ExectOS – brand new operating system which derives from NT architecture

I am excited to introduce ExectOS, a new open-source operating system built on the powerful XT architecture, a direct descendant of the time-tested NT architecture. With ExectOS, you will get full NT compatibility.

As a free, community-driven project, ExectOS not only incorporates clever ideas from other open-source initiatives but also stands out with our own unique innovations that set it apart. We've designed it to support both i686 and x86_64 architectures. It should be also easily portable to other architectures.

Dive into the world of ExectOS and join us in shaping its future. Learn more on our website at https://exectos.eu.org/, where you can explore our vision. If you are ready to be part of the conversation, our Discord server at https://discord.com/invite/zBzJ5qMGX7 is the perfect place to connect, collaborate, and contribute.

> "Keep the greatest advantages of the NT™ architecture, while implementing new features and technologies known from other Operating Systems."

Wouldn't hurt to hear what the greatest advantages of the NT architecture are from the author's POV...

What kind of desktop would this run actually? The Windows shell, the ReactOS shell, some Unix DE (KDE or so), or some own custom desktop environment? I'm not sure if the latter is a good idea, as this would be a whole big project on its own?

What hardware does it currently support? (Either via their own drivers or via the NT compat layer?) E.g. does it support the common things, video output, keyboard input, network?

I think it would be good if the homepage would clarify the current status, and maybe show some high-level changelog of the recent changes, and some roadmap.

If you're into microkernels and/or the NT kernel model, I highly recommend checking it out

There are strong structural similarities in the source tree and there are also source files that seem completely copypasted with comments changed and function contents gutted (such as ke/sysres.c, ke/runlevel.c, among others).

Are you one of the Minoca developers working on a new project or are you defrauding Hacker News for attention?

Edit: This same poster (Rafal "Belliash" Kupiec) has been noted for other plagiarism incidents going back to 2005:

https://github.com/reactos/reactos/pull/2853#issuecomment-65...

https://lists.reactos.org/hyperkitty/list/ros-dev@reactos.or...

From OSDev discord: To give an example, there's a striking similarity between these two files: <https://github.com/xt-sys/exectos/blob/master/xtoskrnl/ke/sy...> <https://github.com/xt-sys/exectos/blob/master/xtoskrnl/ke/ru...> and these: <https://github.com/minoca/os/blob/master/kernel/ke/sysres.c> <https://github.com/minoca/os/blob/master/kernel/ke/runlevel....>

Edit: also found this: https://lists.reactos.org/hyperkitty/list/ros-dev@reactos.or...

I understand that there have been concerns raised regarding the uniqueness of the code in my project. I want to clarify that I have a broad exposure to various open-source projects, including Boron, Carbon, Minoca, Palladium, and NeptuneOS, among others. My interaction with these projects is purely for educational purposes and to stay informed about different coding practices within the open-source community. This does not equate to copying their code for my own projects.

I utilize a programming tool called Codeium, which is equipped with AI capabilities based on the GPT-4 model. This sophisticated tool assists in generating code suggestions and snippets to aid in the development process. It is important to note that while Codeium's AI provides recommendations, it does so from an expansive dataset of open-source, properly licensed public code. However, as a developer, I exercise discretion over which suggestions I implement into my codebase. The AI's suggestions are merely a starting point, and I often enhance or modify them significantly in the context of my work.

In light of the concerns raised, I am committed to conducting a thorough review of the code in question. Should I find any similarities with the Minoca project, I am prepared to take the necessary steps. This may include rewriting or removing the code entirely, or appropriately crediting the original authors as per the licensing agreements and norms of the open-source community.

I take the originality and integrity of my work seriously and appreciate the opportunity to address any issues that may arise. Thank you for bringing this to my attention.

Are there any other operating systems without HAL?

100% Non-starter, such a shame.

ExectOS goals are very different from ReactOS, and contrast the project’s core philosophy as being quite on different paths. While ReactOS aims to replicate Windows® NT™, ExectOS is a completely new Operating System implementing the XT architecture which derives from NT™. Although both projects share the goal of being NT™ compatible, they intend to achieve it in different ways. What ReactOS tries to replicate, ExectOS only implements as a compatibility layer. Thanks to that, ExectOS does not need to strictly follow NT™ architecture and is capable of providing modern features."

ExectOS seems highly interesting -- basically it can be thought about as an open-source OS that can run Windows binary closed-source drivers...

If ExectOS is going to do this (and apparently it is!) -- then let me propose the following use-case and corresponding suggestion...

First, the use-case: I think it would be great to run a headless (non-GUI) OS infrastructure capable of hosting Windows binary closed-source drivers on a different networked piece of computer hardware.

For example, let's say I have an old PC.

An old PC with some expansion card or piece of hardware that is not produced anymore, where the vendor went out of business years ago, where there are no open source drivers -- where the only thing that remains is the ancient hardware and the ancient proprietary closed-source driver...

OK, now let's suppose that I can run the ExectOS OS infrastructure headless on that old PC along with the ancient proprietary closed-source driver (I use a second attached modern networked PC with GUI, remote shell, debugger, etc., etc. to connect with and control the old PC...).

Well, that would be awesome, because then ExectOS could be used to isolate, debug, and potentially understand (better) old Windows binary closed-source drivers for old (ancient?) attached hardware devices that are no longer produced, where open-source drivers are not available...

So the suggestion: Via IFDEFs, compilation flags, conditional compilation, etc., create a headless (but still with built-in networking and/or the ability to run a network driver) version of ExectOS -- for the purpose described above.

All I know is that if that version was created, then the old/vintage hardware restoration/documentation community -- would be forever in ExectOS's debt...

Anyway, ExectOS sounds great! (Could it be made to work on old 386's?)

Also, it's completely not obvious from your web pages which features already work in your OS. And, IMHO, Discord is definitely not "the perfect place to connect, collaborate, and contribute".

Just my 2ct...

[1] https://exectos.eu.org/faq/

Personally, I much prefer those hobby projects which focus on code instead of publicity.

    We believe, there is no ideal Operating System on the market. During ExectOS development, we try to bring most useful features known from existing solutions, while keeping compatibility with NT™ architecture at desired level.
    Some of our ideas differ greatly from other projects and it is much easier if we do not have to fight legacy code and ideas.
    We need the freedom to break things when necessary.

But there is no reason to use it as a user or application developer, which are the far more important Whys.

As a tangent, what will really impress me about AI/LLM is if major projects like this gain huge amounts of usable ported/translated code using the LLMs.

So you start a kernel, but we all know you need a desktop environment, graphics subsystems, shell environments, terminal apps, etc.

LLMs seem best suited for breadth-knowledge application. Porting of apps between apis that doesn't involve deep algorithms on a major scale would actually show me they are useful outside of parlor tricks.

Even if you're going for a microkernel design, there are still consequences to writing memory-unsafe code outside the core.

Along with the web browsers it's the most sophisticated software in the world. Battle tested, flexible, secure, powerful, polished, honed and revised for decades by the some of the worlds best developers.

Why replace it?