ExectOS Operating System

When we first started building ExectOS, we envisioned it as an operating system designed exclusively for UEFI-based systems. Over time, however, we realized that this requirement was an artificial limitation. Today, we are excited to announce that we have begun taking concrete steps toward supporting traditional PC/AT hardware with classic BIOS - broadening the reach of ExectOS to a much wider range of systems.

We are excited to announce the release of XTchain 3.0.2. While this update is relatively minor, it brings several important improvements aimed at enhancing Windows compatibility and streamlining workflows across platforms.

The project’s kernel, bootloader, and all associated modules have been migrated to C++. This transition was a complex and time-consuming effort that we deliberately prioritized over adding new features. Because the codebase was still relatively compact, undertaking this migration at this stage was significantly easier than it would have been later.

In total, the migration involved modifications across 297 files, with 16,671 lines of code added and 13,312 lines removed. The process culminated in the merge of 67 commits. Despite these internal changes, the public interface exposed through XTDK remains fully compatible with C. As a result, developers can write drivers in either C or C++.

August has been an intense and productive month for the ExectOS project. When many thought development had slowed down, we managed to push forward with progress - a clear sign that ExectOS is still actively evolving. Alongside implementing Dynamic Multi-Level Paging and adding experimental LA57 support, we also spent a considerable amount of time addressing a wide range of bugs, improving stability and compatibility across the entire system.

In one of our recent updates, we published a full list of bug fixes included in the latest builds. This time we wanted to share some of the more interesting technical findings that came out during the development process. While many fixes were straightforward, others required a deep dive into low-level kernel internals, bootloader behavior, and hardware-specific quirks. In this article, we have selected several cases that stood out due to their complexity or the insights they provided. Our goal is to give you a closer look behind the scenes and highlight the complex engineering challenges we encounter.

We have reached an important milestone in the development of ExectOS. While this is not a release announcement, we are excited to share significant progress on the virtual memory subsystem that lays the foundation for the future kernel memory manager.

Although the kernel does not yet have a fully functional memory manager, the latest work ensures that when we begin its implementation, it will seamlessly support all paging levels from the very start. With proper handling of PML2, PML3, PML4, and PML5 already integrated into the bootloader and partially into the kernel, we have created a highly flexible and future-proof paging framework.