Glossary · Automation software engineering and architecture
Operating-system kernel
Also known as: Kernel, OS kernel
German: Betriebssystemkern
In computing, the operating-system kernel is the core part of an operating system that runs with the highest privileges and manages processor time, memory, devices and communication between processes.
- Software engineering
In one sentence
The operating-system kernel is the privileged core of an operating system that manages processor time, memory, devices and processes.
Example
The industrial PC runs a Linux kernel with real-time patches, so the soft PLC task can be scheduled with bounded latency next to the visualization.
How it applies
- Engineering: The kernel's scheduler and interrupt handling determine real-time behavior. For control tasks, a real-time kernel or Real-time operating system (RTOS) is used.
- Security and maintenance: Kernel vulnerabilities affect the whole device; kernel updates are part of Patch management and often require a restart that must be planned with production.
- Documentation: Product documentation should state the operating system and kernel version shipped, the update policy and how customers receive security fixes. This is relevant to security requirements such as the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA).
Kernel vs. operating system
The kernel is the privileged core. The full operating system adds libraries, services, tools and user interfaces running outside the kernel.