WCE7 : Types of drivers

The Windows CE device drivers model takes into consideration 3 types of drivers:

Type of driver	Description
Native drivers	Built-in device drivers. They implement a feature-specific interface (Device Drivers Interface, DDI). They are loaded by GWES. Typical built-in drivers are: - Display driver - Touchscreen driver - Keyboard driver - Mouse driver - LEDs drivers
Stream drivers	Installable drivers. They implement a standard IO interface used for all types of IO devices (Init, DeInit, Open, Close, Read, Write...). They are configured in the registry and mounted by a device manager. They are very easy to add. Typical stream drivers are: - Serial drivers - Bus drivers - Block drivers (for storage devices) - Specific stream drivers
Hybrid drivers	Stream drivers that implement an additional specific interface to their dedicated feature. Mounted by device manager but used by other processes through their specific interfaces. Example of hybrid drivers: - Audio drivers - PCMCIA controller drivers - USB drivers

Types of architecture

Type of architecture	Description
Layered	Split into 2 layers : Model Device Driver (MDD) and Platform dependent device (PDD). The MDD implements the functional behaviors of the device that are independent of the device that is managed by the driver. Usually, this layer does not need to be modified. The PDD implements treatments that are specific to the device being managed. Windows CE device driver model defines the interface of PDD allowing the development of a PDD without caring about what MDD does. The interface of PDD is standardized but specific for each type of driver (Device Driver Service provider Interface, DDSI)
Monolithic	Merge of MDD and PDD into one layer. Poor reusability. This type of drivers are mainly used for simple driver, without functional layer.

Cem SOYDING

Author & Editor

Senior software engineer with 12 years of experience in both embedded systems and C# .NET