Hackaday · Creativity & design

Linux 6.11 Runs on ESP32-S3 with Modifications

A demonstration shows Linux kernel 6.11 successfully booting on an ESP32-S3 microcontroller, though with significant adjustments required.

The ESP32-S3, featuring dual 240 MHz Xtensa Lx7 CPU cores and up to 16 MB of PSRAM, can run Linux. This was achieved using the NOMMU Linux configuration and a custom fork() implementation due to the absence of a Memory Management Unit (MMU).

The latest version, 0.8, offers reliable booting and a usable amount of RAM post-boot, a significant improvement over the previous 0.7 release. Version 0.8 provides 3.7 MB of available RAM and shows massive gains in resource usage and performance.

Only one CPU core is utilized by Linux; the other core remains dedicated to the FreeRTOS ESP-IDF stack for WiFi and Bluetooth functionalities.

The setup used an ESP32-S3 with 16 MB Flash for storage and 8 MB of octal PSRAM.

This project is considered research, but potential applications include embedded Linux projects like network routers using BusyBox.

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