Operating system "Phantom"

The Phantom Project is an operating system created and developed by Digital Zone. The OS is based on the concept of persistent virtual memory. It focuses on managed code and is aimed at wearable and embedded computers. Phantom is one of the few operating systems that does not rely on the classic concepts of Unix-like systems. Unlike their “everything is a file” concept, Phantom is based on the “everything is an object” principle.

For the full use of computer resources, the Phantom OS requires a 64-bit address space, but it is also possible to work in a 32-bit one.

The key feature of Phantom OS is persistence

The application code "does not see" OS reboots and can "live forever" - hence the lack of the need for the concept of "file" - any variable or data structure can be stored for an arbitrary time and at the same time be accessed directly by the pointer. Unlike hibernation in other operating systems, memory persistence is embedded in the fundamental principles of building the Phantom OS kernel, is transparent to applications, and does not require any modifications to the application software. Persistence is maintained even when the computer crashes, Phantom OS is guaranteed to restore the system state at the time of the last memory snapshot.

The main advantages of the model

  • 1. fault tolerance

    Phantom is based on a simple programming model: OS is a persistent object environment. This is the same as if the application server for an object programming language were started and guaranteed to never stop. At the same time, the OS itself can be stopped and restarted, the computer can be suddenly turned off - from the point of view of the program, these will be just pauses in work. This means that the system can serve critical processes that require instant activation during power outages, for example.

  • 2. Cheaper development

    The main know-how of Phantom is the ability to cheaply create snapshots of the state of the system without stopping it and without making major changes to the work. The subtlety is that "photography" should capture the entire system at one point in time - without exceptions. Until now, it was thought that this required a pause in the work of all programs. We found a way to distribute the creation of such a "photo" in time, while leaving it synchronous in terms of the "innards" of the system. This provides several benefits. The most important of them is a significant reduction in the cost of software development.

  • 3. High performance

    "Phantom" is a system without context switches between the kernel and the application. A normal system has two modes - "omnipotent", in which the kernel runs, and "applied", in which applications run. This is the basis of classical protection systems in operating systems such as Unix/Linux and Windows. Switching between modes is very expensive and reduces the performance of the application software. This is especially true in server applications. Protection in the Phantom is built using less expensive technology, and mode switching (“rings of protection”) is not required.

Applied value of OS

The operating system "Phantom" has not only academic, but also applied value. It provides low application development cost and high operational reliability. The OS model guarantees the software to save the state and restore it when the system is restarted, which means that after a power failure, the computer, firstly, will boot very quickly, and secondly, will continue to work from the moment of the last “snapshot”. For critical applications, a snapshot can be taken frequently enough. A few examples of situations in which this property is very useful:

  • Banking systems - equipment failure does not lead to lengthy operations to restore the database, operators continue interrupted sessions from the same place;

  • Medical Equipment - A brief power failure of the ventilator system in the case of a traditional OS requires a two-minute reboot process and restart of programs, which can lead to the death of the patient;

  • After a power failure, fire safety and alarm systems begin a long polling of sensors and a reinitialization procedure, and Phantom allows you to do without it, and, in addition, save the “knowledge” of the application program about the current state of the system.

Current project status

The Phantom operating system is currently a completely independent (without the use of any third-party code) development.

The level of readiness of the code is proof of concept (workable code, but stability and completeness are insufficient for industrial use).

The Phantom system is a post Unix OS, the concepts on which it is based are considered as a new basis, more adequate to the current state of the industry than traditional POSIX systems. Nevertheless, for Phantom, ways have been thought out for migrating traditional software developed for existing operating systems into it.

The Phantom OS project is an open source (open source, LGPL) project.