Kernel Size Reduction Work
This page has a list of of recent (as of 2014) ideas and projects for Linux kernel size reduction.
As of June, 2014, Linux Tiny was no longer maintained. However, new efforts to support Linux as a viable option on micro-controllers and deeply embedded systems have led to renewed interest in extreme size reduction of the kernel. Some good projects were described at ELC 2014.
Contents
Recent work
- Tom Zanussi and the Micro-yocto project (2014)
- Micro-Yocto is an effort in the Yocto Project to produce a minimal kernel for very small embedded systems
- Presentation by Tom Zanussi at ELC 2014: microYocto and the Internet of Tiny
- See https://github.com/tzanussi/meta-galileo/raw/daisy/meta-galileo/README for more information
- Vitaly Wool described running 2.6.33 on an ST microcontroler with 2MB flash and 256K ram (2014)
- Linux for Microcontrollers: Spreading the Disease (PDF) (presented at ELC in April 2014)
List of recently used techniques
Vitaly Wool's project
- kernel XIP
- dietnet
- ARM thumb mode
- application XIP on squashfs
micro-yocto project
Ideas for new reductions
People or groups interested in size reductions
- Josh Triplett - e-mail:josh at joshtriplett dot org
- Tom Zanussi - e-mail: tom dot zanussi at linux dot intel dot com
- Andi Kleen - e-mail: ak at linux dot intel dot com
- Alan Cox - email: alan dot cox at linux dot intel dot com
- Shinsuke Kato - e-mail: kato dot shinsuke at jp dot panasonic dot com
- Tim Bird - e-mail: tim dot bird at sonymobile dot com
- Vitaly Wool - e-mail: vitaly dot wool at softprise dot net
companies
- Emcraft Systems sells a variety of microcontroller-based boards and products