I run OmniOS on an Aoostar WTR PRO as my NAS and for most of my self hosting needs. After installing a new fan, I wanted to see if I could read and control the fan speed from the OS instead of just the BIOS. Using Claude chat, I got a working kernel driver that gives me fan speed, PWM control, temperature readings, and even (incorrect) voltage readings.
I wanted to share as an example of what’s currently possible. I’ve even seen people vibe code ethernet drivers for freeBSD.
What do you all think of using LLMs to cobble together drivers like this?
Linux was born out of manually making drivers to see how hardware works, which after putting enough together, Linus noticed he had a kernel.
Meanwhile, people pushing code they don’t understand are more often than not breaking the programs they “help” with.
I’d suggest studying low level coding to at least be able to audit others’ codes, including LLMs’, let alone to publish comnputer-generated codes.