## Virtual Device Driver Reference for OS/2

[prev][next][parent][TOC]

### Virtual Device Driver Architecture and Operations

The architecture and structure of virtual and physical device drivers differ considerably from one another. A physical device driver is considered a true device driver in the sense that it has a unique and rigid file structure, and interfaces directly with the hardware. A virtual device driver is essentially a dynamic link library, and generally does not interface directly with the hardware. Instead, it is responsible for presenting a virtual copy of a hardware resource to a DOS session, and for coordinating physical access to that resource.