T2 SDE

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T2 SDE
T2 logo

logo
developer ExactCODE
License (s) GPL ( Free Software )
Current  version 8.0 (July 14, 2010)
ancestry \ Linux
  \ ROCK Linux
   \ T2 Linux
Architecture (s) Alpha AXP , ARM , AVR32 , Blackfin , IA-64 , MIPS , MIPS64, PowerPC , PowerPC64, SPARC , SPARC64, SuperH , x86 , AMD64
Others Minix
t2sde.org

T2 is a flexible open source system development environment ( System Development Environment , shortly SDE ), which allows automatically adjusted operating systems to create new technologies and components. It is often referred to as distribution kit because as usual Linux distribution called because it would stand out by their own automation to create customized systems and also on Linux addition to integrating Hurd - Minix - and BSD - kernels works.

History

T2 began as a spin-off from ROCK Linux to provide a more decentralized development and professional basis for industrial applications. T2 was the internal project name for “try two” (second try), in German that means “second attempt” and “technology two”, in German roughly “second technology [generation]”.

Project setup

T2 is less of a further Linux distribution, but more of a flexible construction kit with which customized Linux-based systems can be created. The bandwidth ranges from embedded systems with low memory consumption, highly secure , specialized servers or complete desktop systems.

Thanks to the open software environment under the GNU General Public License , both private users and companies can contribute equally. The development carried out by the community ensures rapid further development of the system - new extensions and packages are constantly being added to T2. Industrial projects also benefit from the constantly growing number of users by giving them access to the resources and improvements pooled there.

Alignment with standards

T2 pursues the philosophy of only using original program packages, avoiding distribution-specific modifications and being as standard-compatible as possible . T2 therefore follows the file system hierarchy standard and the Linux standard base . The configurations are designed with an emphasis on security. By making as few assumptions as possible about traditional Unix properties , obstructive anachronisms should be avoided.

The build system

T2 has an automated build system that does the entire translation process. First, a toolchain is created to build all packages in a sandbox , in which in turn the content of the packages to be installed is checked and the preconditions necessary for building are determined. Generated files and dependencies are logged. Cross-builds between different computer architectures are also possible. In addition, automatic regression tests with cross-builds for the supported computer architectures are carried out regularly, thus determining the status of the individual packages.

The T2 framework makes it possible to define individual target systems, among other things by selecting packages and the C library , adapting configurations and much more. The build system combines all of these definitions and controls the translation process. Dependencies can easily be resolved. Generic mechanisms for transforming compiler options, determining file names and intervening in the program flow of the build system give the developer full control over the created system. Optionally, can be installable CD images and ROM - memory maps or create binary packages via network redistribute.

Because of the unpatched source packages and the automated build system, T2 is very portable. Architectures already supported include ARM , Alpha , AVR32 , Blackfin , HPPA , IA-64 , MIPS , MIPS64, PowerPC , PowerPC64, SPARC , UltraSPARC, SuperH , x86 and x86-64 . The SDE can easily be expanded by the user to include other target architectures.

T2 therefore wants to represent an interesting development environment for embedded systems due to the broad processor support and its flexible build system. In product development, this has advantages over the common method of starting from scratch: an already defined target product can be reproduced immediately and it is easy to make modifications and then restart the translation process without having to do all the work again by hand. When updating binary packages, there is a backup mode for configuration files that have already been changed. The support of various compilers in combination with options such as the use of diet libc and uClibc make it possible to adapt the system to the scarce memory of embedded systems.

Package system

In contrast to competing package systems such as RPM or DEB , the T2 developer does not have to write any source code to create packages. Instead, a simple ASCII format is used, with which the specifications and settings of a package can be determined, based on which the system creates the package.

T2 offers over 3170 current packages as a basis for in-house developments. This already includes the X Window System X.Org , well-known desktop environments such as KDE and Gnome, as well as many server and security applications.

Configuration and maintenance

T2 hardware detection was developed around the Linux hotplug mechanism. In this way, the same system behavior should be guaranteed, regardless of whether devices are already present when starting up or are only connected by the user during runtime.

Networks can be configured with a provided modular framework. This supports network profiles, elementary IP configuration, multiple interfaces, routing , stateful firewalls , W-LAN , PPP including analog modems , PPPoE (cable and DSL) as well as CSD and GPRS for the use of mobile phones .

T2 includes the option of creating an installation CD with a complete installation program. This allows hard drives to be partitioned , file systems to be created, mount points to be defined, packages to be selected and much more. The STONE configuration program enables administrators to configure system services, networks and system behavior. By using the system's own configuration files, manual changes can normally be made without conflicts.

Areas of application

Since great emphasis is placed on stability during development and new versions are released regularly, T2 is often used as the basis for external developments. Examples include the compact Linux distribution Puppy Linux and Archivista , a commercial solution for document management and archiving from the Swiss company of the same name and the Berlin “platform provider” ExactCODE GmbH.

Other distribution kits

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Homepage of ExactCODE GmbH , 21. May 2007.
  2. ↑ t2sde.org: Targets included in T2 , May 21, 2007.
  3. ↑ t2sde.org: CPU architectures supported in T2 , May 21, 2007.