Hands On Projects For The Linux Graphics Subsystem Jun 2026

Below is a progressive, practical set of projects—ranked from beginner to advanced—designed to teach you the Linux graphics stack (kernel DRM/KMS, Mesa, Gallium, Wayland, X11, EGL/GBM, Vulkan, GPU drivers, compositor internals). Each project includes objectives, prerequisites, step-by-step tasks, expected learning outcomes, suggested tools, and checkpoints. Assume a modern Linux distribution with developer tools installed (gcc/clang, meson/ninja, git, pkg-config, libdrm, libwayland, libxkbcommon, libinput, Vulkan SDK optional). Adjust for your distro.

If you are interested in how windows are managed, building a simple compositor is a significant milestone. While full-scale compositors like Weston are complex, you can start with a minimal implementation. Hands On Projects For The Linux Graphics Subsystem

The curriculum focuses on bypassing high-level APIs to interact directly with hardware and memory. Core projects include: Below is a progressive, practical set of projects—ranked