A bootloader is an initial firmware/software that looks for an Operating System to boot from in the main secondary storage device, then hands over control to the kernel.
In a bid to become chip independent from the current x86/ARM duopoly, there has been a concerted effort from multiple independent organisations to make custom chipsets that are not only open and cost-effective, but also fully customisable. This project was an effort to build up the skills necessary to start developing chips from the ground up, eventually targetting RISC-V. Reverse-engineering existing technology that works well will help replicate and improve functionality in the final product.
As a bootloader is a critical piece of firmware that needs to run before it finds an OS to boot, the code needs to be lightweight and efficient. Assembly fits the bill perfectly for now, and we will be working on a Virtual Machine to avoid nuking perfectly good bare-metal machines. qemu is a very lightweight solution for Virtual Machines, but you can use VMWare or VirtualBox if so inclined, and our assembler of choice here is nasm.
Ideally we should be running Linux, but working on Windows and MacOS isn't a barrier at all. The tools can be installed easily, as they are all CLI.
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- For Debian/Ubuntu distros or their derivatives
sudo apt install nasm qemu- For Arch distros or derivatives
sudo pacman -S nasm qemu -
- Install Windows Subsystem for Linux and download Ubuntu from the Microsoft Store
- Open WSL and type in
sudo apt install nasm qemu -
- Just like apt, brew is a one-liner software wizard. Installing things has never been easier!
brew install nasm qemu
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Clone the repo and type in
makein the root directory
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Finally, to initialise the bootloader in an i386 virtual qemu machine
qemu-system-i386 -fda build/main_floppy.img
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Et voila! A super lightweight text greeting that will make interpreted programmers cry blood.
