microZEUS
The whole stack, hand-drawn.

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initrd

A small temporary filesystem loaded into RAM at boot so the kernel has the tools it needs before the real disk is ready.

When a computer starts, the kernel often can't yet read the actual root filesystem — it may need drivers or setup steps first. The initrd (initial RAM disk) is a compact archive the bootloader loads straight into memory, giving the kernel a working file tree to run early startup logic and then hand off to the real disk. In microZeus it appears as a boot-menu entry loaded at boot time.

See also

  • kernelThe core program of an operating system that controls memory, running programs, and hardware.
  • kernel argumentsSettings handed to the kernel at boot to change how it starts up.

Referenced by

kernel arguments · MBR