STRUCT BINDER_THREAD(9)

💖 struct binder_thread(9) — binder thread bookkeeping 💖

hey bestie 🫶 welcome to the Kernel API Manual page for struct binder_thread(9). this is literally the bookkeeping arc for binder threads, and it's lowkey iconic how much tiny state lives in this one struct 💅

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🌸 NAME 🌸

struct binder_thread — binder thread bookkeeping. that's the whole vibe: binder's per-thread little admin nest ✨

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🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

       struct binder_thread {
           struct binder_proc *proc;
           struct rb_node rb_node;
           struct list_head waiting_thread_node;
           int pid;
           int looper;
           bool looper_need_return;
           struct binder_transaction *transaction_stack;
           struct list_head todo;
           bool process_todo;
           struct binder_error return_error;
           struct binder_error reply_error;
           struct binder_extended_error ee;
           wait_queue_head_t wait;
           struct binder_stats stats;
           atomic_t tmp_ref;
           bool is_dead;
        };

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🦋 Members 🦋

• proc — the binder process this thread belongs to. it's invariant after initialization, so once it's set, it stays set — no cap 🫶
• rb_node — the element for the proc->threads rbtree. protected by proc->inner_lock, so respect the lock bestie 🔒
• waiting_thread_node — element for the proc->waiting_threads list. also protected by proc->inner_lock ✨
• pid — the PID for this thread. invariant after initialization, meaning it's not out here changing its whole personality 💅
• looper — bitmap of looping state. only accessed by this thread, so it's giving "no sharing, no drama" energy 🦋
• transaction_stack — stack of in-progress transactions for this thread. protected by proc->inner_lock 🔥
• todo — list of work to do for this thread. protected by proc->inner_lock 📋
• process_todo — whether work in todo should be processed. protected by proc->inner_lock ✅
• return_error — transaction errors reported by this thread. only accessed by this thread — personal error journal vibes 😭
• reply_error — transaction errors reported by the target thread. protected by proc->inner_lock 💌
• ee — extended error information from this thread. protected by proc->inner_lock 🔍
• wait — wait queue for thread work. the thread waits here for work, cute 🎀
• stats — per-thread statistics. they're atomics, so no lock needed 📊
• tmp_ref — temporary reference to indicate the thread is in use. it's atomic since proc->inner_lock cannot always be acquired — this is a real caveat, not just lore bestie ⚠️
• is_dead — thread is dead and awaiting free when outstanding transactions are cleaned up. protected by proc->inner_lock 💀

tiny note bestie: looper_need_return shows up in the struct up top, but this page doesn't give it a separate member blurb, so i'm not making one up 💅

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🌈 Description 🌈

okay so this is the bookkeeping structure for binder threads. that's it, that's the tea — it's the struct that keeps binder threads' bookkeeping together, and this page is the field-by-field tour ✨💖

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⭐ SEE ALSO ⭐

bestie, go peek at these:

• Kernel file ./drivers/android/binder_internal.h
• struct binder_device(9)
• struct binder_work(9)
• struct binder_node(9)
• struct binder_ref_data(9)
• struct binder_ref(9)
• struct binder_proc(9)
• struct binder_txn_fd_fixup(9)
• struct binder_object(9)

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k that's the page 🫶 source/version: ./drivers/android · date: October 2026 · page: struct binder_thread(9) — slay and stay bookkept ✨💖