Recent research in operating systems has led to major strides in the structuring of services using microkernels. Leading researchers and developers agree that future systems will be based on microkernels and will rely on customization of specific operating systems services to a specific application environment. In response to the trend toward customizing operating systems, this project focuses on developing an undergraduate operating systems laboratory built upon a network of dedicated Power PCs using the IBM Microkernel. The department is replacing its existing undergraduate-level operating systems and computer networks courses with two new courses, Operating Systems I and II, that use the IBM microkernel-based system as a reference point and a medium to perform system-level experimentation. Class materials, including lab exercises based on the microkernel, can be made available over World Wide Web. This project is securing a network of IBM Power PC workstations.
