What is the kernel and what does it do?

Android is a free open source operating system for it. What this means is that developers have free access to their code, their “program,” and can modify it as they see fit.

It is this principle that has formed all the salt of Google’s operating system since its birth: Whether consumers are used to skins from manufacturers like Samsung or prefer a pure Android with no changes, they can take control of their phone and install a different version. from what they get when buying their smartphone or tablet.

When we try to take control of this, we often encounter a term that seems difficult to understand: the “core” that is replaceable. But what is this? We will tell you in the simplest way, as we did for ADB and Fastboot.

What is Android Kernel?

First of all, you should remember one thing: All computer systems we know today (smartphones, tablets, PCs, etc.) incredibly stupid. Your processors, RAM memory modules, screens do not know how to manage themselves.

these are just materials (or hardware, the Anglicism that exists in this world) needs commands to be truly useful. These orders will be given by the party software (or software) who is the great commander of all these units?

So it’s a co-dependency relationship: there’s no hardware without software, no software without hardware. The so-called “core” (or core in French) is part of it. second category software.

All computer systems, from Windows to Mac OS and, you guessed it, Android, have a kernel. There are many of them, but keep in mind that this operating system uses that of Linux. The kernel is the software to do this. most direct interaction with hardware you have.

What is the kernel used for?

Therefore, it can be seen as the first or the last stage of the system. Why this ? simply because conductor this will boot your hardware. Whatever you do on your device will definitely go through the kernel.

HE IS the heart of the system (hence the kernel name) will manage your CPU’s resources, your memory, your “devices” like Bluetooth. He will tell them in what order and how to deal with instructions and with whom to handle everything.

He is your phone’s evil mini-boss. The person we love to hate, but without whom the company wouldn’t work. When you launch an app, it will tell your storage memory to find and launch the relevant files, telling your RAM memory to launch. leave the room so it can run and your CPU can handle it all.

In short, the core is a bastard. But since our CPUs and RAM sticks are not (yet) live, they don’t crash and run well.

Why is the kernel replaced?

In the Android customization universe, you will often find alternative operating systems that also change the core of your phone. In light of the previous explanation, this might be considered a bad idea.

However, the kernels are often very old and it may seem like hardware compatibility with them. Useless for users. That’s why some developers are doing cleanups to make it faster and more efficient.

But the main reason pushing a developer to change an Android kernel would be to gain control. processor, and more specifically its speed. Indeed, slightly slowing down the frequency of work allows you to gain autonomy. Taking control therefore allows for much more advanced management.