Microprocessor industry advances from the foundation for using Linux as an embedded operating system. Gone are the days of embedded designs that use 4- or 8-bit microprocessors; today it is just as easy and cost competitive to use 32-bit microprocessors with several megabytes of memory. The ever-changing pace of hardware innovation and obsolescence presents an enormous development challenge for real-time operating system (RTOS) vendors. With limited resources, these RTOS vendors make business decisions that often leave many developers unsupported. Developers always want the latest and greatest hardware and software for their new embedded designs while also requiring high reliability. Desktop operating systems provide the latest in software but lack reliability and require more memory and CPU resources. RTOS vendors offer reliability but struggle with software development in the ever-changing world of technology. This is where Linux comes in.

Embedded Linux offers reliability and efficiency, with a proven track record. Open-source code availability has spawned countless improvements, enhancements, and additions in terms of performance, functionality, driver development, and porting activities.

Designers of embedded systems like open-source software because they often modify subsystem code for their designs. Linux supports Portable Operations System Interface (POSIX), which allows developers to easily port existing code. Linux is successfully ported to several microprocessors, including x86, SPARC, ARM, PowerPC, MIPS and SuperH.

Embedded system designers adopting Linux enjoy open-source code availability, POSIX compliance, solid reliability, a large application base, and no licensing fees. These benefits, combined with commodity pricing, make Linux an excellent solution for an embedded operating system.