xv6

xv6

xv6 startup, and using the "ls" command
Developer	MIT
Written in	C
OS family	Unix-like
Source model	Open source
Latest release	rev8 / August 29, 2014
Available in	English
Platforms	multiprocessor Intel x86
Kernel type	Monolithic
Default user interface	Command-line interface
License	MIT license
Official website	http://pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/2014/xv6.html

xv6 is a modern reimplementation of Sixth Edition Unix in ANSI C for multiprocessor x86 systems. It is used for pedagogical purposes in MIT's Operating Systems Engineering (6.828) course.

Purpose

Unlike Linux or BSD, xv6 is simple enough to cover in a semester, yet still contains the important concepts and organization of Unix.^[1] Rather than study the original V6 code, the course uses xv6 since PDP-11 machines are not widely available and the original operating system was written in archaic pre-ANSI C.^[1]

Self-documentation

One feature of the Makefile for xv6 is the option to produce a PDF of the entire source code listing in a readable format. The entire printout is only 97 pages, including cross references.^[2] This is reminiscent of the original V6 source code, which was published in a similar form in Lions' Commentary on UNIX 6th Edition, with Source Code.

Educational use

xv6 has also been used in operating systems courses at University of Illinois at Chicago,^[3] Rutgers University,^[4] Northeastern University,^[5] Yale University,^[6] Columbia University,^[7] Ben-Gurion University,^[8] Johns Hopkins University,^[9] Tsinghua University,^[10] the University of Wisconsin-Madison,^[11] the University of Utah,^{[12] [13]} IIT Madras in India, the Linnaeus University^[14] in Sweden, the University of Otago^[15] in New Zealand, the National University of Córdoba^[16] and the National University of Río Cuarto,^[17] in Argentina, the Università degli Studi di Palermo^[18] in Italy and the Federal University of Minas Gerais^[19] in Brazil.

References

1. "Xv6, a simple Unix-like teaching operating system". Retrieved 2014-09-22.
2. "xv6 source listing" (pdf). Retrieved 2014-09-22.
3. "CS385 - Operating Systems Concepts and Design". Retrieved 2015-03-18.
4. "01:198:416: Operating Systems Design". Retrieved 2010-02-05.
5. "CS 3650: Computer Systems, Fall 2014". Retrieved 2014-12-09.
6. "CS422/522: Operating Systems, Spring 2010 — Overview". Retrieved 2010-02-05.
7. "COMS W4118: Operating Systems I, Fall 2013". Retrieved 2013-09-09.
8. "Operating Systems - 2012/Spring - Main". Retrieved 2012-03-26.
9. "600.318/418: Operating Systems". Retrieved 2015-11-07.
10. "FrontPage - OS Teaching Wiki". Retrieved 2010-03-18.
11. "CS-537: Introduction to Operating Systems". Retrieved 2011-11-04.
12. "CS 6460: Operating Systems". Retrieved 2014-01-20.
13. "Embedded in Academia : Xv6". Retrieved 2014-04-08.
14. "1DV201: Operating system". Retrieved 2013-03-14.
15. "COSC440: Advanced Operating system". Retrieved 2015-07-14.
16. "SistOp14: Operating Systems". Retrieved 2015-08-06.
17. "Operating Systems". Retrieved 2015-08-06.
18. "Sistemi Operativi". Retrieved 2015-10-18.
19. "DCC605: Sistemas Operacionais". Retrieved 2015-11-16.

External links

• xv6 Home page
• xv6 source code
• Printable version of the xv6 source code, rev8.
• xv6: a simple, Unix-like teaching operating system., xv6 book rev8.
• Operating Systems Engineering (6.828)