MACHINA: Lessons and Insights from Reimplementing the Mach Microkernel

Mach, famous for its complex IPC and VM subsystems, remains to this day an influential and historically significant Microkernel.

This talk introduces MACHINA, a new microkernel for AMD64 and RISCV64 modelled after the Mach 3 Microkernel. Currently in prototype stage, MACHINA aims to create a modular architecture for experimenting with "Mach-like" systems, reinterpreting Mach’s principles for modern hardware and software environments.

The talk will describe Mach 3’s abstractions and architecture—with a particular focus on its IPC and VM subsystems—and explore the process, design choices, and challenges of reimplementing them from scratch.