developerWorks: Access the Linux Kernel Using the /proc Filesystem

“The /proc filesystem is a virtual filesystem that permits a
novel approach for communication between the Linux kernel and user
space. In the /proc filesystem, virtual files can be read from or
written to as a means of communicating with entities in the kernel,
but unlike regular files, the content of these virtual files is
dynamically created. This article introduces you to the /proc
virtual filesystem and demonstrates its use.

“The /proc filesystem was originally developed to provide
information on the processes in a system. But given the
filesystem’s usefulness, many elements of the kernel use it both to
report information and to enable dynamic runtime
configuration…”

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