a method , and a corresponding mechanism , are used for creating a self - describing kernel module . the method includes the steps of expressing data describing a module in a modmeta file format and creating a c language source file . the c language source file is created by translating the expressed data into a series of c language data structures , wherein the series of c language data structures comprises the c language source file . the c language source file is then compiled and linked into the module itself , thus making the module contain its own descriptive data .