Undergrad Team Runs Xv6 on a Homebrew CPU
2025-06-28
In 2015, a University of Tokyo undergraduate team tackled an ambitious project: designing, building, and running the Xv6 operating system on a homebrew CPU with a custom RISC ISA. Over four months, they built a C compiler from scratch, overcame numerous challenges in understanding and implementing the necessary CPU features for an OS (interrupts, memory management), and successfully ported Xv6, even adding games like 2048 and Minesweeper. Their final demo ran the required ray-tracing program on top of Xv6, showcasing incredible ingenuity and problem-solving skills. This project serves as a testament to the rewards of reinventing the wheel and the educational value of hands-on learning.
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Development
CPU Design