Debugging Windows

Kernel Code
Introduction

What is Kernel?
A kernel is the central part of an operating system. It manages the tasks of the computer and the hardware -
most notably memory and CPU time.



The kernel is the most fundamental part of an operating system. It can be thought of as the program which
controls all other programs on the computer. It is responsible for the creation and destruction of memory space
which allows software to run. It provides services so that programs can request the use of the network driver, the
disk or any other piece of hardware (the kernel forwards that request to special programs called drivers which
control the hardware), manages the file system and sets interrupts for the CPU to enable multitasking.

What is the function of an Operating System?
Operating system controls and coordinates the use of the hardware among the various applications programs for
various uses. Operating system acts as resource allocator and manager. Since there are many possibly conflicting
requests for resources the operating system must decide which requests are allocated resources to operating the
computer system efficiently, also operating system is the main control program which controls the user programs
to prevent errors and improper use of the computer. It is especially concerned with the operation and control of
I/O devices.
Some Common Terms to understand before debugging Windows Kernel Code:
Virtual Memory: Virtual memory is hardware technique where the system appears to have more memory that it
actually does. This is done by time-sharing, the physical memory and storage parts of the memory one disk when
they are not actively being used.
Cache Memory: Cache memory is random access memory (RAM) that a computer microprocessor can access
more quickly than it can access regular RAM. As the microprocessor processes data, it looks first in the cache
memory and if it finds the data there (from a previous reading of data), it does not have to do the more time-
consuming reading of data from larger memory.
Thread: A thread is the smallest unit of processing that can be performed in an OS. In most modern operating
systems, a thread exists within a process - that is, a single process may contain multiple threads.
Multitasking: Multitasking refers to the simultaneously performance of multiple tasks and processes by hardware,
software or any computing appliance. It enables the performance of more than one computer process at the
same time with minimal lag in overall performance and without affecting the operations of each task.
Multitasking is also known as multiprocessing.