ECOs

eCos, often written eCos, is an open‑source real‑time operating system (RTOS) for embedded systems. It is designed to be highly configurable and portable, enabling developers to tailor the kernel, libraries, drivers, networking, and file systems to the needs of a given product. The project emphasizes deterministic performance and small memory footprints suitable for resource‑constrained devices.

The architecture of eCos is modular and component‑based. The core kernel provides threading and scheduling services, while additional packages supply libraries, device drivers, networking stacks, and file systems. Configuration is performed at compile time using a configuration tool (CxConfig) that allows features to be included or excluded, helping minimize code size and optimize performance. The OS supports multiple processor architectures, including ARM, MIPS, PowerPC, SH, x86, ColdFire, and others, reflecting its emphasis on portability.

History and development: eCos originated in the late 1990s as an open‑source project developed by Cygnus Solutions and later taken over by Red Hat after Cygnus’s acquisition. The project is now maintained by a combination of the non‑profit community and the company eCosCentric, along with other contributors. It has seen deployment across a range of industries, including telecommunications, consumer electronics, automotive, and industrial control, where configurable RTOS solutions are valued.

Licensing and ecosystem: eCos is released under an open‑source license specific to the project, accompanied by build scripts, documentation, and test suites. Its ecosystem includes various community ports and middleware components, all designed to be swappable and configurable to fit diverse embedded applications.