The JaeOS Project and the μARM Emulator

As operating systems evolve, so must operating systems projects. Most operating systems courseware systems are based on the significantly out of date MIPS architecture, and only one of these supports multiprocessors. This paper introduces μARM, a pedagogically undergraduate-appropriate ARM7tdmi-based system emulator/architecture. Furthermore, we present JaeOS, a specification for a multi-layer OS supporting multiprocessing, VM, thread synchronization, external devices (disks, terminals, tape, printers, and network interfaces) and a file system. Traditional OS projects like Nachos[5] or OS/161[10] provide students with a significant starting code base. Students then modify existing OS modules or add new ones. With μARM/JaeOS students undergo a pedagogically different experience of starting only with a hardware emulator and ending with a completely student written OS capable of running student written C programs.