Key Driver Concepts

Everyone who develops kernel-mode drivers for the Microsoft Windows family of operating systems should understand fundamental operating system concepts and features, be familiar with their effects on the design and operation of kernel-mode drivers, and keep current with the changes and enhancements introduced in each new version of Windows.

Kernel-Mode Basics

	Locks, Deadlocks, and Synchronization
	Memory Management: What Every Driver Writer Needs to Know
	Multiprocessor Considerations for Kernel-Mode Drivers
	Recommended Functions for Kernel-Mode Drivers
	Scheduling, Thread Context, and IRQL
	User-Mode Interactions: Guidelines for Kernel-Mode Drivers
	Writing kernel-mode drivers in C++: should you or shouldn't you?

I/O Request Packets

	Cancel Logic in Windows Drivers
	Flow of Control for Cancel-Safe IRP Queuing
	Handling IRPs: What Every Driver Writer Needs to Know
	I/O Completion/Cancellation Guidelines
	I/O Manager, 64-bit Porting, and New Driver Models [195 KB]
	Nar Ganapathy - Going Deep: Windows, the IO Manager and Driver Model , Part I
	Nar Ganapathy - Going Deep: Windows, the IO Manager and Driver Model , Part II

See Also

	Plug and Play and Power Management for Drivers
	Windows Driver Foundation
	Windows Vista Driver Development
	Kernel-Mode Driver Architecture Design Guide in the WDK
	Kernel-Mode Driver Framework Design Guide in the WDK
	User-Mode Driver Framework Design Guide in the WDK

Resources

	WDK Documentation Download
	Driver Developer Community Resources
	Driver Signing Requirements for Windows
	Driver Tips: Best Practices for Windows Device Drivers
	Notes from Windows Development Teams
	Support for Developer Kits and Tools
	Driver Developer Blogs
	WDK Online

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