Singularity

Singularity is a pretty cool project focused on creating reliable systems. It does this by improving how we use systems, programming languages, and tools. The main goal is to build a research operating system prototype called Singularity. Along the way, we’re also extending programming languages and developing new ways to specify and verify how programs behave.

What Does RDK Mean?

The name RDK stands for Research Development Kit. It's all about pushing the boundaries of tech through research.

How Singularity Works

One of the exciting things about Singularity is how it uses advances in programming languages, compilers, and tools. These improvements mean we can make software way better than before! For instance, Singularity employs type-safe languages along with an abstract instruction set to create something called Software Isolated Processes (SIPs).

The Benefits of SIPs

SIPs are awesome because they provide strong isolation like traditional OS processes but without the heavy overhead that comes from hardware protections. In our current prototype, these SIPs are super efficient; they run directly in ring 0 within the kernel's address space.

Reliability at Its Best

Singularity leverages these advancements to build more reliable systems and applications. Each program, device driver, or system extension runs in its own SIP since they are inexpensive to create and enforce. Plus, SIPs can’t share memory or change their own code. This means we can confidently say that code running in a SIP is very reliable!

Verifying Code Behavior

An added benefit? We can verify a lot more about what happens inside a SIP during compile or install time compared to code running in regular OS processes. This broader application of static verification helps us predict how the system behaves and gives users strong guarantees about reliability.

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