Synchronous/Reactive Programming of Concurrent System Software

Synchronous languages are intended for programming reactive systems. Reactive systems, which include real-time systems and key operating system components, interact continually with their environment. This paper considers the applicability of imperative synchronous/reactive languages to the development of general system software, that is, to the implementation of operating system kernels, file systems, databases, networks, server architectures, device drivers, etc.. The languages Esterel and Reactive C (RC) receive special attention as Esterel is the oldest and most developed such language and RC is specifically designed for compatibility with C systems programming. An alternative soft-instruction software architecture is described which is well suited to real-world system programming. keywords: reactive systems, synchronous language, concurrent programming, system software, operating systems, threading, real-time systems, soft-instructions.