SafeOS (v0.0.96)

A small x86 operating system kernel with a minimal GUI and simple apps.

Overview

SafeOS is an experimental kernel and graphical shell implemented in C/assembly. It includes a basic filesystem header, framebuffer support, a desktop GUI, and a handful of example applications (browser, calculator, notepad, spreadsheet, file explorer).

Project structure

• linker.ld — linker script
• Makefile — build rules
• iso/ — ISO and GRUB config (bootable image)
• kernel/arch/x86/ — architecture-specific startup and framebuffer
• core/ — core kernel sources (e.g. kmain.c, fs.h)
• gui/ — GUI system, desktop and apps (gui.c, desktop.c, cursor.c)
• gui/apps/ — sample applications: browser.c, calculator.c, file_explorer.c, notepad.c, spreadsheet.c

Prerequisites

• GNU Make
• A C cross-compiler or native GCC capable of targeting x86 (toolchain varies by host)
• GRUB utilities and an ISO generator (xorriso or genisoimage) (if building the ISO)
• qemu-system-x86_64 (recommended) for testing

Note: Exact toolchain names and setup depend on your host OS. On Windows you may prefer WSL or MSYS2.

Build

From the repository root run:

make
# optionally create a bootable ISO (if supported by the Makefile)
make iso
# clean build artifacts
make clean

If the Makefile expects a specific cross-compiler prefix (e.g. i686-elf-), set your environment accordingly or install a matching toolchain.

Run (QEMU)

After building, check the iso/ directory for a generated ISO. Example run command:

qemu-system-x86_64 -cdrom iso/safeos.iso -m 512 -serial stdio

Adjust the ISO filename if your build outputs a different name. You can also use other emulators or write the ISO to real media at your own risk.

Development notes

• UI code and apps live under gui/ and gui/apps/.
• Kernel entry/early init is in kernel/arch/x86/.
• To add an app, create a new .c file in gui/apps/ and register it with the desktop as appropriate.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome. Open issues for bugs or feature requests, and send pull requests for fixes or enhancements. Keep changes focused and small. This project is a side-project and is currently not recognised as an official HouseLearning project. I find this to do in my own free time.

License

Apache Licence 2.0