Linux Driver Release Checklist¶

Overview¶

This document defines a minimal and practical checklist before releasing a custom Linux driver.

The goal is to ensure:

build correctness
basic code quality
deployment readiness
runtime functionality

This checklist is designed for out-of-tree drivers with Device Tree overlays.

1. Build Validation¶

1.1 Clean build¶

make clean
make

Requirements:

no build errors
no unexpected warnings

1.2 Cross build (if applicable)¶

make -f Makefile.cross

Verify:

correct toolchain
correct target architecture
no vermagic mismatch risk

1.3 Device Tree build¶

dtc -@ -I dts -O dtb -o mysensor.dtbo mysensor.dts

Requirements:

no syntax errors
no critical warnings
no unit_address conflicts
no reg_format issues

2. Static Code Checks¶

2.1 checkpatch¶

./scripts/checkpatch.pl --no-tree --file mysensor_core.c mysensor_i2c.c mysensor_spi.c

Acceptable:

minor style warnings

Not acceptable:

ERROR level issues
obvious kernel API misuse

2.2 sparse (semantic check)¶

make C=1 CHECK="sparse" modules

Focus on:

pointer type mismatch
user-space pointer misuse
missing __user annotation
endian issues

2.3 (Optional) coccicheck¶

make coccicheck

Useful for:

API misuse patterns
deprecated usage
missing error handling

3. Module Metadata Check¶

3.1 modinfo¶

modinfo mysensor_i2c_drv.ko
modinfo mysensor_spi_drv.ko

Verify:

version matches release
license is correct
description is present

4. Installation Validation¶

4.1 Copy files¶

sudo cp *.ko /lib/modules/$(uname -r)/extra/
sudo cp *.dtbo /boot/firmware/overlays/
sudo depmod -a

4.2 Apply overlay¶

sudo dtoverlay mysensor-i2c
sudo dtoverlay mysensor-spi

Verify:

dtoverlay -l

4.3 Load module¶

sudo modprobe mysensor_i2c_drv
sudo modprobe mysensor_spi_drv

Verify:

dmesg | grep mysensor

5. Runtime Validation¶

5.1 Device presence¶

ls /sys/bus/i2c/devices/
ls /sys/bus/spi/devices/

5.2 Driver binding¶

ls /sys/bus/i2c/drivers/mysensor_i2c/
ls /sys/bus/spi/drivers/mysensor_spi/

5.3 Functional check¶

CHIP_ID read must match expected value
no unexpected 0x00 read
no probe failure

5.4 hwmon interface¶

ls /sys/class/hwmon/
cat /sys/class/hwmon/hwmonX/temp1_input

5.5 debug interface¶

cat /sys/class/hwmon/hwmonX/debug_status

Verify:

correct bus (i2c / spi)
correct mode (irq / poll)
counters increment correctly

5.6 IRQ validation¶

cat /proc/interrupts

Verify:

IRQ count increases when triggered

5.7 Polling validation¶

Verify:

polling mode works when IRQ disabled
no mixed behavior between IRQ and polling

6. Conflict Check¶

6.1 spidev conflict¶

ls /dev/spidev*

Expected:

no spidev if custom SPI driver is used

6.2 Chip select ownership¶

Check:

no "chipselect already in use" error
correct CE mapping

7. Version Consistency¶

Ensure consistency across:

VERSION file
README
package name
MODULE_VERSION()

8. Release Packaging¶

8.1 Package structure¶

mysensor-driver-vX.Y.Z/
├── i2c/
├── spi/
├── README.md
├── RELEASE_NOTES.md
└── VERSION

8.2 Final checks¶

install script works
uninstall script works
no hardcoded paths
no debug leftover logs

9. Minimum Release Criteria¶

A release is considered valid if:

build succeeds
dtbo compiles clean
module loads successfully
device probes successfully
functional read/write works
IRQ and polling both validated
no resource conflicts

Summary¶

This checklist ensures that the driver:

builds cleanly
integrates correctly with the kernel
binds correctly to hardware
functions correctly at runtime
can be deployed reproducibly

It is intentionally lightweight but sufficient for most custom driver releases.