--- trunk/RELEASE 2007/10/08 16:18:27 10 +++ trunk/RELEASE 2007/10/08 16:19:01 16 @@ -1,18 +1,19 @@ -Release notes for GXemul 0.3.4 -============================== +Release notes for Gavare's eXperimental Emulator (GXemul), 0.3.6.1 +================================================================== Copyright (C) 2003-2005 Anders Gavare. -GXemul is an experimental instruction-level machine emulator. It can be -used to run binary code for (among others) MIPS-based machines, regardless -of host platform. Several emulation modes are available. For some modes, -processors and surrounding hardware components are emulated well enough to -let unmodified operating systems (e.g. NetBSD) run as if they were running -on a real machine. +GXemul is an experimental instruction-level machine emulator. Several +emulation modes are available. In some modes, processors and surrounding +hardware components are emulated well enough to let unmodified operating +systems (e.g. NetBSD) run as if they were running on a real machine. -I have verified that the following "guest" operating systems can run -inside the emulator: +The processor architecture best emulated by GXemul is MIPS, but other +architectures are also partially emulated. + +I have verified that the following "guest" operating systems can run inside +the emulator: Guest operating system Emulated machine ---------------------- ---------------- @@ -28,36 +29,41 @@ NetBSD/cobalt 2.0.2 Cobalt NetBSD/evbmips 2.0.2 Malta 5Kc/4Kc evaluation board NetBSD/sgimips 2.0.2 SGI O2 ("IP32") + NetBSD/cats 2.0.2 CATS (ARM) + OpenBSD/cats 3.7 CATS (ARM) + +(Most of these are MIPS-based machines, except the CATS, which is an +ARM-based machine.) -Some of these guest operating systems are easier to install and run than +Some of these guest operating systems are easier to install and run than others. The best supported mode is the DECstation 5000/200 emulation mode, with NetBSD/pmax as the guest operating system. -A couple of other emulation modes exist. Some of these modes are almost -working well enough to run complete guest operating systems, but most are +A couple of other emulation modes exist. Some of these modes are almost +working well enough to run complete guest operating systems, but most are just skeletons. The modes that work are listed in the documentation. -The emulator can also be used in other experiments; it does not have to -run entire guest operating systems. (However, GXemul does not simulate -things smaller than an instruction. What this means is that pipe-line -stalls, penalties caused by branch-prediction misses or cache misses, and -other micro-architectural effects are not simulated.) - -Summary of changes between release 0.3.3.2 and 0.3.4: - - x) When emulating a network of multiple machines, the emulated - machines can now be placed on different hosts. - - x) NetBSD/evbmips can now be installed and run from a disk image. - (There is no INSTALL kernel for NetBSD/evbmips, so you need to - install using another OS, for example emulated NetBSD/pmax.) - - x) NetBSD/sgimips can now be installed. Not onto a SCSI disk, - but the files can be exported via nfs from another emulated - machine. The sgimips machine can then netboot. (Read the - documentation for details.) +The emulator can also be used in other experiments; it does not have to run +entire guest operating systems. (However, GXemul does not simulate things +smaller than an instruction. What this means is that pipe-line stalls, +penalties caused by branch-prediction misses or cache misses, and other +micro-architectural effects are not simulated.) + +The most imporant user-visible change between release 0.3.5 and 0.3.6 is: + + x) The experimental ARM emulation mode is now working well enough + to install NetBSD/cats and OpenBSD/cats onto harddisk images. + +There have also been lots of other small changes, too small to mention here. + +The 0.3.6.1 release fixes some issues related to ARM emulation: + + x) The emulator can now be compiled inside NetBSD/cats or OpenBSD/cats, + inside the emulator itself. (In 0.3.6, some bugs prevented this.) -There have also been various other minor updates and bugfixes. + x) Performance increase: A non-scientific but realistic test, measuring + the real-world time it takes to do a full NetBSD/cats installation, + seems to indicate that 0.3.6.1 can be twice as fast as 0.3.6 was. Files included in this release are: @@ -71,7 +77,6 @@ doc Documentation. experiments Experimental code. (Usually not needed.) src Source code. - tests Regression tests. To build the emulator, run the ./configure script, and then run make. @@ -143,12 +148,30 @@ This product includes software developed by Marc Horowitz. + This product includes software developed by Brini. + + This product includes software developed by Mark Brinicombe + for the NetBSD Project. + +Also, src/include/alpha_rpb.h requires the following: + + Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 Carnegie-Mellon University. + All rights reserved. + + Author: Keith Bostic, Chris G. Demetriou + + Permission to use, copy, modify and distribute this software and + its documentation is hereby granted, provided that both the copyright + notice and this permission notice appear in all copies of the + software, derivative works or modified versions, and any portions + thereof, and that both notices appear in supporting documentation. + See individual files for license details, if you plan to redistribute GXemul or reuse code. -Thanks to (in no specific order, that is, this is in alphabetic order :-) -Joachim Buss, Juli Mallett, Juan RP, Alec Voropay, Alexander Yurchenko, -and everyone else who has provided me with feedback. +Thanks to (in no specific order) Joachim Buss, Juli Mallett, Juan Romero +Pardines, Alec Voropay, Göran Weinholt, Alexander Yurchenko, and everyone +else who has provided me with feedback. If you have found GXemul useful in some way, or feel like sending me comments or feedback in general, then mail me at anders(at)gavare.se.