xref: /linux/Documentation/cdrom/cdrom-standard.rst (revision a4eb44a6435d6d8f9e642407a4a06f65eb90ca04)
1=======================
2A Linux CD-ROM standard
3=======================
4
5:Author: David van Leeuwen <david@ElseWare.cistron.nl>
6:Date: 12 March 1999
7:Updated by: Erik Andersen (andersee@debian.org)
8:Updated by: Jens Axboe (axboe@image.dk)
9
10
11Introduction
12============
13
14Linux is probably the Unix-like operating system that supports
15the widest variety of hardware devices. The reasons for this are
16presumably
17
18- The large list of hardware devices available for the many platforms
19  that Linux now supports (i.e., i386-PCs, Sparc Suns, etc.)
20- The open design of the operating system, such that anybody can write a
21  driver for Linux.
22- There is plenty of source code around as examples of how to write a driver.
23
24The openness of Linux, and the many different types of available
25hardware has allowed Linux to support many different hardware devices.
26Unfortunately, the very openness that has allowed Linux to support
27all these different devices has also allowed the behavior of each
28device driver to differ significantly from one device to another.
29This divergence of behavior has been very significant for CD-ROM
30devices; the way a particular drive reacts to a `standard` *ioctl()*
31call varies greatly from one device driver to another. To avoid making
32their drivers totally inconsistent, the writers of Linux CD-ROM
33drivers generally created new device drivers by understanding, copying,
34and then changing an existing one. Unfortunately, this practice did not
35maintain uniform behavior across all the Linux CD-ROM drivers.
36
37This document describes an effort to establish Uniform behavior across
38all the different CD-ROM device drivers for Linux. This document also
39defines the various *ioctl()'s*, and how the low-level CD-ROM device
40drivers should implement them. Currently (as of the Linux 2.1.\ *x*
41development kernels) several low-level CD-ROM device drivers, including
42both IDE/ATAPI and SCSI, now use this Uniform interface.
43
44When the CD-ROM was developed, the interface between the CD-ROM drive
45and the computer was not specified in the standards. As a result, many
46different CD-ROM interfaces were developed. Some of them had their
47own proprietary design (Sony, Mitsumi, Panasonic, Philips), other
48manufacturers adopted an existing electrical interface and changed
49the functionality (CreativeLabs/SoundBlaster, Teac, Funai) or simply
50adapted their drives to one or more of the already existing electrical
51interfaces (Aztech, Sanyo, Funai, Vertos, Longshine, Optics Storage and
52most of the `NoName` manufacturers). In cases where a new drive really
53brought its own interface or used its own command set and flow control
54scheme, either a separate driver had to be written, or an existing
55driver had to be enhanced. History has delivered us CD-ROM support for
56many of these different interfaces. Nowadays, almost all new CD-ROM
57drives are either IDE/ATAPI or SCSI, and it is very unlikely that any
58manufacturer will create a new interface. Even finding drives for the
59old proprietary interfaces is getting difficult.
60
61When (in the 1.3.70's) I looked at the existing software interface,
62which was expressed through `cdrom.h`, it appeared to be a rather wild
63set of commands and data formats [#f1]_. It seemed that many
64features of the software interface had been added to accommodate the
65capabilities of a particular drive, in an *ad hoc* manner. More
66importantly, it appeared that the behavior of the `standard` commands
67was different for most of the different drivers: e. g., some drivers
68close the tray if an *open()* call occurs when the tray is open, while
69others do not. Some drivers lock the door upon opening the device, to
70prevent an incoherent file system, but others don't, to allow software
71ejection. Undoubtedly, the capabilities of the different drives vary,
72but even when two drives have the same capability their drivers'
73behavior was usually different.
74
75.. [#f1]
76   I cannot recollect what kernel version I looked at, then,
77   presumably 1.2.13 and 1.3.34 --- the latest kernel that I was
78   indirectly involved in.
79
80I decided to start a discussion on how to make all the Linux CD-ROM
81drivers behave more uniformly. I began by contacting the developers of
82the many CD-ROM drivers found in the Linux kernel. Their reactions
83encouraged me to write the Uniform CD-ROM Driver which this document is
84intended to describe. The implementation of the Uniform CD-ROM Driver is
85in the file `cdrom.c`. This driver is intended to be an additional software
86layer that sits on top of the low-level device drivers for each CD-ROM drive.
87By adding this additional layer, it is possible to have all the different
88CD-ROM devices behave **exactly** the same (insofar as the underlying
89hardware will allow).
90
91The goal of the Uniform CD-ROM Driver is **not** to alienate driver developers
92whohave not yet taken steps to support this effort. The goal of Uniform CD-ROM
93Driver is simply to give people writing application programs for CD-ROM drives
94**one** Linux CD-ROM interface with consistent behavior for all
95CD-ROM devices. In addition, this also provides a consistent interface
96between the low-level device driver code and the Linux kernel. Care
97is taken that 100% compatibility exists with the data structures and
98programmer's interface defined in `cdrom.h`. This guide was written to
99help CD-ROM driver developers adapt their code to use the Uniform CD-ROM
100Driver code defined in `cdrom.c`.
101
102Personally, I think that the most important hardware interfaces are
103the IDE/ATAPI drives and, of course, the SCSI drives, but as prices
104of hardware drop continuously, it is also likely that people may have
105more than one CD-ROM drive, possibly of mixed types. It is important
106that these drives behave in the same way. In December 1994, one of the
107cheapest CD-ROM drives was a Philips cm206, a double-speed proprietary
108drive. In the months that I was busy writing a Linux driver for it,
109proprietary drives became obsolete and IDE/ATAPI drives became the
110standard. At the time of the last update to this document (November
1111997) it is becoming difficult to even **find** anything less than a
11216 speed CD-ROM drive, and 24 speed drives are common.
113
114.. _cdrom_api:
115
116Standardizing through another software level
117============================================
118
119At the time this document was conceived, all drivers directly
120implemented the CD-ROM *ioctl()* calls through their own routines. This
121led to the danger of different drivers forgetting to do important things
122like checking that the user was giving the driver valid data. More
123importantly, this led to the divergence of behavior, which has already
124been discussed.
125
126For this reason, the Uniform CD-ROM Driver was created to enforce consistent
127CD-ROM drive behavior, and to provide a common set of services to the various
128low-level CD-ROM device drivers. The Uniform CD-ROM Driver now provides another
129software-level, that separates the *ioctl()* and *open()* implementation
130from the actual hardware implementation. Note that this effort has
131made few changes which will affect a user's application programs. The
132greatest change involved moving the contents of the various low-level
133CD-ROM drivers\' header files to the kernel's cdrom directory. This was
134done to help ensure that the user is only presented with only one cdrom
135interface, the interface defined in `cdrom.h`.
136
137CD-ROM drives are specific enough (i. e., different from other
138block-devices such as floppy or hard disc drives), to define a set
139of common **CD-ROM device operations**, *<cdrom-device>_dops*.
140These operations are different from the classical block-device file
141operations, *<block-device>_fops*.
142
143The routines for the Uniform CD-ROM Driver interface level are implemented
144in the file `cdrom.c`. In this file, the Uniform CD-ROM Driver interfaces
145with the kernel as a block device by registering the following general
146*struct file_operations*::
147
148	struct file_operations cdrom_fops = {
149		NULL,			/* lseek */
150		block _read ,		/* read--general block-dev read */
151		block _write,		/* write--general block-dev write */
152		NULL,			/* readdir */
153		NULL,			/* select */
154		cdrom_ioctl,		/* ioctl */
155		NULL,			/* mmap */
156		cdrom_open,		/* open */
157		cdrom_release,		/* release */
158		NULL,			/* fsync */
159		NULL,			/* fasync */
160		NULL			/* revalidate */
161	};
162
163Every active CD-ROM device shares this *struct*. The routines
164declared above are all implemented in `cdrom.c`, since this file is the
165place where the behavior of all CD-ROM-devices is defined and
166standardized. The actual interface to the various types of CD-ROM
167hardware is still performed by various low-level CD-ROM-device
168drivers. These routines simply implement certain **capabilities**
169that are common to all CD-ROM (and really, all removable-media
170devices).
171
172Registration of a low-level CD-ROM device driver is now done through
173the general routines in `cdrom.c`, not through the Virtual File System
174(VFS) any more. The interface implemented in `cdrom.c` is carried out
175through two general structures that contain information about the
176capabilities of the driver, and the specific drives on which the
177driver operates. The structures are:
178
179cdrom_device_ops
180  This structure contains information about the low-level driver for a
181  CD-ROM device. This structure is conceptually connected to the major
182  number of the device (although some drivers may have different
183  major numbers, as is the case for the IDE driver).
184
185cdrom_device_info
186  This structure contains information about a particular CD-ROM drive,
187  such as its device name, speed, etc. This structure is conceptually
188  connected to the minor number of the device.
189
190Registering a particular CD-ROM drive with the Uniform CD-ROM Driver
191is done by the low-level device driver though a call to::
192
193	register_cdrom(struct cdrom_device_info * <device>_info)
194
195The device information structure, *<device>_info*, contains all the
196information needed for the kernel to interface with the low-level
197CD-ROM device driver. One of the most important entries in this
198structure is a pointer to the *cdrom_device_ops* structure of the
199low-level driver.
200
201The device operations structure, *cdrom_device_ops*, contains a list
202of pointers to the functions which are implemented in the low-level
203device driver. When `cdrom.c` accesses a CD-ROM device, it does it
204through the functions in this structure. It is impossible to know all
205the capabilities of future CD-ROM drives, so it is expected that this
206list may need to be expanded from time to time as new technologies are
207developed. For example, CD-R and CD-R/W drives are beginning to become
208popular, and support will soon need to be added for them. For now, the
209current *struct* is::
210
211	struct cdrom_device_ops {
212		int (*open)(struct cdrom_device_info *, int)
213		void (*release)(struct cdrom_device_info *);
214		int (*drive_status)(struct cdrom_device_info *, int);
215		unsigned int (*check_events)(struct cdrom_device_info *,
216					     unsigned int, int);
217		int (*media_changed)(struct cdrom_device_info *, int);
218		int (*tray_move)(struct cdrom_device_info *, int);
219		int (*lock_door)(struct cdrom_device_info *, int);
220		int (*select_speed)(struct cdrom_device_info *, int);
221		int (*select_disc)(struct cdrom_device_info *, int);
222		int (*get_last_session) (struct cdrom_device_info *,
223					 struct cdrom_multisession *);
224		int (*get_mcn)(struct cdrom_device_info *, struct cdrom_mcn *);
225		int (*reset)(struct cdrom_device_info *);
226		int (*audio_ioctl)(struct cdrom_device_info *,
227				   unsigned int, void *);
228		const int capability;		/* capability flags */
229		int (*generic_packet)(struct cdrom_device_info *,
230				      struct packet_command *);
231	};
232
233When a low-level device driver implements one of these capabilities,
234it should add a function pointer to this *struct*. When a particular
235function is not implemented, however, this *struct* should contain a
236NULL instead. The *capability* flags specify the capabilities of the
237CD-ROM hardware and/or low-level CD-ROM driver when a CD-ROM drive
238is registered with the Uniform CD-ROM Driver.
239
240Note that most functions have fewer parameters than their
241*blkdev_fops* counterparts. This is because very little of the
242information in the structures *inode* and *file* is used. For most
243drivers, the main parameter is the *struct* *cdrom_device_info*, from
244which the major and minor number can be extracted. (Most low-level
245CD-ROM drivers don't even look at the major and minor number though,
246since many of them only support one device.) This will be available
247through *dev* in *cdrom_device_info* described below.
248
249The drive-specific, minor-like information that is registered with
250`cdrom.c`, currently contains the following fields::
251
252  struct cdrom_device_info {
253	const struct cdrom_device_ops * ops;	/* device operations for this major */
254	struct list_head list;			/* linked list of all device_info */
255	struct gendisk * disk;			/* matching block layer disk */
256	void *  handle;				/* driver-dependent data */
257
258	int mask;				/* mask of capability: disables them */
259	int speed;				/* maximum speed for reading data */
260	int capacity;				/* number of discs in a jukebox */
261
262	unsigned int options:30;		/* options flags */
263	unsigned mc_flags:2;			/*  media-change buffer flags */
264	unsigned int vfs_events;		/*  cached events for vfs path */
265	unsigned int ioctl_events;		/*  cached events for ioctl path */
266	int use_count;				/*  number of times device is opened */
267	char name[20];				/*  name of the device type */
268
269	__u8 sanyo_slot : 2;			/*  Sanyo 3-CD changer support */
270	__u8 keeplocked : 1;			/*  CDROM_LOCKDOOR status */
271	__u8 reserved : 5;			/*  not used yet */
272	int cdda_method;			/*  see CDDA_* flags */
273	__u8 last_sense;			/*  saves last sense key */
274	__u8 media_written;			/*  dirty flag, DVD+RW bookkeeping */
275	unsigned short mmc3_profile;		/*  current MMC3 profile */
276	int for_data;				/*  unknown:TBD */
277	int (*exit)(struct cdrom_device_info *);/*  unknown:TBD */
278	int mrw_mode_page;			/*  which MRW mode page is in use */
279  };
280
281Using this *struct*, a linked list of the registered minor devices is
282built, using the *next* field. The device number, the device operations
283struct and specifications of properties of the drive are stored in this
284structure.
285
286The *mask* flags can be used to mask out some of the capabilities listed
287in *ops->capability*, if a specific drive doesn't support a feature
288of the driver. The value *speed* specifies the maximum head-rate of the
289drive, measured in units of normal audio speed (176kB/sec raw data or
290150kB/sec file system data). The parameters are declared *const*
291because they describe properties of the drive, which don't change after
292registration.
293
294A few registers contain variables local to the CD-ROM drive. The
295flags *options* are used to specify how the general CD-ROM routines
296should behave. These various flags registers should provide enough
297flexibility to adapt to the different users' wishes (and **not** the
298`arbitrary` wishes of the author of the low-level device driver, as is
299the case in the old scheme). The register *mc_flags* is used to buffer
300the information from *media_changed()* to two separate queues. Other
301data that is specific to a minor drive, can be accessed through *handle*,
302which can point to a data structure specific to the low-level driver.
303The fields *use_count*, *next*, *options* and *mc_flags* need not be
304initialized.
305
306The intermediate software layer that `cdrom.c` forms will perform some
307additional bookkeeping. The use count of the device (the number of
308processes that have the device opened) is registered in *use_count*. The
309function *cdrom_ioctl()* will verify the appropriate user-memory regions
310for read and write, and in case a location on the CD is transferred,
311it will `sanitize` the format by making requests to the low-level
312drivers in a standard format, and translating all formats between the
313user-software and low level drivers. This relieves much of the drivers'
314memory checking and format checking and translation. Also, the necessary
315structures will be declared on the program stack.
316
317The implementation of the functions should be as defined in the
318following sections. Two functions **must** be implemented, namely
319*open()* and *release()*. Other functions may be omitted, their
320corresponding capability flags will be cleared upon registration.
321Generally, a function returns zero on success and negative on error. A
322function call should return only after the command has completed, but of
323course waiting for the device should not use processor time.
324
325::
326
327	int open(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi, int purpose)
328
329*Open()* should try to open the device for a specific *purpose*, which
330can be either:
331
332- Open for reading data, as done by `mount()` (2), or the
333  user commands `dd` or `cat`.
334- Open for *ioctl* commands, as done by audio-CD playing programs.
335
336Notice that any strategic code (closing tray upon *open()*, etc.) is
337done by the calling routine in `cdrom.c`, so the low-level routine
338should only be concerned with proper initialization, such as spinning
339up the disc, etc.
340
341::
342
343	void release(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi)
344
345Device-specific actions should be taken such as spinning down the device.
346However, strategic actions such as ejection of the tray, or unlocking
347the door, should be left over to the general routine *cdrom_release()*.
348This is the only function returning type *void*.
349
350.. _cdrom_drive_status:
351
352::
353
354	int drive_status(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi, int slot_nr)
355
356The function *drive_status*, if implemented, should provide
357information on the status of the drive (not the status of the disc,
358which may or may not be in the drive). If the drive is not a changer,
359*slot_nr* should be ignored. In `cdrom.h` the possibilities are listed::
360
361
362	CDS_NO_INFO		/* no information available */
363	CDS_NO_DISC		/* no disc is inserted, tray is closed */
364	CDS_TRAY_OPEN		/* tray is opened */
365	CDS_DRIVE_NOT_READY	/* something is wrong, tray is moving? */
366	CDS_DISC_OK		/* a disc is loaded and everything is fine */
367
368::
369
370	int tray_move(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi, int position)
371
372This function, if implemented, should control the tray movement. (No
373other function should control this.) The parameter *position* controls
374the desired direction of movement:
375
376- 0 Close tray
377- 1 Open tray
378
379This function returns 0 upon success, and a non-zero value upon
380error. Note that if the tray is already in the desired position, no
381action need be taken, and the return value should be 0.
382
383::
384
385	int lock_door(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi, int lock)
386
387This function (and no other code) controls locking of the door, if the
388drive allows this. The value of *lock* controls the desired locking
389state:
390
391- 0 Unlock door, manual opening is allowed
392- 1 Lock door, tray cannot be ejected manually
393
394This function returns 0 upon success, and a non-zero value upon
395error. Note that if the door is already in the requested state, no
396action need be taken, and the return value should be 0.
397
398::
399
400	int select_speed(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi, int speed)
401
402Some CD-ROM drives are capable of changing their head-speed. There
403are several reasons for changing the speed of a CD-ROM drive. Badly
404pressed CD-ROM s may benefit from less-than-maximum head rate. Modern
405CD-ROM drives can obtain very high head rates (up to *24x* is
406common). It has been reported that these drives can make reading
407errors at these high speeds, reducing the speed can prevent data loss
408in these circumstances. Finally, some of these drives can
409make an annoyingly loud noise, which a lower speed may reduce.
410
411This function specifies the speed at which data is read or audio is
412played back. The value of *speed* specifies the head-speed of the
413drive, measured in units of standard cdrom speed (176kB/sec raw data
414or 150kB/sec file system data). So to request that a CD-ROM drive
415operate at 300kB/sec you would call the CDROM_SELECT_SPEED *ioctl*
416with *speed=2*. The special value `0` means `auto-selection`, i. e.,
417maximum data-rate or real-time audio rate. If the drive doesn't have
418this `auto-selection` capability, the decision should be made on the
419current disc loaded and the return value should be positive. A negative
420return value indicates an error.
421
422::
423
424	int select_disc(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi, int number)
425
426If the drive can store multiple discs (a juke-box) this function
427will perform disc selection. It should return the number of the
428selected disc on success, a negative value on error. Currently, only
429the ide-cd driver supports this functionality.
430
431::
432
433	int get_last_session(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi,
434			     struct cdrom_multisession *ms_info)
435
436This function should implement the old corresponding *ioctl()*. For
437device *cdi->dev*, the start of the last session of the current disc
438should be returned in the pointer argument *ms_info*. Note that
439routines in `cdrom.c` have sanitized this argument: its requested
440format will **always** be of the type *CDROM_LBA* (linear block
441addressing mode), whatever the calling software requested. But
442sanitization goes even further: the low-level implementation may
443return the requested information in *CDROM_MSF* format if it wishes so
444(setting the *ms_info->addr_format* field appropriately, of
445course) and the routines in `cdrom.c` will make the transformation if
446necessary. The return value is 0 upon success.
447
448::
449
450	int get_mcn(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi,
451		    struct cdrom_mcn *mcn)
452
453Some discs carry a `Media Catalog Number` (MCN), also called
454`Universal Product Code` (UPC). This number should reflect the number
455that is generally found in the bar-code on the product. Unfortunately,
456the few discs that carry such a number on the disc don't even use the
457same format. The return argument to this function is a pointer to a
458pre-declared memory region of type *struct cdrom_mcn*. The MCN is
459expected as a 13-character string, terminated by a null-character.
460
461::
462
463	int reset(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi)
464
465This call should perform a hard-reset on the drive (although in
466circumstances that a hard-reset is necessary, a drive may very well not
467listen to commands anymore). Preferably, control is returned to the
468caller only after the drive has finished resetting. If the drive is no
469longer listening, it may be wise for the underlying low-level cdrom
470driver to time out.
471
472::
473
474	int audio_ioctl(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi,
475			unsigned int cmd, void *arg)
476
477Some of the CD-ROM-\ *ioctl()*\ 's defined in `cdrom.h` can be
478implemented by the routines described above, and hence the function
479*cdrom_ioctl* will use those. However, most *ioctl()*\ 's deal with
480audio-control. We have decided to leave these to be accessed through a
481single function, repeating the arguments *cmd* and *arg*. Note that
482the latter is of type *void*, rather than *unsigned long int*.
483The routine *cdrom_ioctl()* does do some useful things,
484though. It sanitizes the address format type to *CDROM_MSF* (Minutes,
485Seconds, Frames) for all audio calls. It also verifies the memory
486location of *arg*, and reserves stack-memory for the argument. This
487makes implementation of the *audio_ioctl()* much simpler than in the
488old driver scheme. For example, you may look up the function
489*cm206_audio_ioctl()* `cm206.c` that should be updated with
490this documentation.
491
492An unimplemented ioctl should return *-ENOSYS*, but a harmless request
493(e. g., *CDROMSTART*) may be ignored by returning 0 (success). Other
494errors should be according to the standards, whatever they are. When
495an error is returned by the low-level driver, the Uniform CD-ROM Driver
496tries whenever possible to return the error code to the calling program.
497(We may decide to sanitize the return value in *cdrom_ioctl()* though, in
498order to guarantee a uniform interface to the audio-player software.)
499
500::
501
502	int dev_ioctl(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi,
503		      unsigned int cmd, unsigned long arg)
504
505Some *ioctl()'s* seem to be specific to certain CD-ROM drives. That is,
506they are introduced to service some capabilities of certain drives. In
507fact, there are 6 different *ioctl()'s* for reading data, either in some
508particular kind of format, or audio data. Not many drives support
509reading audio tracks as data, I believe this is because of protection
510of copyrights of artists. Moreover, I think that if audio-tracks are
511supported, it should be done through the VFS and not via *ioctl()'s*. A
512problem here could be the fact that audio-frames are 2352 bytes long,
513so either the audio-file-system should ask for 75264 bytes at once
514(the least common multiple of 512 and 2352), or the drivers should
515bend their backs to cope with this incoherence (to which I would be
516opposed). Furthermore, it is very difficult for the hardware to find
517the exact frame boundaries, since there are no synchronization headers
518in audio frames. Once these issues are resolved, this code should be
519standardized in `cdrom.c`.
520
521Because there are so many *ioctl()'s* that seem to be introduced to
522satisfy certain drivers [#f2]_, any non-standard *ioctl()*\ s
523are routed through the call *dev_ioctl()*. In principle, `private`
524*ioctl()*\ 's should be numbered after the device's major number, and not
525the general CD-ROM *ioctl* number, `0x53`. Currently the
526non-supported *ioctl()'s* are:
527
528	CDROMREADMODE1, CDROMREADMODE2, CDROMREADAUDIO, CDROMREADRAW,
529	CDROMREADCOOKED, CDROMSEEK, CDROMPLAY-BLK and CDROM-READALL
530
531.. [#f2]
532
533   Is there software around that actually uses these? I'd be interested!
534
535.. _cdrom_capabilities:
536
537CD-ROM capabilities
538-------------------
539
540Instead of just implementing some *ioctl* calls, the interface in
541`cdrom.c` supplies the possibility to indicate the **capabilities**
542of a CD-ROM drive. This can be done by ORing any number of
543capability-constants that are defined in `cdrom.h` at the registration
544phase. Currently, the capabilities are any of::
545
546	CDC_CLOSE_TRAY		/* can close tray by software control */
547	CDC_OPEN_TRAY		/* can open tray */
548	CDC_LOCK		/* can lock and unlock the door */
549	CDC_SELECT_SPEED	/* can select speed, in units of * sim*150 ,kB/s */
550	CDC_SELECT_DISC		/* drive is juke-box */
551	CDC_MULTI_SESSION	/* can read sessions *> rm1* */
552	CDC_MCN			/* can read Media Catalog Number */
553	CDC_MEDIA_CHANGED	/* can report if disc has changed */
554	CDC_PLAY_AUDIO		/* can perform audio-functions (play, pause, etc) */
555	CDC_RESET		/* hard reset device */
556	CDC_IOCTLS		/* driver has non-standard ioctls */
557	CDC_DRIVE_STATUS	/* driver implements drive status */
558
559The capability flag is declared *const*, to prevent drivers from
560accidentally tampering with the contents. The capability flags actually
561inform `cdrom.c` of what the driver can do. If the drive found
562by the driver does not have the capability, is can be masked out by
563the *cdrom_device_info* variable *mask*. For instance, the SCSI CD-ROM
564driver has implemented the code for loading and ejecting CD-ROM's, and
565hence its corresponding flags in *capability* will be set. But a SCSI
566CD-ROM drive might be a caddy system, which can't load the tray, and
567hence for this drive the *cdrom_device_info* struct will have set
568the *CDC_CLOSE_TRAY* bit in *mask*.
569
570In the file `cdrom.c` you will encounter many constructions of the type::
571
572	if (cdo->capability & ~cdi->mask & CDC _<capability>) ...
573
574There is no *ioctl* to set the mask... The reason is that
575I think it is better to control the **behavior** rather than the
576**capabilities**.
577
578Options
579-------
580
581A final flag register controls the **behavior** of the CD-ROM
582drives, in order to satisfy different users' wishes, hopefully
583independently of the ideas of the respective author who happened to
584have made the drive's support available to the Linux community. The
585current behavior options are::
586
587	CDO_AUTO_CLOSE	/* try to close tray upon device open() */
588	CDO_AUTO_EJECT	/* try to open tray on last device close() */
589	CDO_USE_FFLAGS	/* use file_pointer->f_flags to indicate purpose for open() */
590	CDO_LOCK	/* try to lock door if device is opened */
591	CDO_CHECK_TYPE	/* ensure disc type is data if opened for data */
592
593The initial value of this register is
594`CDO_AUTO_CLOSE | CDO_USE_FFLAGS | CDO_LOCK`, reflecting my own view on user
595interface and software standards. Before you protest, there are two
596new *ioctl()'s* implemented in `cdrom.c`, that allow you to control the
597behavior by software. These are::
598
599	CDROM_SET_OPTIONS	/* set options specified in (int)arg */
600	CDROM_CLEAR_OPTIONS	/* clear options specified in (int)arg */
601
602One option needs some more explanation: *CDO_USE_FFLAGS*. In the next
603newsection we explain what the need for this option is.
604
605A software package `setcd`, available from the Debian distribution
606and `sunsite.unc.edu`, allows user level control of these flags.
607
608
609The need to know the purpose of opening the CD-ROM device
610=========================================================
611
612Traditionally, Unix devices can be used in two different `modes`,
613either by reading/writing to the device file, or by issuing
614controlling commands to the device, by the device's *ioctl()*
615call. The problem with CD-ROM drives, is that they can be used for
616two entirely different purposes. One is to mount removable
617file systems, CD-ROM's, the other is to play audio CD's. Audio commands
618are implemented entirely through *ioctl()\'s*, presumably because the
619first implementation (SUN?) has been such. In principle there is
620nothing wrong with this, but a good control of the `CD player` demands
621that the device can **always** be opened in order to give the
622*ioctl* commands, regardless of the state the drive is in.
623
624On the other hand, when used as a removable-media disc drive (what the
625original purpose of CD-ROM s is) we would like to make sure that the
626disc drive is ready for operation upon opening the device. In the old
627scheme, some CD-ROM drivers don't do any integrity checking, resulting
628in a number of i/o errors reported by the VFS to the kernel when an
629attempt for mounting a CD-ROM on an empty drive occurs. This is not a
630particularly elegant way to find out that there is no CD-ROM inserted;
631it more-or-less looks like the old IBM-PC trying to read an empty floppy
632drive for a couple of seconds, after which the system complains it
633can't read from it. Nowadays we can **sense** the existence of a
634removable medium in a drive, and we believe we should exploit that
635fact. An integrity check on opening of the device, that verifies the
636availability of a CD-ROM and its correct type (data), would be
637desirable.
638
639These two ways of using a CD-ROM drive, principally for data and
640secondarily for playing audio discs, have different demands for the
641behavior of the *open()* call. Audio use simply wants to open the
642device in order to get a file handle which is needed for issuing
643*ioctl* commands, while data use wants to open for correct and
644reliable data transfer. The only way user programs can indicate what
645their *purpose* of opening the device is, is through the *flags*
646parameter (see `open(2)`). For CD-ROM devices, these flags aren't
647implemented (some drivers implement checking for write-related flags,
648but this is not strictly necessary if the device file has correct
649permission flags). Most option flags simply don't make sense to
650CD-ROM devices: *O_CREAT*, *O_NOCTTY*, *O_TRUNC*, *O_APPEND*, and
651*O_SYNC* have no meaning to a CD-ROM.
652
653We therefore propose to use the flag *O_NONBLOCK* to indicate
654that the device is opened just for issuing *ioctl*
655commands. Strictly, the meaning of *O_NONBLOCK* is that opening and
656subsequent calls to the device don't cause the calling process to
657wait. We could interpret this as don't wait until someone has
658inserted some valid data-CD-ROM. Thus, our proposal of the
659implementation for the *open()* call for CD-ROM s is:
660
661- If no other flags are set than *O_RDONLY*, the device is opened
662  for data transfer, and the return value will be 0 only upon successful
663  initialization of the transfer. The call may even induce some actions
664  on the CD-ROM, such as closing the tray.
665- If the option flag *O_NONBLOCK* is set, opening will always be
666  successful, unless the whole device doesn't exist. The drive will take
667  no actions whatsoever.
668
669And what about standards?
670-------------------------
671
672You might hesitate to accept this proposal as it comes from the
673Linux community, and not from some standardizing institute. What
674about SUN, SGI, HP and all those other Unix and hardware vendors?
675Well, these companies are in the lucky position that they generally
676control both the hardware and software of their supported products,
677and are large enough to set their own standard. They do not have to
678deal with a dozen or more different, competing hardware
679configurations\ [#f3]_.
680
681.. [#f3]
682
683   Incidentally, I think that SUN's approach to mounting CD-ROM s is very
684   good in origin: under Solaris a volume-daemon automatically mounts a
685   newly inserted CD-ROM under `/cdrom/*<volume-name>*`.
686
687   In my opinion they should have pushed this
688   further and have **every** CD-ROM on the local area network be
689   mounted at the similar location, i. e., no matter in which particular
690   machine you insert a CD-ROM, it will always appear at the same
691   position in the directory tree, on every system. When I wanted to
692   implement such a user-program for Linux, I came across the
693   differences in behavior of the various drivers, and the need for an
694   *ioctl* informing about media changes.
695
696We believe that using *O_NONBLOCK* to indicate that a device is being opened
697for *ioctl* commands only can be easily introduced in the Linux
698community. All the CD-player authors will have to be informed, we can
699even send in our own patches to the programs. The use of *O_NONBLOCK*
700has most likely no influence on the behavior of the CD-players on
701other operating systems than Linux. Finally, a user can always revert
702to old behavior by a call to
703*ioctl(file_descriptor, CDROM_CLEAR_OPTIONS, CDO_USE_FFLAGS)*.
704
705The preferred strategy of *open()*
706----------------------------------
707
708The routines in `cdrom.c` are designed in such a way that run-time
709configuration of the behavior of CD-ROM devices (of **any** type)
710can be carried out, by the *CDROM_SET/CLEAR_OPTIONS* *ioctls*. Thus, various
711modes of operation can be set:
712
713`CDO_AUTO_CLOSE | CDO_USE_FFLAGS | CDO_LOCK`
714   This is the default setting. (With *CDO_CHECK_TYPE* it will be better, in
715   the future.) If the device is not yet opened by any other process, and if
716   the device is being opened for data (*O_NONBLOCK* is not set) and the
717   tray is found to be open, an attempt to close the tray is made. Then,
718   it is verified that a disc is in the drive and, if *CDO_CHECK_TYPE* is
719   set, that it contains tracks of type `data mode 1`. Only if all tests
720   are passed is the return value zero. The door is locked to prevent file
721   system corruption. If the drive is opened for audio (*O_NONBLOCK* is
722   set), no actions are taken and a value of 0 will be returned.
723
724`CDO_AUTO_CLOSE | CDO_AUTO_EJECT | CDO_LOCK`
725   This mimics the behavior of the current sbpcd-driver. The option flags are
726   ignored, the tray is closed on the first open, if necessary. Similarly,
727   the tray is opened on the last release, i. e., if a CD-ROM is unmounted,
728   it is automatically ejected, such that the user can replace it.
729
730We hope that these option can convince everybody (both driver
731maintainers and user program developers) to adopt the new CD-ROM
732driver scheme and option flag interpretation.
733
734Description of routines in `cdrom.c`
735====================================
736
737Only a few routines in `cdrom.c` are exported to the drivers. In this
738new section we will discuss these, as well as the functions that `take
739over` the CD-ROM interface to the kernel. The header file belonging
740to `cdrom.c` is called `cdrom.h`. Formerly, some of the contents of this
741file were placed in the file `ucdrom.h`, but this file has now been
742merged back into `cdrom.h`.
743
744::
745
746	struct file_operations cdrom_fops
747
748The contents of this structure were described in cdrom_api_.
749A pointer to this structure is assigned to the *fops* field
750of the *struct gendisk*.
751
752::
753
754	int register_cdrom(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi)
755
756This function is used in about the same way one registers *cdrom_fops*
757with the kernel, the device operations and information structures,
758as described in cdrom_api_, should be registered with the
759Uniform CD-ROM Driver::
760
761	register_cdrom(&<device>_info);
762
763
764This function returns zero upon success, and non-zero upon
765failure. The structure *<device>_info* should have a pointer to the
766driver's *<device>_dops*, as in::
767
768	struct cdrom_device_info <device>_info = {
769		<device>_dops;
770		...
771	}
772
773Note that a driver must have one static structure, *<device>_dops*, while
774it may have as many structures *<device>_info* as there are minor devices
775active. *Register_cdrom()* builds a linked list from these.
776
777
778::
779
780	void unregister_cdrom(struct cdrom_device_info *cdi)
781
782Unregistering device *cdi* with minor number *MINOR(cdi->dev)* removes
783the minor device from the list. If it was the last registered minor for
784the low-level driver, this disconnects the registered device-operation
785routines from the CD-ROM interface. This function returns zero upon
786success, and non-zero upon failure.
787
788::
789
790	int cdrom_open(struct inode * ip, struct file * fp)
791
792This function is not called directly by the low-level drivers, it is
793listed in the standard *cdrom_fops*. If the VFS opens a file, this
794function becomes active. A strategy is implemented in this routine,
795taking care of all capabilities and options that are set in the
796*cdrom_device_ops* connected to the device. Then, the program flow is
797transferred to the device_dependent *open()* call.
798
799::
800
801	void cdrom_release(struct inode *ip, struct file *fp)
802
803This function implements the reverse-logic of *cdrom_open()*, and then
804calls the device-dependent *release()* routine. When the use-count has
805reached 0, the allocated buffers are flushed by calls to *sync_dev(dev)*
806and *invalidate_buffers(dev)*.
807
808
809.. _cdrom_ioctl:
810
811::
812
813	int cdrom_ioctl(struct inode *ip, struct file *fp,
814			unsigned int cmd, unsigned long arg)
815
816This function handles all the standard *ioctl* requests for CD-ROM
817devices in a uniform way. The different calls fall into three
818categories: *ioctl()'s* that can be directly implemented by device
819operations, ones that are routed through the call *audio_ioctl()*, and
820the remaining ones, that are presumable device-dependent. Generally, a
821negative return value indicates an error.
822
823Directly implemented *ioctl()'s*
824--------------------------------
825
826The following `old` CD-ROM *ioctl()*\ 's are implemented by directly
827calling device-operations in *cdrom_device_ops*, if implemented and
828not masked:
829
830`CDROMMULTISESSION`
831	Requests the last session on a CD-ROM.
832`CDROMEJECT`
833	Open tray.
834`CDROMCLOSETRAY`
835	Close tray.
836`CDROMEJECT_SW`
837	If *arg\not=0*, set behavior to auto-close (close
838	tray on first open) and auto-eject (eject on last release), otherwise
839	set behavior to non-moving on *open()* and *release()* calls.
840`CDROM_GET_MCN`
841	Get the Media Catalog Number from a CD.
842
843*Ioctl*s routed through *audio_ioctl()*
844---------------------------------------
845
846The following set of *ioctl()'s* are all implemented through a call to
847the *cdrom_fops* function *audio_ioctl()*. Memory checks and
848allocation are performed in *cdrom_ioctl()*, and also sanitization of
849address format (*CDROM_LBA*/*CDROM_MSF*) is done.
850
851`CDROMSUBCHNL`
852	Get sub-channel data in argument *arg* of type
853	`struct cdrom_subchnl *`.
854`CDROMREADTOCHDR`
855	Read Table of Contents header, in *arg* of type
856	`struct cdrom_tochdr *`.
857`CDROMREADTOCENTRY`
858	Read a Table of Contents entry in *arg* and specified by *arg*
859	of type `struct cdrom_tocentry *`.
860`CDROMPLAYMSF`
861	Play audio fragment specified in Minute, Second, Frame format,
862	delimited by *arg* of type `struct cdrom_msf *`.
863`CDROMPLAYTRKIND`
864	Play audio fragment in track-index format delimited by *arg*
865	of type `struct cdrom_ti *`.
866`CDROMVOLCTRL`
867	Set volume specified by *arg* of type `struct cdrom_volctrl *`.
868`CDROMVOLREAD`
869	Read volume into by *arg* of type `struct cdrom_volctrl *`.
870`CDROMSTART`
871	Spin up disc.
872`CDROMSTOP`
873	Stop playback of audio fragment.
874`CDROMPAUSE`
875	Pause playback of audio fragment.
876`CDROMRESUME`
877	Resume playing.
878
879New *ioctl()'s* in `cdrom.c`
880----------------------------
881
882The following *ioctl()'s* have been introduced to allow user programs to
883control the behavior of individual CD-ROM devices. New *ioctl*
884commands can be identified by the underscores in their names.
885
886`CDROM_SET_OPTIONS`
887	Set options specified by *arg*. Returns the option flag register
888	after modification. Use *arg = \rm0* for reading the current flags.
889`CDROM_CLEAR_OPTIONS`
890	Clear options specified by *arg*. Returns the option flag register
891	after modification.
892`CDROM_SELECT_SPEED`
893	Select head-rate speed of disc specified as by *arg* in units
894	of standard cdrom speed (176\,kB/sec raw data or
895	150kB/sec file system data). The value 0 means `auto-select`,
896	i. e., play audio discs at real time and data discs at maximum speed.
897	The value *arg* is checked against the maximum head rate of the
898	drive found in the *cdrom_dops*.
899`CDROM_SELECT_DISC`
900	Select disc numbered *arg* from a juke-box.
901
902	First disc is numbered 0. The number *arg* is checked against the
903	maximum number of discs in the juke-box found in the *cdrom_dops*.
904`CDROM_MEDIA_CHANGED`
905	Returns 1 if a disc has been changed since the last call.
906	For juke-boxes, an extra argument *arg*
907	specifies the slot for which the information is given. The special
908	value *CDSL_CURRENT* requests that information about the currently
909	selected slot be returned.
910`CDROM_TIMED_MEDIA_CHANGE`
911	Checks whether the disc has been changed since a user supplied time
912	and returns the time of the last disc change.
913
914	*arg* is a pointer to a *cdrom_timed_media_change_info* struct.
915	*arg->last_media_change* may be set by calling code to signal
916	the timestamp of the last known media change (by the caller).
917	Upon successful return, this ioctl call will set
918	*arg->last_media_change* to the latest media change timestamp (in ms)
919	known by the kernel/driver and set *arg->has_changed* to 1 if
920	that timestamp is more recent than the timestamp set by the caller.
921`CDROM_DRIVE_STATUS`
922	Returns the status of the drive by a call to
923	*drive_status()*. Return values are defined in cdrom_drive_status_.
924	Note that this call doesn't return information on the
925	current playing activity of the drive; this can be polled through
926	an *ioctl* call to *CDROMSUBCHNL*. For juke-boxes, an extra argument
927	*arg* specifies the slot for which (possibly limited) information is
928	given. The special value *CDSL_CURRENT* requests that information
929	about the currently selected slot be returned.
930`CDROM_DISC_STATUS`
931	Returns the type of the disc currently in the drive.
932	It should be viewed as a complement to *CDROM_DRIVE_STATUS*.
933	This *ioctl* can provide *some* information about the current
934	disc that is inserted in the drive. This functionality used to be
935	implemented in the low level drivers, but is now carried out
936	entirely in Uniform CD-ROM Driver.
937
938	The history of development of the CD's use as a carrier medium for
939	various digital information has lead to many different disc types.
940	This *ioctl* is useful only in the case that CDs have \emph {only
941	one} type of data on them. While this is often the case, it is
942	also very common for CDs to have some tracks with data, and some
943	tracks with audio. Because this is an existing interface, rather
944	than fixing this interface by changing the assumptions it was made
945	under, thereby breaking all user applications that use this
946	function, the Uniform CD-ROM Driver implements this *ioctl* as
947	follows: If the CD in question has audio tracks on it, and it has
948	absolutely no CD-I, XA, or data tracks on it, it will be reported
949	as *CDS_AUDIO*. If it has both audio and data tracks, it will
950	return *CDS_MIXED*. If there are no audio tracks on the disc, and
951	if the CD in question has any CD-I tracks on it, it will be
952	reported as *CDS_XA_2_2*. Failing that, if the CD in question
953	has any XA tracks on it, it will be reported as *CDS_XA_2_1*.
954	Finally, if the CD in question has any data tracks on it,
955	it will be reported as a data CD (*CDS_DATA_1*).
956
957	This *ioctl* can return::
958
959		CDS_NO_INFO	/* no information available */
960		CDS_NO_DISC	/* no disc is inserted, or tray is opened */
961		CDS_AUDIO	/* Audio disc (2352 audio bytes/frame) */
962		CDS_DATA_1	/* data disc, mode 1 (2048 user bytes/frame) */
963		CDS_XA_2_1	/* mixed data (XA), mode 2, form 1 (2048 user bytes) */
964		CDS_XA_2_2	/* mixed data (XA), mode 2, form 1 (2324 user bytes) */
965		CDS_MIXED	/* mixed audio/data disc */
966
967	For some information concerning frame layout of the various disc
968	types, see a recent version of `cdrom.h`.
969
970`CDROM_CHANGER_NSLOTS`
971	Returns the number of slots in a juke-box.
972`CDROMRESET`
973	Reset the drive.
974`CDROM_GET_CAPABILITY`
975	Returns the *capability* flags for the drive. Refer to section
976	cdrom_capabilities_ for more information on these flags.
977`CDROM_LOCKDOOR`
978	 Locks the door of the drive. `arg == 0` unlocks the door,
979	 any other value locks it.
980`CDROM_DEBUG`
981	 Turns on debugging info. Only root is allowed to do this.
982	 Same semantics as CDROM_LOCKDOOR.
983
984
985Device dependent *ioctl()'s*
986----------------------------
987
988Finally, all other *ioctl()'s* are passed to the function *dev_ioctl()*,
989if implemented. No memory allocation or verification is carried out.
990
991How to update your driver
992=========================
993
994- Make a backup of your current driver.
995- Get hold of the files `cdrom.c` and `cdrom.h`, they should be in
996  the directory tree that came with this documentation.
997- Make sure you include `cdrom.h`.
998- Change the 3rd argument of *register_blkdev* from `&<your-drive>_fops`
999  to `&cdrom_fops`.
1000- Just after that line, add the following to register with the Uniform
1001  CD-ROM Driver::
1002
1003	register_cdrom(&<your-drive>_info);*
1004
1005  Similarly, add a call to *unregister_cdrom()* at the appropriate place.
1006- Copy an example of the device-operations *struct* to your
1007  source, e. g., from `cm206.c` *cm206_dops*, and change all
1008  entries to names corresponding to your driver, or names you just
1009  happen to like. If your driver doesn't support a certain function,
1010  make the entry *NULL*. At the entry *capability* you should list all
1011  capabilities your driver currently supports. If your driver
1012  has a capability that is not listed, please send me a message.
1013- Copy the *cdrom_device_info* declaration from the same example
1014  driver, and modify the entries according to your needs. If your
1015  driver dynamically determines the capabilities of the hardware, this
1016  structure should also be declared dynamically.
1017- Implement all functions in your `<device>_dops` structure,
1018  according to prototypes listed in  `cdrom.h`, and specifications given
1019  in cdrom_api_. Most likely you have already implemented
1020  the code in a large part, and you will almost certainly need to adapt the
1021  prototype and return values.
1022- Rename your `<device>_ioctl()` function to *audio_ioctl* and
1023  change the prototype a little. Remove entries listed in the first
1024  part in cdrom_ioctl_, if your code was OK, these are
1025  just calls to the routines you adapted in the previous step.
1026- You may remove all remaining memory checking code in the
1027  *audio_ioctl()* function that deals with audio commands (these are
1028  listed in the second part of cdrom_ioctl_. There is no
1029  need for memory allocation either, so most *case*s in the *switch*
1030  statement look similar to::
1031
1032	case CDROMREADTOCENTRY:
1033		get_toc_entry\bigl((struct cdrom_tocentry *) arg);
1034
1035- All remaining *ioctl* cases must be moved to a separate
1036  function, *<device>_ioctl*, the device-dependent *ioctl()'s*. Note that
1037  memory checking and allocation must be kept in this code!
1038- Change the prototypes of *<device>_open()* and
1039  *<device>_release()*, and remove any strategic code (i. e., tray
1040  movement, door locking, etc.).
1041- Try to recompile the drivers. We advise you to use modules, both
1042  for `cdrom.o` and your driver, as debugging is much easier this
1043  way.
1044
1045Thanks
1046======
1047
1048Thanks to all the people involved. First, Erik Andersen, who has
1049taken over the torch in maintaining `cdrom.c` and integrating much
1050CD-ROM-related code in the 2.1-kernel. Thanks to Scott Snyder and
1051Gerd Knorr, who were the first to implement this interface for SCSI
1052and IDE-CD drivers and added many ideas for extension of the data
1053structures relative to kernel~2.0. Further thanks to Heiko Eißfeldt,
1054Thomas Quinot, Jon Tombs, Ken Pizzini, Eberhard Mönkeberg and Andrew Kroll,
1055the Linux CD-ROM device driver developers who were kind
1056enough to give suggestions and criticisms during the writing. Finally
1057of course, I want to thank Linus Torvalds for making this possible in
1058the first place.
1059