comedi_load_firmware(9)

💖 comedi_load_firmware(9) 💖

okay so this is a page from the Kernel API Manual, and it's all about comedi_load_firmware — the lil function that goes "hey, can I get some firmware for this device please" and then actually shoves it in there. bestie, it's giving delivery-service energy and honestly? we love her. ✨

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

int comedi_load_firmware (struct comedi_device *dev , struct device
*device , const char *name , int (*cb)(struct comedi_device *dev, const
u8 *data, size_t size, unsigned long context) , unsigned long context );

like, yes, that's a function pointer inside a parameter list, she's a little extra but she's iconic 💅

🎀 ARGUMENTS 🎀

• dev — the COMEDI device. the whole point tbh.
• device — the hardware device. yes it's a different thing from dev, don't come for me 🙈
• name — the name of the firmware image. what you're asking the world for.
• cb — the callback that actually uploads the firmware image. she does the heavy lifting fr fr.
• context — private context straight from the driver. the driver's little personal stash 🫶

⭐ DESCRIPTION ⭐

so what she does is: sends a firmware request for the hardware device and waits for it (no cap, she waits). then she calls the callback function to upload that firmware onto the device, and after that she releases the firmware. request → upload → release, a whole little three-step routine, we stan a clean lifecycle 🔥

she returns 0 on success. but bestie, watch out:

• returns -EINVAL if cb is NULL — so like, don't forget your callback, that's on you 😭
• otherwise returns a negative error number, and it can come from either the firmware request or the callback function. two possible culprits, so check accordingly 💀

🦋 SEE ALSO 🦋

kernel file ./drivers/comedi/drivers.c, plus the whole friend group:

• comedi_set_hw_dev(9)
• comedi_alloc_devpriv(9)
• comedi_alloc_subdevices(9)
• comedi_alloc_subdev_readback(9)
• comedi_readback_insn_read(9)
• comedi_timeout(9)
• comedi_dio_insn_config(9)
• comedi_dio_update_state(9)
• comedi_bytes_per_scan_cmd(9)
• comedi_bytes_per_scan(9)
• comedi_nscans_left(9)
• comedi_nsamples_left(9)
• comedi_inc_scan_progress(9)
• comedi_handle_events(9)
• __comedi_check_request_region(9)
• comedi_check_request_region(9)
• comedi_legacy_detach(9)
• comedi_auto_config(9)
• comedi_auto_unconfig(9)
• comedi_driver_register(9)
• comedi_driver_unregister(9)

and that's the whole page, bestie 💖 this one lives in ./drivers/comedi, dated October 2026, and she's filed under comedi_load_firmware(9). go load some firmware, you got this 🧚✨