What is the Linux Kernel?

The kernel is heart of the Linux operating system. It manages the resources of Linux. Resources include:

• File management
• Multitasking
• Memory management
• I/O management
• Process management
• Device management
• Networking support including IPv4 and IPv6
• Advanced features such as virtual memory, shared libraries, demand loading, shared copy-on-write executables etc

The kernel decides who will use these resources and for how long and when. It runs your programs or sets up to execute binary files.

The kernel acts as an intermediary between the computer hardware and various applications.