dev_driver_string(9)

💖 dev_driver_string — Kernel API Manual 💖

okay bestie, gather ’round, because this page is short and sweet and literally about finding out what driver a device is vibing with 🫶

🌸 NAME 🌸

• dev_driver_string — return a device’s driver name, if at all possible ✨

🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

here’s the signature, exactly as it appears, no cap:

const char * dev_driver_string (const struct device *dev );

🎀 ARGUMENTS 🎀

• dev — the struct device to get the name of 🍓

💅 DESCRIPTION 💅

So here’s the tea ☕: it will return the device’s driver’s name if it is bound to a device.

If the device is not bound to a driver, it will return the name of the bus it is attached to 🚌 — lowkey iconic fallback energy.

And if it is not attached to a bus either? You get an empty string, bestie — literally "" 🙈💀

🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

Kernel file ./drivers/base/core.c — and then the whole extended friend group:

• __fwnode_link_add(9)
• __fwnode_link_del(9)
• __fwnode_link_cycle(9)
• fwnode_links_purge_suppliers(9)
• fwnode_links_purge_consumers(9)
• fwnode_links_purge(9)
• __fwnode_links_move_consumers(9)
• __fw_devlink_pickup_dangling_consumers(9)
• fw_devlink_refresh_fwnode(9)
• device_is_dependent(9)
• device_pm_move_to_tail(9)
• device_link_wait_removal(9)
• device_link_add(9)
• device_link_del(9)
• device_link_remove(9)
• device_links_check_suppliers(9)
• __device_links_queue_sync_state(9)
• device_links_flush_sync_list(9)
• device_links_force_bind(9)
• device_links_driver_bound(9)
• __device_links_no_driver(9)
• device_links_no_driver(9)
• device_links_driver_cleanup(9)
• device_links_busy(9)
• device_links_unbind_consumers(9)
• device_links_purge(9)
• wait_for_init_devices_probe(9)
• fwnode_is_ancestor_of(9)
• fwnode_get_next_parent_dev(9)
• __fw_devlink_relax_cycles(9)
• fw_devlink_create_devlink(9)
• __fw_devlink_link_to_consumers(9)
• __fw_devlink_link_to_suppliers(9)
• device_release(9)
• devm_device_add_group(9)
• devices_kset_move_before(9)
• devices_kset_move_after(9)
• devices_kset_move_last(9)
• device_create_file(9)
• device_remove_file(9)
• device_remove_file_self(9)
• device_create_bin_file(9)
• device_remove_bin_file(9)
• device_initialize(9)
• kobject_has_children(9)
• dev_set_name(9)
• device_add(9)
• device_register(9)
• get_device(9)
• put_device(9)
• device_del(9)
• device_unregister(9)
• device_get_devnode(9)
• device_for_each_child(9)
• device_for_each_child_reverse(9)
• device_for_each_child_reverse_from(9)
• device_find_child(9)
• device_offline(9)
• device_online(9)
• __root_device_register(9)
• root_device_unregister(9)
• device_create(9)
• device_create_with_groups(9)
• device_destroy(9)
• device_rename(9)
• device_move(9)
• device_change_owner(9)
• device_shutdown(9)
• dev_err_probe(9)
• dev_warn_probe(9)
• set_primary_fwnode(9)
• set_secondary_fwnode(9)
• device_remove_of_node(9)
• device_add_of_node(9)
• device_set_of_node_from_dev(9)
• get_dev_from_fwnode(9)

mwah 💋 — this page’s source/version is ./drivers/base, dated October 2026; title stays dev_driver_string(9). byeee 🫶✨