STRUCT SKB_SHARED_HWTSTAMPS(9)

📦 version 7.3.1, in nixpkgs unstable

💖 struct skb_shared_hwtstamps(9) 💖

okay bestie, welcome to the Kernel API Manual — today’s main character is struct skb_shared_hwtstamps(9), aka hardware time stamps. it’s a tiny struct with big timestamp energy, and we’re gonna get into every detail. no cap. ✨

🌸 NAME 🌸

struct skb_shared_hwtstamps - hardware time stamps. that’s the assignment, and it ate. 💅

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

okay so the shape is literally this, anonymous union and all:

       struct skb_shared_hwtstamps {
           union {
             ktime_t hwtstamp;
             void *netdev_data;
           };
        };

💅 Members 💅

member-by-member, no skipping, periodt:

  • {unnamed_union} — anonymous. yes, literally no name, shy icon behavior. 🙈
  • hwtstamp — hardware time stamp transformed into duration since arbitrary point in time. that “arbitrary point in time” part is doing a lot, bestie. ⏳
  • netdev_data — address/cookie of network device driver used as reference to actual hardware time stamp. it’s the driver’s little address/cookie moment. 🍪

🦋 Description 🦋

Software time stamps generated by ktime_get_real are stored in skb->tstamp. that’s the software timestamp home, and it’s giving very specific address energy. 💻✨

hwtstamps can only be compared against other hwtstamps from the same device. like, do not cross-compare them — that is not the vibe check you want. 🚫🫶

This structure is attached to packets as part of the skb_shared_info. Use skb_hwtstamps to get a pointer. so yeah, it rides along with the packet crew, and that’s iconic. 📦👑

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

Kernel file ./include/linux/skbuff.h is the home base. then the whole linked manpage squad, in order, because we do not drop references around here:

kisses + sparkles, this was built against ./include/linux, October 2026, for struct skb_shared_hwtstamps(9) 🫶💖🎀

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