fill out survey
Need your FSU card number
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Your choice of a 4 digit PIN #
Course Policies
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Attendance mandatory
Honor code: read your student handbook
Students with disabilities
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Report to Student Disability Resource Center
Bring me a letter within the first week of class
Things for you to do
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Fill out survey form and turn in at the
beginning of Thursday’s class
Reading
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Syllabus
Start with LKD Chapters 1 and 2 (quick overview)
Then read LDD Chapters 1 and 2 for more depth
Familiarize yourself with Assignment 1