Untangling The Linux Graphics Stack
As I tried to explain this a few times in the past to others and had trouble myself, when I started using Linux, I thought I take some time today and write down what parts comprise the Linux graphics stack and how they interact.
Let us start our little journey in the kernel. There, in a directory named gpu you'll find the drm directory, which contains all DRM drivers. In this post, we'll focus on those. The drivers in that directory are the kernel side of the Direct Rendering Infrastructure (DRI) and are responsible for managing concurrent access to the graphics hardware. They also provide interfaces to pass commands and data to the GPU. The DRI wiki explains the three main purposes of the DRM modules.
The DRM module is also the part that decides whether KMS or UMS is used. Other acronyms you might hear with regard to graphics acceleration on Linux and are referring to the Kernel part are:
- Login or register to post comments
- Printer-friendly version
- 1756 reads
- PDF version
More in Tux Machines
- Highlights
- Front Page
- Latest Headlines
- Archive
- Recent comments
- All-Time Popular Stories
- Hot Topics
- New Members
digiKam 7.7.0 is releasedAfter three months of active maintenance and another bug triage, the digiKam team is proud to present version 7.7.0 of its open source digital photo manager. See below the list of most important features coming with this release. |
Dilution and Misuse of the "Linux" Brand
|
Samsung, Red Hat to Work on Linux Drivers for Future TechThe metaverse is expected to uproot system design as we know it, and Samsung is one of many hardware vendors re-imagining data center infrastructure in preparation for a parallel 3D world. Samsung is working on new memory technologies that provide faster bandwidth inside hardware for data to travel between CPUs, storage and other computing resources. The company also announced it was partnering with Red Hat to ensure these technologies have Linux compatibility. |
today's howtos
|
Recent comments
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago
1 year 11 weeks ago