BareMetal
| Developer | Return Infinity |
|---|---|
| Written in | Assembly |
| Working state | Current |
| Source model | Open source |
| Initial release | 2008 |
| Latest release | 1.0.0 / November 13, 2017[1] |
| Marketing target | HPCs, HTC, Cloud computing |
| Available in | English |
| Platforms | x86-64 |
| Kernel type | Exokernel, SASOS |
| Userland | Unknown |
| Default user interface | Command-line |
| License | BSD License[2] |
| Official website | www |
BareMetal is an exokernel-based single address space operating system (OS) created by Return Infinity.
It is written in assembly to achieve high-performance computing with minimal footprint[3][4] with a "just enough operating system" (JeOS) approach.[5] The operating system is primarily targeted towards virtualized environments for cloud computing, or HPCs due to its design as a lightweight kernel (LWK). It could be used as a unikernel.
It was inspired by another OS written in assembly, MikeOS,[2] and it is a recent example of an operating system that is not written in C or C++, nor based on Unix-like kernels.[6]
Overview
Hardware requirements
- AMD/Intel based 64-bit computer
- Memory: 4 MB (plus 2 MB for every additional core)
- Hard Disk: 32 MB[7]
One task per core
Multitasking on BareMetal is unusual for modern operating systems. BareMetal uses an internal work queue that all CPU cores poll. A task added to the work queue will be processed by any available CPU core in the system and will execute until completion, which results in no context switch overhead.[8]
Programming
An API is documented[9] but, in line with its philosophy, the OS does not enforce entry points for system calls (e.g.: no call gates or other safety mechanisms).
BareMetal OS has a build script to pull the latest code, make the needed changes, and then compile C code using[10] the Newlib C standard library.[11]
A mostly-complete C++11 Standard Library was designed and developed for working in ring 0.[12] The main goal of such library is providing, on a library level, an alternative to hardware memory protection used in classical OSes, with help of carefully designed classes.[13]
A Rust program demonstration was added to the programs in November 2014, demonstrating the ability to write Rust programs for BareMetal OS.[14]
Networking
TCP/IP stack
A TCP/IP stack was the #1 feature request.[15] A port of lwIP written in C was announced in October 2014.[16]
minIP,[17] a minimalist IP stack in ANSI C able to provide enough functionalities to serve a simple static webpage, is being developed as a proof of concept to learn the fundamentals in preparation for an x86-64 assembly re-write planned for the future.
References
- ^ Seyler, Ian. "kernel.asm". BareMetal OS GitHub repository. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
- ^ a b Voorsanger, Conrad (June 2, 2011). "Interview With Baremetal OS' Ian Seyler". OSNews. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
- ^ Adams, David (July 14, 2010). "BareMetal OS". OSNews. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
- ^ Benchoff, Brian (May 27, 2011). "64-bit OS written entirely in assembly". Hack A Day. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
- ^ Seyler, Ian. "Return Infinity (home page), The BareMetal advantage". Return Infinity. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^ Smith, Jesse (July 19, 2010). "DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 363". DistroWatch. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
- ^ "BareMetal OS Requirements". Return Infinity (archived copy at Wayback Machine). Archived from the original on September 6, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
- ^ "BareMetal OS Queue". Retrieved April 28, 2015.
- ^ Seyler, Ian. "API documentation". BareMetal OS GitHub repository. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- ^ Seyler, Ian (January 17, 2014). "Newlib build script". BeareMetal OS Google Group. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^ Seyler, Ian. "newlib.sh". Build scripts for BareMetal OS and its related utilities, GitHub repository. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^ Lodyagin, Sergei (November 17, 2013). "Bare C++ library". BeareMetal OS Google Group. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^ Lodyagin, Sergei. "The Bare C++ library". The Bare C++ library GitHub repository. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^ Seyler, Ian. "Add Rust example". BareMetal OS GitHub repository (legacy version). Retrieved March 18, 2018.
- ^ Seyler, Ian (August 22, 2013). "TCP/IP". BeareMetal OS Google Group. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^ Seyler, Ian (October 31, 2014). "BareMetal and lwIP". BeareMetal OS Google Group. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^ Seyler, Ian. "minIP - A minimalist IP stack written in ANSI C". BareMetal OS GitHub repository. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
External links
- ReturnInfinity on GitHub
- BareMetal OS Google Group discussion forum
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