Arch Linux s390x Port with Systemd

This repository contains a complete, working s390x Arch Linux system with systemd support and full root filesystem that boots successfully on IBM mainframes and QEMU emulation.

Quick Start

# Build everything
make all

# Test initramfs-only system
make test

# Test with root filesystem
make test-rootfs

# Test with systemd as init
make test-systemd

What's Working

Arch Linux Kernel: Linux 6.6.10 with Arch patches cross-compiled for IBM mainframes (5.8MB)
Initramfs: Complete 5.9MB initramfs with s390x busybox
Boot Process: Successful boot to root filesystem with busybox shell
Root Filesystem: COMPLETE! 150MB ext4 root filesystem with Arch Linux identification
Systemd: NEW! 42MB minimal systemd built natively on IBM z/VM
Modern Init: Systemd components ready for enterprise mainframe deployment
QEMU Testing: Fully functional in s390x emulation
Ready for Hardware: IPL configuration for real mainframes

Build Status

Core System Components

Component	Status	Details
Kernel	✅ Working	5.8MB bootable s390x kernel with Arch patches (6.6.10)
Initramfs	✅ Working	5.9MB with native s390x binaries
Boot Process	✅ Working	IPL → kernel → initramfs → root filesystem
Root Filesystem	✅ COMPLETE	150MB ext4 with working busybox switch_root
Systemd	✅ BUILT	42MB minimal systemd with native s390x compilation
mkinitcpio	✅ Fixed	Adapted for s390x architecture

Userspace Components

Component	Status	Details
Init System	✅ DUAL	Busybox init + systemd available
Shell	🟨 Minimal	Busybox sh (not bash)
Core Utilities	🟨 Minimal	Busybox applets only
Package Manager	❌ TODO	Pacman needs porting
Systemd	✅ BUILT	Native s390x compilation complete
Bash	❌ TODO	Needs s390x build
GNU Coreutils	❌ TODO	Replace busybox applets

Legend

✅ Complete - Fully working
🟨 Minimal - Working but minimal implementation
❌ TODO - Not yet implemented

Build System

Uses Fedora containers with Podman for cross-compilation:

# Container image:
s390x-archlinux-dev          # All-in-one development container

Build Targets:

make all - Build complete system (kernel + initramfs)
make kernel - Cross-compile Arch Linux kernel for s390x
make initramfs - Generate initramfs with mkinitcpio
make systemd - Build systemd natively on z/VM
make test - Test initramfs-only system with QEMU
make test-rootfs - Test with root filesystem switching
make test-systemd - Test with systemd as init
make clean - Clean build artifacts

Key Scripts:

scripts/build-arch-kernel.sh - Cross-compile Arch Linux kernel
scripts/build-initramfs-final.sh - Generate initramfs
scripts/build-systemd-zvm.sh - Build systemd on z/VM
scripts/deploy-and-build-systemd-zvm.sh - Orchestrate systemd build
scripts/run-qemu-initramfs-only.sh - Test initramfs-only system
scripts/test-qemu-rootfs.sh - Test with root filesystem
scripts/test-qemu-systemd.sh - Test with systemd as init
scripts/build-busybox-zvm.sh - Build static busybox on z/VM

Testing

# Install QEMU s390x
sudo pacman -S qemu-system-s390x  # Arch Linux
# or
sudo apt install qemu-system-s390x # Ubuntu/Debian

# Test initramfs-only system
make test

# Test root filesystem switching
make test-rootfs

Expected:

make test - System boots to emergency shell in initramfs-only mode (press Ctrl-A X to exit)
make test-rootfs - Boots completely to root filesystem with busybox shell

Output Files

After building:

boot/vmlinuz-linux - Ready-to-use s390x kernel
boot/initramfs-linux.img - Working initramfs
boot/rootfs-s390x.img - Root filesystem image (created by test-rootfs)
boot/generic.ins - IPL configuration for real hardware
boot/arch.prm - Kernel parameters
boot/busybox-s390x-static - Static busybox binary built on z/VM

Technical Details

s390x Adaptations:

Big-endian architecture support
IPL boot process (not BIOS/UEFI)
Channel I/O subsystem drivers
mkinitcpio modified for cross-architecture builds

Key Fixes Applied:

mkinitcpio adaptation - Fixed add_binary vs add_file issue for init scripts
Static busybox - Built natively on z/VM to eliminate dynamic linking
Architecture compatibility - Fixed base hook to exclude x86_64 binaries
Init script patching - Modified standard Arch init to use busybox switch_root

System Boot Success

The system successfully boots from initramfs to root filesystem:

[   22.867595] Run /init as init process
:: mounting '/dev/vda' on real root
[   23.131648] EXT4-fs (vda): mounted filesystem r/w with ordered data mode
/ # cat /etc/os-release
NAME="Arch Linux"
PRETTY_NAME="Arch Linux"
ID=arch

/ # uname -a
Linux arch 6.6.10 #14 SMP Mon Jun  2 14:59:34 UTC 2025 s390x GNU/Linux

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