Skip to content

The Eclectic Light Company

Macs, painting, and more
Main navigation
  • Downloads
  • M1 & M2 Macs
  • Mac Problems
  • Mac articles
  • Art
  • Macs
  • Painting

kernel

The kernel and extensions 1: To Mojave

How the kernel relies on its extensions to make your Mac work, and has highest privilege for stability and security. How this must change for Apple Silicon.

April 13, 2022 Macs, Technology

Booting an M1 Mac from hardware to kexts: 3 XNU, the kernel

Once the kernel takes over from iBoot, there’s a lot of hardware to get running before the SSV can be properly validation, and kernel extensions loaded.

January 6, 2022 Macs, Technology

Booting an M1 Mac from hardware to kexts: 2 LLB and iBoot

T T Read More

Sometimes known as iBoot1 and iBoot2, they start work with the LocalPolicy for the intended boot volume, validating its vital components.

January 5, 2022 Macs, Technology

Booting an M1 Mac from hardware to kexts: 1 Hardware

T T Read More

Understanding each of the four stages in the Secure Booting of an M1 Mac. These are summarised in diagram available here.

January 4, 2022 Macs, Technology

How M1 Macs can run old firmware when Intel Macs can’t

There’s a fundamental difference in the way that Intel and M1 Macs store and load their ‘firmware’, which enables the M1 Mac to load and run difference versions of iBoot.

December 30, 2021 Macs, Technology

How Secure Boot works on M1 series Macs

This article has now been extensively corrected and modified.

December 29, 2021 Macs, Technology

Memory leaks

What’s the difference between an app and kernel memory leak? How would you notice one, and how to investigate it, and (sometimes) work around the problem.

November 5, 2021 Macs, Technology

What happens when an M1 Mac starts up?

When does an M1 Mac validate its Sealed System Volume? Who designed its display interface? How soon does Find My Mac launch? So many answers found in the log.

December 9, 2020 Macs, Technology

Last Week on My Mac: Apple leak

The combination of a new kernel built just 10 days earlier with a set of new graphics drivers sufficed to bring many Macs to their knees.

August 16, 2020 Macs, Technology

The life cycle of a kernel panic

Catalina 10.15.6 update included a bonus: a large memory leak which led to kernel panics. This is the story of its patching.

August 14, 2020 Macs, Technology

Posts navigation

Previous1 2 3 4 Next
Blog at WordPress.com.
Footer navigation
  • About & Contact
  • Macs
  • Painting
  • Language
  • Tech
  • Life
  • General
  • Downloads
  • Mac problem-solving
  • Extended attributes (xattrs)
  • Painting topics
  • Hieronymus Bosch
  • English language
  • LockRattler: 10.12 Sierra
  • LockRattler: 10.13 High Sierra
  • LockRattler: 10.11 El Capitan
  • Updates: El Capitan
  • Updates: Sierra, High Sierra, Mojave, Catalina, Big Sur
  • LockRattler: 10.14 Mojave
  • SilentKnight, silnite, LockRattler, SystHist & Scrub
  • DelightEd & Podofyllin
  • xattred, Metamer, Sandstrip & xattr tools
  • 32-bitCheck & ArchiChect
  • T2M2, Ulbow, Consolation and log utilities
  • Cirrus & Bailiff
  • Taccy, Signet, Precize, Alifix, UTIutility, Sparsity, alisma
  • Revisionist & DeepTools
  • Text Utilities: Nalaprop, Dystextia and others
  • PDF
  • Keychains & Permissions
  • LockRattler: 10.15 Catalina
  • Updates
  • Spundle, Cormorant, Stibium, Dintch, Fintch and cintch
  • Long Reads
  • Mac Troubleshooting Summary
  • LockRattler: 11.0 Big Sur
  • M1 & M2 Macs
  • Mints: a multifunction utility
  • LockRattler: 12.x Monterey
  • VisualLookUpTest
  • Virtualisation on Apple silicon
  • LockRattler: 13.x Ventura
Secondary navigation
  • Search

Begin typing your search above and press return to search. Press Esc to cancel.

  • Follow Following
    • The Eclectic Light Company
    • Join 3,124 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • The Eclectic Light Company
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...