Book Image

C++ System Programming Cookbook

By : Onorato Vaticone
Book Image

C++ System Programming Cookbook

By: Onorato Vaticone

Overview of this book

C++ is the preferred language for system programming due to its efficient low-level computation, data abstraction, and object-oriented features. System programming is about designing and writing computer programs that interact closely with the underlying operating system and allow computer hardware to interface with the programmer and the user. The C++ System Programming Cookbook will serve as a reference for developers who want to have ready-to-use solutions for the essential aspects of system programming using the latest C++ standards wherever possible. This C++ book starts out by giving you an overview of system programming and refreshing your C++ knowledge. Moving ahead, you will learn how to deal with threads and processes, before going on to discover recipes for how to manage memory. The concluding chapters will then help you understand how processes communicate and how to interact with the console (console I/O). Finally, you will learn how to deal with time interfaces, signals, and CPU scheduling. By the end of the book, you will become adept at developing robust systems applications using C++.

Related Content you might be interested in

Current Title:

Small book image
C++ System Programming Cookbook
Onorato Vaticone
Feb, 2020 | 292 pages
Small book image
Hands-On System Programming with C++
Dr Rian Quinn
Dec, 2018 | 552 pages
Small book image
C++ Programming for Linux Systems
Desislav Andreev | Stanimir Lukanov
Sep, 2023 | 288 pages
Small book image
Embedded Programming with Modern C++ Cookbook
Igor Viarheichyk
Apr, 2020 | 412 pages
Table of Contents (13 chapters)
Preface
Preface
Who this book is for
What this book covers
To get the most out of this book
Sections
Get in touch
1
Getting Started with System Programming
Getting Started with System Programming
Technical requirements
Learning the Linux fundamentals - architecture
Learning the Linux fundamentals - shell
Learning the Linux fundamentals - users
Using a makefile to compile and link a program
Using GDB to debug a program
Learning the Linux fundamentals - processes and threads
Handling a Linux bash error
Handling Linux code error
Free Chapter
2
Revisiting C++
Revisiting C++
Technical requirements
Understanding C++ primitive types
Lambda expressions
Automatic type deduction and decltype
Learning how atomic works
Learning how nullptr works
Smart pointers – unique_ptr and shared_ptr
Learning how move semantics works
Understanding concurrency
Understanding the filesystem
The C++ Core Guidelines
Adding GSL in your makefile
Understanding concepts
Using span
Learning how Ranges work
Learning how modules work
3
Dealing with Processes and Threads
Dealing with Processes and Threads
Technical requirements
Starting a new process
Killing a process
Creating a new thread
Creating a daemon process
4
Deep Dive into Memory Management
Deep Dive into Memory Management
Technical requirements
Learning automatic versus dynamic memory
Learning when to use unique_ptr, and the implications for size
Learning when to use shared_ptr, and the implications for size
Allocating aligned memory
Checking whether the memory allocated is aligned
Dealing with memory-mapped I/O
Dealing with allocators hands-on
5
Using Mutexes, Semaphores, and Condition Variables
Using Mutexes, Semaphores, and Condition Variables
Technical requirements
Using POSIX mutexes
Using POSIX semaphores
POSIX semaphores advanced usage
Synchronization building blocks
Learning inter-thread communication with simple events
Learning inter-thread communication with condition variables
6
Pipes, First-In First-Out (FIFO), Message Queues, and Shared Memory
Pipes, First-In First-Out (FIFO), Message Queues, and Shared Memory
Technical requirements
Learning the different types of IPC
Learning how to use the oldest form of IPC – pipes
Learning how to use FIFO
Learning how to use message queues
Learning how to use shared memory
7
Network Programming
Network Programming
Technical requirements
Learning the basics of connection-oriented communication
Learning the basics of connectionless-oriented communication
Learning what a communication endpoint is 
Learning to use TCP/IP to communicate with processes on another machine
Learning to use UDP/IP to communicate with processes on another machine
Dealing with endianness
8
Dealing with Console I/O and Files
Dealing with Console I/O and Files
Technical requirements
Implementing I/O to and from the console
Learning how to manipulate I/O strings
Working with files
9
Dealing with Time Interfaces
Dealing with Time Interfaces
Technical requirements
Learning about the C++ time interface
Using the C++20 calendar and time zone
Learning the Linux timing
Dealing with time sleep and overruns
10
Managing Signals
Managing Signals
Technical requirements
Learning all of the signals and their default actions
Learning how to ignore a signal
Learning how to trap a signal
Learning how to send a signal to another process
11
Scheduling
Scheduling
Technical requirements
Learning to set and get a scheduler policy
Learning to get the timeslice value
Learning how to set a nice value
Learning how to yield the processor
Learning about processor affinity
12
Other Books You May Enjoy
Other Books You May Enjoy
Leave a review - let other readers know what you think

Getting Started with System Programming

In this chapter, you will be introduced to the foundations on which the entire book is framed. You will learn (or refresh your knowledge of) how Linux is designed, and you will also learn about the shell, users and groups, process IDs, and thread IDs to be able to use a Linux system proficiently and get prepared for the next chapters. Furthermore, you will also learn how to develop a simple hello world program, and find out about its makefile, and also how to execute and debug it. Another important aspect of this chapter is to learn how Linux deals with errors, from both a shell and a source code point of view. This foundational knowledge is important to understand other advanced topics in the following chapters. You can safely skip this and the next chapters if this refresher is not needed.

This chapter will cover the following recipes: 

  • Learning the Linux fundamentals – architecture
  • Learning the Linux fundamentals – shell
  • Learning the Linux fundamentals – users
  • Using a makefile to compile and link a program
  • Using the GNU Project Debugger (GDB) to debug a program
  • Learning the Linux fundamentals – processes and threads
  • Handling a Linux bash error
  • Handling Linux code error
Previous Section
End of Section 1
Next Section