Metro Style App accessing virtual driver - how to define a virtual driver ?

Question

Hi All,

Many threads in this forum mentioned that Metro Style App could not access virtual driver.

However, I created a filter driver and accessed it in Metro Style App successfully.

Here is what I did:

1. Create a filter driver. This driver does not communicate with any hardware.

2. Install this driver to a hardware. (Actually this driver have nothing to do with the hardware.)

3. Config the driver metadata package and App.

Then, the app could access the driver.

So, I was wondering what does virtual driver means.

Apparently, virtual driver does not means a filter driver or a driver that does not communicate with hardware.

Does virtual driver means a driver that was installed without a hardware ? And then if we reinstall that driver with a hardware, the driver becomes a non-virtual driver ?

If there is no hardware along with the driver, we could not config the driver metadata package, so Metro Style App could not access the driver.

Is it true ?

Regards

---

Cary

Answer 1

Probably "virtual driver" means one that has no PDO.

A filter driver for a device which has a PDO is part of its stack, so in this sense it is not hadrware-less.

-- pa

Answer 2

Cary,

Metro style device apps require hardware.  There are some exceptions for drivers that filter hardware device drivers.  You must own the hardware and class filters are not allowed.  Currently we have published guidance for external devices.

Best Wishes - Eric

Answer 3

Dear Eric,

Metro style device apps require hardware.  

My driver is define in ACPI tableEx.   ACPI\PNP0C0D

Does Metro Style App accessing this driver?