Re: WDF storage driver is a dead-end street

Tech-Archive recommends: Repair Windows Errors & Optimize Windows Performance

A couple of items I missed:

1. Not only WHQL, but the ntldr environment for booting will not support
the additional calls so if you are not useing a BIOS solution you are hosed.

2. Assuming you are using a BIOS solution, you might check with Microsoft
whether they would accept a Virtual Storport (based on the ISCSI model) that
Windows 2003 and Longhorn support. If it does then you can have a storport
and then write a regular WDM or WDF driver for it to call to do the real
work. While I have never tried it, it may be possible to use a filter of
the ATAPORT for each device and have the virtual storport communicate with
that.


--
Don Burn (MVP, Windows DDK)
Windows 2k/XP/2k3 Filesystem and Driver Consulting
Website: http://www.windrvr.com
Blog: http://msmvps.com/blogs/WinDrvr
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"Don Burn" <burn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:OksxmmWRIHA.3916@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

<dwightrileyjr@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:c63e4023-a0d0-4710-8263-0bd64c8ecd41@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
doing the device virtualization in a single miniport which would own
both controllers brings me back to my original questions:

Since I will expose a virtual disk that actually spans both the of
mass storage controllers , when requests come in , I will manage the
traffic and decide which controller/device pair to forward the request
to.

This means I may try to talk to completely different device than the
one the OS thought the request was actually bound for since of course
the OS expects we are stricly in the context of the first device.

No, it means you have to convince the OS that the two devices you are
dealing with are one strange device. Now getting both sets of resources
is a challenge but once there you own everything.

That means the synchronization the OS provides around the passed-in
Controller Extension would not be sufficient.

Why, if you have control of both devices you will have synchronization.

So again, I am worried about what will happen when I attempt to use
locking/ synchronization APIs that are beyond the scope of the ataport/
miniport module ?

They will work but not pass WHQL.

Does this get flagged in some WHQL test (and if so, where)?

There is an import test for storage that says what calls your mini-port
may do.

Are there some kernel APIs they are more forgiving of than others? I
am thinking about writing my own locking/unlockin macros in case it
turns out there is absolutely no way to use WDM APIs.

Unless you want to messup the performance system using your own locking
API's is one of the stupidest things people can do. Sorry, this is just a
really bad idea, that over the years has caused many products to die with
the reputation of "put on X and the whole system runs like crap".


--
Don Burn (MVP, Windows DDK)
Windows 2k/XP/2k3 Filesystem and Driver Consulting
Website: http://www.windrvr.com
Blog: http://msmvps.com/blogs/WinDrvr
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