# xv6

> operating system

**Wikidata**: [Q4053414](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4053414)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xv6)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/xv6

## Summary
xv6 is an operating system developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It is a modern implementation based on Version 6 Unix and is released under the MIT License.

## Key Facts
- xv6 is an instance of an operating system.  
- xv6 is based on Version 6 Unix (the 6th Edition of Research Unix; Version 6 Unix inception: 1975-05-00).  
- xv6 was developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).  
- The Massachusetts Institute of Technology was founded on 1861-04-10.  
- xv6 is released under the MIT License.  
- The project website pages include http://pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/2014/xv6.html and http://pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/.  
- xv6’s Wikipedia article title is "Xv6" and it exists in at least 10 Wikipedia language editions (en, fi, fr, id, it, ja, ko, ru, uk, zh).  
- xv6’s copyright status is listed as copyrighted.  
- xv6 has the Freebase identifier /m/05c18vl.  
- An image associated with xv6 is available at https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Xv6_LS_Command_Output.png.

## FAQs
### Q: What is xv6?
A: xv6 is an operating system developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that is based on Version 6 Unix.

### Q: Who developed xv6?
A: xv6 was developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

### Q: What is xv6 based on?
A: xv6 is based on Version 6 Unix, the 6th Edition of Research Unix (Version 6 Unix inception: 1975-05-00).

### Q: Under what license is xv6 released?
A: xv6 is released under the MIT License.

### Q: Where can I find official information about xv6 online?
A: Official project pages include http://pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/2014/xv6.html and http://pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/.

## Why It Matters
xv6 matters because it explicitly connects a contemporary, documented software project to the historical design of Version 6 Unix. As an operating system developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and released under the MIT License, xv6 encapsulates a deliberate lineage to the 6th Edition of Research Unix (1975), providing a concrete, licensed implementation that ties modern development and distribution practices to a seminal Unix release. The availability of official MIT-hosted web pages for xv6 and its presence across multiple Wikipedia language editions indicate that the project is documented and discoverable. These attributes make xv6 notable for anyone studying Unix lineage, software licensing, or MIT-developed operating system projects. The combination of a clear provenance (based on Version 6 Unix), an institutional developer (MIT), and a permissive license (MIT License) positions xv6 as a verifiable reference point in discussions about historical Unix designs and contemporary OS implementations.

## Notable For
- Being directly based on Version 6 Unix (the 6th Edition of Research Unix).  
- Development and publication by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  
- Release under the MIT License.  
- Official project pages hosted on MIT PDOS/6.828 web addresses.  
- Presence on multiple Wikipedia language editions (at least 10 languages).

## Body
### Overview
- Name: xv6.  
- Instance of: operating system.  
- Based on: Version 6 Unix (6th Edition of Research Unix).  
- Developer: Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

### Lineage and Origins
- xv6 lists Version 6 Unix as its basis; Version 6 Unix has inception date 1975-05-00 (6th Edition of Research Unix).  
- The developer institution, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was founded on 1861-04-10.

### Licensing and Copyright
- License: MIT License.  
- Copyright status: copyrighted.

### Online Resources and Documentation
- Primary project web pages:  
  - http://pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/2014/xv6.html (English)  
  - http://pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/ (English)  
- These pages are referenced as official MIT-hosted resources for xv6.

### Metadata and Identifiers
- Freebase identifier: /m/05c18vl.  
- Wikipedia title: Xv6.  
- Wikipedia language coverage: en, fi, fr, id, it, ja, ko, ru, uk, zh.  
- Sitelink count for the xv6 entry: 10.  
- Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Xv6_LS_Command_Output.png.

### Classification
- Entity class: operating system (software that manages computer hardware resources).  
- Related historical system: Version 6 Unix (Research Unix, 6th Edition).

## References

1. [Source](https://api.github.com/repos/mit-pdos/xv6-public)