libtune API

[Derbey Nadia]

Hi,

I'm pleased to announce the end of the first step for a project related 
to Linux kernel tunables.

Automatic Kernel Tunables Project (http://akt.sourceforge.net/)
---------------------------------

I. The first part of this project aims at providing a standard API 
(libtune) to unify the various ways Linux developers have to access 
kernel tunables, system information, resource consumptions.

The libtune API provides the following features, while remaining 
portable across kernel releases, distros and families:
1) get the value of a set of tunables, either stored as a part of a 
pseudo-file or as a complete pseudo-file
2) set the value of the writable set of tunables
3) locate a set of tunables (in terms of the associated pseudo-file)
4) get a help string for a set of tunables
And other minor functionalities.

The libtune API is built on top of the existing mechanisms: it "hides" 
them instead of replacing them (backward compatibility is not broken).

Today, there's a limited set of supported kernel releases, distros, 
families, as well as a limited set of supported tunables (the list of 
tunables that are supported today can be found at
http://akt.sourceforge.net/doc/libtune/aktapi.doc.02.html#4).

All this can easily be enhanced thanks to a set of scripts that are 
delivered with the libtune API.

1) The libtune API can be dowloaded from 
http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=136028&package_id=154059&release_id=392543
2) The design can be found at
     http://akt.sourceforge.net/doc/libtune/aktapi.design.08.html
3) The API documentation can be found at
     http://akt.sourceforge.net/doc/libtune/aktapi.doc.01.html


II. The second step of the project aims at making the kernel able to 
automatically tune the resources as it sees appropriate.
For people who would be interested in this second part, a first draft 
design is available at 
http://akt.sourceforge.net/doc/akt/akt.design.01.html, and a proto can 
be dowloaded from 
http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=136028&package_id=149521&release_id=397699

Regards,
Nadia

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Name.......... Nadia DERBEY
Organization.. BULL/DT/OSwR&D/Linux
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