Difference Between Device Driver And Application Programming

Hello guys, welcome back to my blog. Here in this article, we will be discussing the difference between device driver and application programming, what is device driver programming and what is application programming.

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Difference Between Device Driver And Application Programming

At present, the device driver job is considered one of the highest-paid jobs. But many people get confused about whether the device driver and application programming are the same or not. Well, let me explain to you in a simple way.

The major difference between application programming and device driver programming is that when you are working on device driver programming or development, you are directly talking to hardware by utilizing your code, which means you normally write and read registers.

While device driver programming you need an excellent knowledge of microprocessor or microcontroller architecture, protocols, peripheral interfaces, ability to understand the datasheets, programming the microcontroller, knowledge about API, kernel-mode privileges, device driver structure, interfacing with device drivers from applications, DMA programming, and some other concepts like interrupt handlers.

Well, guys, you require a good or excellent amount of programming, debugging, OS internals, hardware, and system-level knowledge.

Application programming is basically creating or developing a logic of business by utilizing some programming languages based on the requirement. Here you have to be excellent in the specific programming language with an excellent knowledge of logic building and debugging.

There are numerous tools and programming languages to develop or create application programs on various platforms but device drivers are basically created or developed by utilizing the C language.

Difference Between Device Driver And Application Programming

Different Terms	Application Programming	Device Driver Programming
Usage	It is utilized in each hardware or electrical device that contains an embedded system	It is utilized when two devices are connected
Dependency	It will not rely on any device, it takes care of the internal functions of the hardware	It relies on devices
Storage Place	It is stored in the volatile memory of the hardware	It is stored in memory space allocated by the operating system
Creation	When hardware is manufactured, it is coded in the volatile memory of the hardware	To help communicate with other devices, it is developed by the manufacturer
Alternation or installation	Before application program was unchangeable, but now it is possible to change the application program	Through the internet, it can be easily updated
Functions	It manages the internal functions of the hardware. It manages basic input and output functions and it is coded in hardware	Between hardware and OS, it acts as an intermediary.
Examples	The best example we can consider is the BIOS (basic input-output system)	Here we can consider the graphics driver that communicates with your OS to control your video card
Purpose	It defines the function ability of the hardware	It helps in the communication between hardware and operating system.

This was about “Difference Between Device Driver And Application Programming“. I hope this article may help you all a lot. Thank you for reading.

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Chetan Shidling

Automotive | Technical Blogger | Engineer | Content Creator

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