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We've compiled a list of 4 free and paid alternatives to XNU. The primary competitors include Linux kernel, GNU Hurd. In addition to these, users also draw comparisons between XNU and Linux-libre, Redox. Also you can look at other similar options here: OS and Utilities.


Linux kernel
Free Open Source

The Linux kernel is the operating system kernel used by the Linux family of Unix-like operating...

GNU Hurd
Free Open Source

GNU Hurd (usually referred to as the Hurd) is a computer operating system kernel designed as a...

Linux-libre
Free Open Source

Linux-libre is a GNU package that is maintained from modified versions of the Linux kernel.

Redox
Free Open Source

Redox is a Unix-like Operating System written in Rust, aiming to bring the innovations of Rust to a...

XNU is a hybrid kernel combining the Mach kernel with components from FreeBSD and C++

XNU Overview

XNU kernel is part of the Darwin operating system for use in OS X and iOS operating systems. XNU is an acronym for XNU is Not Unix. XNU is a hybrid kernel combining the Mach kernel developed at Carnegie Mellon University with components from FreeBSD and C++ API for writing drivers called IOKit. XNU runs on I386, X86_64 for both single processor and multi-processor configurations.

XNU Source Tree

config - configurations for exported apis for supported architecture and platform
SETUP - Basic set of tools used for configuring the kernel, versioning and kextsymbol management.
EXTERNAL_HEADERS - Headers sourced from other projects to avoid dependency cycles when building. These headers should be regularly synced when source is updated.
libkern - C++ IOKit library code for handling of drivers and kexts.
libsa - kernel bootstrap code for startup
libsyscall - syscall library interface for userspace programs
libkdd - source for user library for parsing kernel data like kernel chunked data.
makedefs - top level rules and defines for kernel build.
osfmk - Mach kernel based subsystems
pexpert - Platform specific code like interrupt handling, atomics etc.
security - Mandatory Access Check policy interfaces and related implementation.
bsd - BSD subsystems code
tools - A set of utilities for testing, debugging and profiling kernel.

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XNU Categories

OS and Utilities

XNU Tags

darwin os-kernel

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