/vtStor

This is a library (or set of libraries) to allow easy access and communication to storage devices.

Primary LanguageC++Apache License 2.0Apache-2.0

vtStor

Introduction

The vtStor libraries are a collection of libraries based on C++11. The source code is released under the Apache License, which allows anyone to use, modify and distribute the libraries for free. The libraries are platform independent libraries.

The vtStor libraries are a set of libraries to allow easy access and communication to storage devices. The libraries are the good choice for anyone who looking for a cross-platform libraries to do stuff with storage devices.

The vtStor libraries also have C++/CLI libraries to support for .NET framework. By default, the targeted framework is compatible with .NET Framework 4.

Architecture

The vtStor libraries have following main components:

  • The vtStor is the core library. The vtStor is in charge of scanning and managing storage devices. Each storage device is encapsulated to a drive. It also contains all framework interfaces such as: IDriveEnumerator, IProtocol, ICommandHandler
  • The vtStorAta is a extended library. It is used to access and communicate with ATA storage device. The vtStorAta has a class called AtaCommmandExtensions that contains all functions to send a ATA command.
  • The vtStorScsi is same as the vtStorAta, but it is used for SCSI commands.

Release Structure

Each library package is structured as:

#!shell

   |-- LibraryName
        |-- lib
             |-- *.so *.lib *.dll
        |-- inc
             |-- *.h

Sample Code

Sample code include 2 parts:

  • dependencies contains vtStor libraries such as vtStor, vtStorAta, vtStorScsi.
  • < Sample_project > contains sample code such as DriveIdentifier project.
#!shell

	|-- < SampleCode >
		|-- dependencies
			|-- vtStor
			|-- vtStorAta
		|-- < Sample_project >
			|-- main.cpp
			|-- makefile

Windows

Environment

  • Windows 7/10
  • Visual Studio 2013/2015

Build

On the solution:

  • Select the Solutions Configurations and Solution Platforms.
  • Under menu Build, select Build Solution
  • When the build completes, all libraries are in a folder $SolutionsPlatform$SolutionConfiguration

Ubuntu

Environment

  • Ubuntu 14.04 64 bit
  • Some packages must be installed before compiling sample code:
    • GCC 4.9
    • libusb-1.0-0-dev
    • libudev-dev

Install GCC 4.9 with commands

#!shell

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-toolchain-r/test
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install gcc-4.9 g++-4.9
sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/gcc gcc /usr/bin/gcc-4.9 60 --slave /usr/bin/g++ g++ /usr/bin/g++-4.9

Install libusb-1.0-0-dev and libudev-dev with commands

#!shell

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libusb-1.0-0-dev
sudo apt-get install libudev-dev
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:/usr/include/libudev.h
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:/usr/include/libusb-1.0/libusb.h

Build

  • In this case: sample code is DriveIdentifier and the current directory is 
    /home/<user>/SampleCode/DriveIdentifier/
  • Use root permission.
  • Use makefile to build.

Command:

#!shell
sudo make clean all

Run:

#!shell
cd bin
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=.

./DriveIdentifier Or another build:

#!shell
sudo make clean install

Run:

#!shell
cd bin
./DriveIdentifier

After built successfully, it looks like:

#!shell
	|-- SampleCode
		|-- dependencies
			|-- vtStor
			|-- vtStorAta
		|-- DriveIdentifier
			|-- main.cpp
			|-- makefile
			|-- bin
				|-- DriveIdentifier
				|-- libvtStor.so
				|-- libvtStorAta.so
				|-- libvtStorAtaProtocol.so
				|-- object

How To Use

  • DriveIdentifier is the sample project read idenfitier of drives attaching into Ubuntu OS by SATA cables. First, you need import the vtStor library (libvtStor.so) and vtStorAta library (libvtStorAta.so, libvtStorAtaProtocol.so).

    • libvtStor.so: detect all ATA drives from class vtStor::IDriveManager, tell to vtStor know detect ATA drives from RegisterDriveEnumerator function, perform EnumerateDrives function to enumerate drives and we can get all drives from function GetDrives().
    • libvtStorAta.so: construct a ATA command from vtStor::Ata::cAtaCommandExtensions with issue command to be define such as IssueCommand_IdentifyDevice function.
    • libvtStorAtaProtocol.so: helps us determine which command set to use.

  • Note:

    • If error libudev.so.0 , please command 
      sudo ln -sf /lib/$(arch)-linux-gnu/libudev.so.1 /lib/$(arch)-linux-gnu/libudev.so.0
    • Using "sudo" cmd to get permission to run this app.