 Learn all about Computer Science  1. Overview
Before we dive into operating system development, it’s essential to pause and ask ourselves: Why are we embarking on this path?
Are we aiming to deepen our understanding of a programming language by creating something complex from scratch? Or do we want to explore how hardware operates, how to start a machine, work with a specific CPU architecture, manage memory, and handle interrupts? Perhaps our goal is to understand core components of an operating system, such as the memory manager, task scheduler, or file system.
Alternatively, we might want to build something that controls the hardware. Even a simple, functioning kernel can be pretty satisfying. Clarifying our objectives early on helps us narrow down the extensive list of tutorials and guides available. This, in turn, minimizes planning paralysis and accelerates our progress toward writing working code.
Of course, our motivations are personal. As a result, an article shaped by one person’s ambitions may not resonate with others who have different goals. Instead, we will focus on the “how.”
First, we’ll examine resources that apply to all operating system development endeavors, and then we’ll explore learning paths based on specific operating system concepts and programming languages.
Before we start coding, it’s essential to have the right environment. Unlike regular applications, we cannot rely on an existing operating system to run, test, and debug our code. Therefore, we must set up specific tools to safely test and execute our code.
First, we need to choose an emulator. The most popular choice is QEMU, which is fast, flexible, and well-documented. Starting with a practical guide for Linux kernel development can be very beneficial.
Alternatively, Bochs offers detailed CPU-level debugging, although it is slower and limited to the i386 architecture.
VirtualBox is another user-friendly option that comes with a graphical user interface. It is popular and has extensive documentation available.
Next, we must select a bootloader. A common choice is GRUB, as it simplifies the kernel loading process. We can get started with GRUB by following the “Bare Bones” tutorial.
For debugging, we can combine QEMU with GDB. This combination allows us to step through kernel code, inspect memory, and examine CPU registers interactively.
Additionally, practicing booting a minimal operating system can be very beneficial. For instance, booting a minimal Linux kernel will help you gain experience using the emulator and provide insight into how an operating system boots a computer.
3. Academic Resources for OS Concepts and Development
Developing an operating system is an inherently iterative process. We begin by learning concepts and then writing code to solidify our understanding.
In this section, we’ll explore resources that support this cycle. We’ll start with guides on how to build an operating system from existing code, followed by academic resources that explain theoretical concepts and provide exercises to help us master them.
3.1. Linux From Scratch
We’ll begin by creating a complete Linux system entirely from source. This hands-on approach will help us understand how everything fits together as we compile the toolchain, kernel, and userland tools. Through this process, we’ll gain insights into bootloaders, drivers, libraries, and how the system initialises.
3.2. UIUC CS 241: System Programming
This repository is a clone of the 2019 edition of the “System Programming” course from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It includes lecture slides, lab exercises such as “Lovable Linux,” and programming assignments focused on threads, I/O buffering, and concurrency. Engaging with these materials will provide us with a solid foundation in low-level system behavior.
3.3. EGOS-2000
This resource allows us to explore a minimal educational operating system that demonstrates memory management, scheduling, and file systems. Each chapter includes clear theoretical explanations from a free online book, accompanied by modular code available on GitHub. For those interested in working with hardware, RISC-V boards such as the Allwinner D1 or the Sipeed Lichee RV64 Nezha are available for purchase.
3.4. Operating Systems: Three Easy Pieces
In this online textbook, we’ll learn about virtualization, concurrency, and persistence. Each chapter includes interactive labs and simulations that reinforce the concepts, making it an excellent resource for iterative learning.
3.5. Other Resources
Other valuable resources include the OSDev Wiki, which allows us to explore topics such as Memory Management, Scheduling, and Interrupts. Additionally, BrokenThorn’s OS series discusses bootloaders, multitasking, and device drivers for the x86 architecture.
4. OS Development Resources by Programming Language
One of the most effective ways to master a programming language is by using it in a challenging project. Writing an operating system is one of the most demanding tasks we can take on. This process requires us to gain an in-depth understanding of the language, encompassing everything from hardware interaction and memory management to the structuring of large-scale software.
4.1. C
C continues to be a popular choice for operating system (OS) development. Several resources can help us enhance our practical understanding of this language.
This well-structured tutorial by Carlos Fenollosa guides us step-by-step from creating a minimal bootloader to developing a functional kernel. It covers essential topics such as interrupts, memory management, and drivers.
The Little OS Book is a concise and beginner-friendly guide that takes us through the process of creating a minimal operating system. It addresses key OS concepts such as booting, interrupts, and memory management, using small and practical examples in C to illustrate each topic.
This practical tutorial on Medium provides clear explanations and code snippets that help us understand how to structure and implement a bare OS kernel in C.
4.2. C++
One of the most notable operating systems written in C++ is BeOS. An open-source clone of this OS, named Haiku, allows us to explore how C++ can be successfully utilized for large-scale system development.
Using C++ for operating system development is both powerful and challenging. On one hand, the language offers modern abstractions, strong type safety, and resource management through RAII (Resource Acquisition Is Initialization). However, many of its features, such as exceptions and dynamic memory allocation, require runtime support, which is often unavailable when writing the low-level code needed for an operating system.
This C++ OS template provides a straightforward and well-organized starting point for building a kernel in modern C++. It demonstrates how to structure early-stage boot code and create a minimal runtime environment that does not rely on the standard library.
Thor OS is written entirely in C++ with the specific goal of learning about operating systems. Although it is not actively maintained, it remains a valuable resource for studying concepts such as threading, memory management, and device drivers.
4.3. Emerging Programming Languages
Rust, Zig, and Nim are a trio of emerging systems programming languages, with Rust being the most established among them. Rust code may soon be integrated into the Linux Kernel. Each of these languages offers innovative approaches to prevent common errors in memory management while ensuring the correctness and security of the software written in them.
In the Rust community on GitHub, we can find numerous practical examples, bootloaders, and kernel libraries. These resources enhance our understanding of Rust’s strong type system and unique ownership model.
Zen is an experimental operating system written in Zig that clearly and succinctly demonstrates basic OS concepts, memory management, and hardware interaction. This OS can be used to explore the application of meta-programming in OS development.
Fusion OS, a small educational operating system written in Nim, allows us to examine how Nim’s deterministic memory management and move semantics could revolutionize OS development.
4.4. Go
The gokrazy project showcases the use of Go in a minimal OS environment, demonstrating how Go interacts directly with hardware and challenging our assumptions about the capabilities of high-level languages.
5. Conclusion
In this article, we explored various paths to enter the field of operating system development. We examined tools to help get started, resources for understanding Operating System concepts, and projects that can enhance our skills in specific programming languages.
The endeavor allows us to learn how computers operate and to master the tools and languages used in the development process.
To this end, we can follow academic materials to deepen our understanding of the theory behind each feature, and get our hands dirty with practical tasks such as building, booting, and debugging an OS from scratch.
Through this process, we develop clear thinking, strengthen our debugging skills, and gain insight into how software interacts with hardware. The post How to Start Building an Operating System first appeared on Baeldung on Computer Science.
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