suse man page for dev_alloc_name

DEV_ALLOC_NAME(9)					      Network device support						 DEV_ALLOC_NAME(9)

NAME
       dev_alloc_name - allocate a name for a device

SYNOPSIS
       int dev_alloc_name(struct net_device * dev, const char * name);

ARGUMENTS
       dev
	   device

       name
	   name format string

DESCRIPTION
       Passed a format string - eg "ltd" it will try and find a suitable id. It scans list of devices to build up a free map, then chooses the
       first empty slot. The caller must hold the dev_base or rtnl lock while allocating the name and adding the device in order to avoid
       duplicates. Limited to bits_per_byte * page size devices (ie 32K on most platforms). Returns the number of the unit assigned or a negative
       errno code.

COPYRIGHT
Kernel Hackers Manual 2.6.					     July 2010							 DEV_ALLOC_NAME(9)