Is there a way to get Splint or a similar static checker to work with Linux Kernel modules?

Question

I compiled ( no warnings ) the hello-5.c example from "The Linux Kernel Module Programming Guide" and when I tried to insmod it, I received the following error:

insmod: error inserting 'hello-5.ko': -1 Unknown symbol in module

I thought I would try splint to see if it came up with any obvious errors, but when I ran it I got a slew of warnings from the kernel headers until it barfed trying to parse asm/types.h

anon@anon:~/kernel-source/lkmpg$ splint -I/lib/modules/$(uname -r)/build/include hello-5.c
Splint 3.1.1 --- 03 Nov 2006

( ... lots of warnings ... )

/lib/modules/2.6.24-24-insp8600/build/include/asm/types.h:13:24: Parse Error:
    Suspect missing struct or union keyword: __signed__ :
    unsigned short int. (For help on parse errors, see splint -help
    parseerrors.)
*** Cannot continue.

So really there are two questions:

1. How do I fix the insmod error?
2. How do I get splint to play nice with the kernel headers?

Answer 1

Funny. Currently I'm sitting in the office and trying to run a static checker on Linux Kernel drivers :)

Static checkers have a hard time processing linux kernel, because C dialect used in kernel code is broader than the one commonly understood as "C language". It sometimes happens that C front-end of a checker just can't parse ever-changing constructs used in the code.

As I could understand, you simply use an outdated version of the checker (03 Nov 2006), but your kernel version is outdated too, and I don't know which is older. What may help is updating the checker to its current version, or using up-to-date C front-end, if the checker supports switching it.

Moreover, if a checker can process Linux kernel, the fact outright becomes being bragged about on the checker's homepage. So, pick one that claims it and do your checks.

Answer 2

I'm not sure but this might be what I'm looking for:

splint-discuss Using Splint on Linux kernel modules

It provides a custom make file to help splint get through the gcc specific extensions used in the Kernel.