================================================ Genode Labs Newsletter - October / November 2015 ================================================ Content 1. Genode OS Framework 15.11 released 2. Meet us at FOSDEM 2016 3. Genode coming to the RISC-V architecture 1. Genode OS Framework 15.11 released ------------------------------------- With the release version 15.11, we maintain our strong focus on making Genode fit for desktop computing. On that account, the release vastly improves the framework's GUI and audio stacks, introduces desktop-integration features like copy-and-paste and the ability to interactively configure all kinds of components including device drivers. Speaking of device drivers, we are proud to announce the availability of the Intel KMS driver as a user-level component on Genode. This framebuffer driver allows us to drive multiple displays and switch screen resolutions on the fly. Thereby, it perfectly complements the main theme of the current release. Besides the main focus on desktop computing, the release is not short of other areas of improvement. Xilinx Zynq-7000 has been added to the supported platforms, TrustZone on the USB Armory received a lot of attention, and a new VFS server makes Genode's file-system infrastructure much more flexible. Those and many more topics are covered by our detailed release documentation: http://genode.org/documentation/release-notes/15.08 2. Meet us at FOSDEM 2016 ------------------------- We look forward to the upcoming FOSDEM conference in Brussels, which is the worlds largest gathering of open-source and free- software enthusiasts. There will be literally hundreds of talks and lectures over the course of the weekend of January 30 - 31: https://fosdem.org/2016/ Following the tradition of the past years, FOSDEM will host a dedicated developer room for microkernel-related developments. This year, the developer room is organized by our friends of the HelenOS project. Of course, a developer room is filled with life only via active participation. Everyone is invited to contribute: https://lists.fosdem.org/pipermail/fosdem/2015-October/002191.html It goes without saying that Genode Labs will play an active role at FOSDEM. If you are interested in microkernels or free software in general, or would simply like to catch up, we encourage you to attend FOSDEM! 3. Genode coming to the RISC-V architecture ------------------------------------------- When building secure systems, considerations have not only to be made about the software design, but also about the hardware the software is executed on. In the light of the ever more increasing hardware complexity and opaque features like Intel ME or the proprietary firmwares executed in the TrustZone of commodity ARM devices, the question of the trustworthiness of today's CPUs arises. This realization is where the RISC-V architecture came to our attention: http://riscv.org RISC-V aims at creating a completely open hardware architecture. It is complemented by the lowRISC project that targets the production of an open SoC using modern 45 nm or even 28 nm technology in the near future. The actual hardware implementation of RISCV-V, called Rocket chip, is provided by UC Berkely, implemented in a hardware construction language called Chisel, and can be synthesized for FPGAs. During the summer months, we have successfully ported Genode to the RISC-V architecture. The port includes the base-hw kernel, the framework's basic components as well as the dynamic linker. Depending on the feedback from the community, we are planning to incorporate this line of work into the mainline development of Genode. About the newsletter -------------------- If you have friends or colleagues who might be interested in our projects, we would appreciate you to forward this email. If you received this newsletter as a forwarded email, you may subscribe to the newsletter here: http://genode-labs.com/newsletter In the case of receiving this newsletter unintended, you can cancel your subscription at any time by replying to this email with the subject set to "unsubscribe". Best regards -- Dr.-Ing. Norman Feske Genode Labs http://www.genode-labs.com · http://genode.org Genode Labs GmbH · Amtsgericht Dresden · HRB 28424 · Sitz Dresden Geschäftsführer: Dr.-Ing. Norman Feske, Christian Helmuth
