Files
linux/Documentation/ABI
Linus Torvalds 88b29f3f57 Merge tag 'modules-7.1-rc1' of git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/modules/linux
Pull module updates from Sami Tolvanen:
 "Kernel symbol flags:

   - Replace the separate *_gpl symbol sections (__ksymtab_gpl and
     __kcrctab_gpl) with a unified symbol table and a new __kflagstab
     section.

     This section stores symbol flags, such as the GPL-only flag, as an
     8-bit bitset for each exported symbol. This is a cleanup that
     simplifies symbol lookup in the module loader by avoiding table
     fragmentation and will allow a cleaner way to add more flags later
     if needed.

  Module signature UAPI:

   - Move struct module_signature to the UAPI headers to allow reuse by
     tools outside the kernel proper, such as kmod and
     scripts/sign-file.

     This also renames a few constants for clarity and drops unused
     signature types as preparation for hash-based module integrity
     checking work that's in progress.

  Sysfs:

   - Add a /sys/module/<module>/import_ns sysfs attribute to show the
     symbol namespaces imported by loaded modules.

     This makes it easier to verify driver API access at runtime on
     systems that care about such things (e.g. Android).

  Cleanups and fixes:

   - Force sh_addr to 0 for all sections in module.lds. This prevents
     non-zero section addresses when linking modules with 'ld.bfd -r',
     which confused elfutils.

   - Fix a memory leak of charp module parameters on module unload when
     the kernel is configured with CONFIG_SYSFS=n.

   - Override the -EEXIST error code returned by module_init() to
     userspace. This prevents confusion with the errno reserved by the
     module loader to indicate that a module is already loaded.

   - Simplify the warning message and drop the stack dump on positive
     returns from module_init().

   - Drop unnecessary extern keywords from function declarations and
     synchronize parse_args() arguments with their implementation"

* tag 'modules-7.1-rc1' of git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/modules/linux: (23 commits)
  module: Simplify warning on positive returns from module_init()
  module: Override -EEXIST module return
  documentation: remove references to *_gpl sections
  module: remove *_gpl sections from vmlinux and modules
  module: deprecate usage of *_gpl sections in module loader
  module: use kflagstab instead of *_gpl sections
  module: populate kflagstab in modpost
  module: add kflagstab section to vmlinux and modules
  module: define ksym_flags enumeration to represent kernel symbol flags
  selftests/bpf: verify_pkcs7_sig: Use 'struct module_signature' from the UAPI headers
  sign-file: use 'struct module_signature' from the UAPI headers
  tools uapi headers: add linux/module_signature.h
  module: Move 'struct module_signature' to UAPI
  module: Give MODULE_SIG_STRING a more descriptive name
  module: Give 'enum pkey_id_type' a more specific name
  module: Drop unused signature types
  extract-cert: drop unused definition of PKEY_ID_PKCS7
  docs: symbol-namespaces: mention sysfs attribute
  module: expose imported namespaces via sysfs
  module: Remove extern keyword from param prototypes
  ...
2026-04-14 17:16:38 -07:00
..

This part of the documentation inside Documentation/ABI 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:	(Optional) Kernel version this feature first showed up in.
		Note: git history often provides more accurate version
		info, so this field may be omitted.
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.


Note:
   The fields should be use a simple notation, compatible with ReST markup.
   Also, the file **should not** have a top-level index, like::

	===
	foo
	===

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/process/stable-api-nonsense.rst.