Charlex Operating System (Charlex OS)

Charlex OS

charleX OS

Logo

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Description

CharleX OS is a minimal, open-source operating system kernel written primarily in C with assembly components. It provides a basic terminal interface in VGA text mode, supporting keyboard input for a simple command-line experience. This project serves as an educational platform for understanding low-level OS development, inspired by early Unix-like systems such as Linux and FreeBSD.

The kernel includes features like:

• VGA text mode initialization and output
• Keyboard input handling with support for basic keys (enter, backspace, arrows, etc.)
• A simple shell-like prompt for user interaction
• Bootloader integration with GRUB

Screenshots

Building and Running

Prerequisites

• GCC compiler
• NASM assembler
• GRUB tools
• xorriso for ISO creation

On Debian/Ubuntu

Install dependencies:

make deps

Build the ISO:

make mkiso

Run the OS using a virtual machine or boot from the generated charleX.iso.

On Windows 10

1. Install Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) with Ubuntu 24.04 from the Microsoft Store: https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9nz3klhxdjp5?hl=en-us&gl=NL
2. Follow the Linux build instructions above.

For WSL configuration, refer to WSL_WINDOWS.CONF.

Contributing

CharleX OS is an open-source project, and contributions are welcome! Feel free to:

• Report issues
• Submit pull requests for bug fixes or new features
• Improve documentation
• Star the repository to show support

License

This project is licensed under the terms specified in the LICENSE file.