Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 4, 2026

NuttX

Apache NuttX is a free and open-source real-time operating system (RTOS) with an emphasis on technical standards compliance and on having a small footprint. It is scalable from 8-bit to 64-bit microcontroller environments. The main governing standards in NuttX are from the Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). Further standard application programming interfaces (APIs) from Unix and other common RTOSes are adopted for functions unavailable under these standards, or inappropriate for deeply embedded environments, such as the fork system call.

Last revised
Jun 4, 2026
Read time
≈ 2 min
Length
358 w
Citations
12
Source
Apache NuttX
Modern vector logo of Apache NuttX RTOS
DeveloperApache Software Foundation
Written inC, C++, assembly
OS familyPOSIX
Working stateCurrent
Source modelOpen source
Initial release2007 (2007)
Latest release12.13.0 / April 2, 2026 (2026-04-02) 1
Repository
Marketing targetEmbedded systems
Supported platformsARM, AVR, AVR32, HCS12, LM32, MIPS, RISC-V, OpenRISC, SuperH, Xtensa, x86, x86-64, Z80
Kernel typeReal-time monolithic kernel
LicenseApache License 2.0
Official websitenuttx.apache.org

Apache NuttX is a free and open-source real-time operating system (RTOS) with an emphasis on technical standards compliance and on having a small footprint. It is scalable from 8-bit to 64-bit microcontroller environments.23 The main governing standards in NuttX are from the Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)4. Further standard application programming interfaces (APIs) from Unix and other common RTOSes (such as VxWorks) are adopted for functions unavailable under these standards, or inappropriate for deeply embedded environments, such as the fork() system call.

NuttX was initially released in 2007 under the permissive BSD license.5 In December 2019, it began incubation at the Apache Software Foundation.6; its license was changed from the BSD license to the Apache License and it graduated to a top-level project in November 2022.7

Projects using NuttX

References

References

  1. "Apache NuttX-12.13.0". Retrieved April 21, 2026.
  2. "About Apache NuttX". nuttx.apache.org. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  3. "Getting started with NuttX and ESP32". Retrieved April 21, 2026.
  4. Bertoleti, Pedro (February 2023). "The NuttX Engineer". Circuit Cellar. KCK Media Corp. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  5. "NuttX Project at SourceForge". May 29, 2021. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  6. "NuttX Project Incubation Status". incubator.apache.org. Retrieved April 21, 2026.
  7. "The Apache Software Foundation Announces Apache® NuttX™ as a Top-Level Project". news.apache.org. November 17, 2022. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  8. "Basic Concepts PX4 Guide". Retrieved January 1, 2026.
  9. TizenRT repo
  10. "What is NuttX RTOS and why should you care?". embedded. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  11. "Xiaomi Unveils Xiaomi HyperOS, a Human-centric Operating System Designed and Tailored to Connect Personal Devices, Cars, and Smart Home Products in a Smart Ecosystem". Retrieved December 12, 2023.
  12. "Xiaomi Vela IoT Platform is Being Open-Sourced Based on NuttX Real-time OS". November 17, 2023. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
External links