linux-drivers/
drivers/interconnect

SoC on-chip interconnect (NoC) framework and providers

Manages the on-chip "network on chip" fabric that links CPUs, GPUs, memory controllers, and peripherals inside modern systems-on-chip, scaling bandwidth and quality-of-service between blocks. It hosts provider drivers for Qualcomm Snapdragon, MediaTek Dimensity, NXP i.MX, and Samsung Exynos chips used in current phones, Windows-on-Arm laptops, and industrial boards.

keep conf=0.95 deploy=high replacement=none subsystem=interconnect category=infrastructure
95%

recommendation

It should stay because this is core plumbing for actively shipping hardware: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite laptops (launched 2024), MediaTek Dimensity 9400 phones, and NXP i.MX 8M Plus industrial boards all rely on it. Upstream activity continues into late 2025 with new SoC support like MT8196, fresh KUnit tests, and ongoing bug fixes, with no replacement framework on the horizon.

repository signals

80 files
71,704 source lines
360 commits, 5y
+79,821 / −18,387 lines added / removed, 5y
63 authors, 5y
monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 360 total · active in 53/61 months
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2021-04: 2 commits · +2,105 −1 2021-05: 1 commit · +1 −0 2021-06: 2 commits · +112 −662 2021-07: 8 commits · +870 −36 2021-08: 1 commit · +5 −5 2021-09: 15 commits · +5,201 −1,279 2021-10: 3 commits · +2,292 −1 2021-11: 1 commit · +5 −8 2021-12: 7 commits · +3,624 −15 2022-01: 2 commits · +10 −9 2022-02: 0 commits · +0 −0 2022-03: 0 commits · +0 −0 2022-04: 12 commits · +3,338 −408 2022-05: 8 commits · +2,263 −294 2022-06: 0 commits · +0 −0 2022-07: 19 commits · +663 −97 2022-08: 0 commits · +0 −0 2022-09: 2 commits · +5 −5 2022-10: 3 commits · +3 −3 2022-11: 4 commits · +53 −109 2022-12: 5 commits · +3,695 −6 2023-01: 16 commits · +3,169 −344 2023-02: 1 commit · +1 −1 2023-03: 22 commits · +149 −197 2023-04: 7 commits · +70 −74 2023-05: 5 commits · +244 −86 2023-06: 20 commits · +345 −174 2023-07: 5 commits · +129 −37 2023-08: 51 commits · +12,219 −1,364 2023-09: 5 commits · +1,227 −4 2023-10: 11 commits · +42 −79 2023-11: 4 commits · +5,798 −0 2023-12: 3 commits · +1,342 −6 2024-01: 4 commits · +124 −1,051 2024-02: 10 commits · +1,958 −50 2024-03: 4 commits · +27 −42 2024-04: 2 commits · +21 −3 2024-05: 1 commit · +5 −5 2024-06: 8 commits · +2,454 −2 2024-07: 7 commits · +2,943 −6 2024-08: 2 commits · +1 −164 2024-09: 6 commits · +3,992 −9 2024-10: 2 commits · +1,982 −41 2024-11: 1 commit · +1 −1 2024-12: 3 commits · +1,727 −1 2025-01: 1 commit · +2 −2 2025-02: 0 commits · +0 −0 2025-03: 0 commits · +0 −0 2025-04: 6 commits · +806 −635 2025-05: 1 commit · +0 −2 2025-06: 6 commits · +49 −49 2025-07: 3 commits · +1,949 −0 2025-08: 3 commits · +2,556 −2 2025-09: 1 commit · +0 −28 2025-10: 29 commits · +9,188 −10,952 2025-11: 6 commits · +698 −21 2025-12: 0 commits · +0 −0 2026-01: 5 commits · +346 −5 2026-02: 3 commits · +10 −10 2026-03: 1 commit · +2 −2 2026-04: 0 commits · +0 −0

sources

  1. qualcomm.com

    Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-80-100 family covered by this directory) was launched for new PCs, indicating current-market deployment rather than legacy-only status.

  2. qualcomm.com

    Qualcomm states Snapdragon X Elite/X Plus systems from major OEMs were available starting June 18, 2024, confirming broad commercial deployment of hardware supported by drivers/interconnect/qcom.

  3. mediatek.com

    MediaTek markets the Dimensity 9400 as a current flagship smartphone SoC, matching the directory's actively updated MediaTek interconnect support for recent MT81xx-class parts.

  4. nxp.com

    NXP lists the i.MX 8M Plus as Active and positions it for industrial/edge deployments, matching the i.MX8M interconnect drivers in this directory.

  5. cateee.net

    LKDDb shows CONFIG_INTERCONNECT_QCOM present through current kernel series and tied to drivers/interconnect/qcom, indicating ongoing upstream support rather than retirement.

  6. cateee.net

    LKDDb shows CONFIG_INTERCONNECT_MTK in current kernels for drivers/interconnect/mediatek, including recent MT8183/MT8195 support.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Local shell inspection of drivers/interconnect/Kconfig, Makefile, and file list shows this is a live SoC interconnect subsystem with real provider drivers under qcom/, mediatek/, imx/, and samsung/, not a helper-only directory. Local git log (shell, using safe.directory override) shows substantive activity through 2025-11-24 and 2026-03-14, including new MT8196 support, KUnit additions, and bug fixes; that strongly argues against deprecation. I also searched lore.kernel.org via web search for removal/deprecation threads and found no hits, so there is no evidence of an active upstream removal effort from the tools available here. Source URLs above were obtained by web search; the LKDDb pages confirm current kernel presence, while Qualcomm/MediaTek/NXP product pages show the supported hardware class is still in new PC, phone, and industrial deployments. Because this directory services current SoC families and is still receiving upstream fixes/features, the correct disposition is keep, with no natural replacement driver.