Subject: Netlink for kernel<->user space communication?

From: Arvid Brodin <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2012 23:52:34 +0000

Hi.

I'm writing a kernel driver for the HSR protocol, a standard for high availability
networks. I want to send messages from the kernel to user space about broken network
links. I also want user space to be able to ask the kernel about its view of the status of
nodes on the network.

Netlink seems like a good tool for this. (Is it?)

But do I use raw netlink? (Described here: http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/7356 - but
this seems a bit out of date, the kernel API description differs from today's kernel
implementation.)
Or do I use the "Kernel Connector" (Documentation/connector/connector.txt)?
Do I use libnetlink?
Or do I use libnl? (This seems to be actively maintained.)
Or are there more and even better ways to do this?

I'm having a case of information overload here and would be grateful for some guidelines.

Thanks,
Arvid Brodin
Enea Services Stockholm AB - since February 16 a part of Xdin in the Alten Group. Soon we
will be working under the common brand name Xdin. Read more at www.xdin.com.