xv6 through QEMU through Docker

First time setup

Step 0: Install Docker

Make sure you have Docker and Docker Compose installed on your system

• For Windows and Mac users, both are installed together
• For Linux users, first install Docker then Docker Compose

Read more: https://docs.docker.com/compose/install/

Step 1: Clone this repository

Navigate to a fitting folder and run the following command:

git clone https://github.com/anton-christensen/xv6-docker.git

Step 2: Download the xv6 source code

The source for the operating system is included as a submodule in this repository. To download the newest version run the following command in the newly created xv6-docker folder:

git submodule update --init --recursive

Step 3: Build the Docker image

The first time you run the image with the following command, the Docker image will be built. The required dependencies are downloaded, compiled and run, which might take a few minutes, but only needs to be done once.

docker-compose run --rm vm

Running the Docker image

The docker image can be run with the same command used to build it:

docker-compose run --rm vm

This launches a shell inside the container which is connected to your terminal. Running the following command in that terminal compiles and runs the xv6 source code.

make qemu

In order to exit QEMU press Ctrl + A, X

Editing xv6

Any changes you make to the files in the xv6-docker/xv6-public folder are also present inside the container, but you will need the run make qemu in order to compile your latest changes.