COMP 790: Reference Materials

OS textbooks

For brushing up on basic OS concepts:

• Operating Systems: Three Easy Pieces, Remzi H. Arpaci-Dusseau and Andrea C. Arpaci-Dusseau. Version .90. Free download here.
• Operating Systems Principles and Practice (second edition), Thomas Anderson and Michael Dahlin. Recursive Books, Ltd., 2014. ISBN: 978-0-9856735-2-9.
• Modern Operating Systems (third edition), Andrew S. Tanenbaum. Prentice Hall, Inc., 2008. ISBN: 0-13-600663-9.
• Operating System Concepts (eighth edition), Abraham Silberschatz, Peter Baer Galvin, and Greg Gagne. John Wiley & Sons, 2008. ISBN: 0-47-012872-0.

C programming

The classic book on C:

• The C programming language (second edition), Brian W. Kernighan and Dennis M. Ritchie. Prentice Hall, Inc., 1988. ISBN: 0-13-110362-8.

x86 Assembly Language Programming

(Thanks to Eddie Kohler and MIT's 6.828 course staff for the links and commentary below.)

• PC Assembly Language, Paul A. Carter, November 2003. 188pp. (local PDF copy)

  A clear description of x86 assembly language and assembly language in general, including some stuff you ideally know already. You might prefer to read this on line, rather than print it out; it's a quick read. Warning: This book uses "Intel" assembly syntax, in which instructions are written "instr dst, src"; we will use "AT&T" assembly syntax, in which they are written "instr src, dst". You don't need to read the following sections, which will not be needed for class: 1.3.6-1.3.7, 1.4, 1.5, 5, 6, and 7.2.

• Brennan's Guide to Inline Assembly, Brennan "Bas" Underwood. (local copy)

  A short and sweet description of how to use inline assembly instructions with GCC. Includes a description of the "AT&T" assembly syntax used by GCC.

• Reference Manuals
  • Intel 80386 Programmer's Reference Manual, 1987 (HTML). (local copy - HTML) (local copy - PDF)

    Much shorter than the current Intel Architecture manuals, but describes most of the processor features we'll use. The original was a flat text file that used the PC Line Drawing characters for diagrams; this, and many other versions, are available on the net. JOS uses the following 486-and-later features, which you can read about in the IA-32 manuals: The %cr0 register's WP bit (Volume 3).

  • IA-32 Intel Architecture Software Developer's Manuals, Intel, 2007. Local copies:
    • Volume 1: Basic Architecture
    • Volume 2A: Instruction Set Reference, A-M
    • Volume 2B: Instruction Set Reference, N-Z
    • Volume 3A: System Programming Guide, Part 1
    • Volume 3B: System Programming Guide, Part 2

    The latest and longest documents from Intel.

  • AMD64 Architecture Programmer's Manual

    Covers both the "classic" 32-bit x86 architecture and the new 64-bit extensions supported by the latest AMD and Intel processors.

  • Multiprocessor references:
    • MP specification
    • IO APIC
• Tool Interface Standard (TIS) Executable and Linking Format (ELF) Specification, Version 1.2

  Our kernel runs ELF executables; this is the definitive standard for how these executables are constructed.

• GNU ld Command Language (for linker scripts)
• The DWARF Debugging Format, version 5(for the debugging symbols used by our kernel)

x86 Emulation

• Bochs - An x86 platform and CPU emulator.
  • User manual
  • Debugger reference
• QEMU - A new, much faster but less mature PC emulator. We now use qemu as the default JOS platform.

PC Hardware Progamming

• General PC architecture information
  • Phil Storrs PC Hardware book, Phil Storrs, December 1998.
  • Bochs technical hardware specifications directory.
• General BIOS and PC bootstrap
  • BIOS Central
  • "El Torito" Bootable CD-ROM Format Specification, Phoenix/IBM, January 1995. (local copy)
• VGA display - kern/console.c
  • VESA BIOS Extension (VBE) 3.0, Video Electronics Standards Association, September 1998. (local copy)
  • VGADOC, Finn Thøgersen, 2000. (local copy - text) (local copy - ZIP)
  • Free VGA Project, J.D. Neal, 1998.
• Keyboard and Mouse - kern/console.c
  • Adam Chapweske's resources.
• 8253/8254 Programmable Interval Timer (PIT) - inc/timerreg.h
  • 82C54 CHMOS Programmable Interval Timer, Intel, October 1994. (local copy)
  • Data Solutions 8253/8254 Tutorial, Data Solutions.
• 8259/8259A Programmable Interrupt Controller (PIC) - kern/picirq.*
  • 8259A Programmable Interrupt Controller, Intel, December 1988.
• Real-Time Clock (RTC) - kern/kclock.*
  • Phil Storrs PC Hardware book, Phil Storrs, December 1998. In particular:
    • Understanding the CMOS
    • A list of what is in the CMOS
  • CMOS Memory Map, Padgett Peterson, May 1996.
  • M48T86 PC Real-Time Clock, ST Microelectronics, April 2004. (local copy)
• 16550 UART Serial Port - kern/console.c
  • PC16550D Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter with FIFOs, National Semiconductor, 1995.
  • Technical Data on 16550, Byterunner Technologies.
  • Interfacing the Serial / RS232 Port, Craig Peacock, August 2001.
• IEEE 1284 Parallel Port - kern/console.c
  • Parallel Port Central, Jan Axelson.
  • IEEE 1284 - Updating the PC Parallel Port, National Instruments.
  • Interfacing the Standard Parallel Port, Craig Peacock, August 2001.
• IDE hard drive controller - fs/ide.c
  • AT Attachment with Packet Interface - 6 (working draft), ANSI, December 2001.
  • Programming Interface for Bus Master IDE Controller, Brad Hosler, Intel, May 1994.
  • The Guide to ATA/ATAPI documentation, Constantine Sapuntzakis, January 2002.
• Sound cards (not supported in JOS, but you're welcome to do it as a challenge problem!)
  • Sound Blaster Series Hardware Programming Guide, Creative Technology, 1996.
  • 8237A High Performance Programmable DMA Controller, Intel, September 1993.
  • Sound Blaster 16 Programming Document, Ethan Brodsky, June 1997.
  • Sound Programming, Inverse Reality.
• E100 Network Interface Card
  • Intel 8255x 10/100 Mbps Ethernet Controller Family Open Source Software Developer Manual
  • 82559ER Fast Ethernet PCI Controller Datasheet
  • The 82559 EEPROM

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