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ACRN Hypervisor

ACRN Hypervisor is an open-source reference hypervisor for embedded IoT development.

Place
#12 of 22
Score
5.8

What ACRN Hypervisor is

ACRN Hypervisor is an open-source reference hypervisor for embedded IoT development. It runs as a Type 1 stack directly on Intel x86 bare-metal hardware, and guest virtual machines can run Linux, Windows, Zephyr, VxWorks, Xenomai, Celadon, or Android. The project describes its codebase as less than 40K lines and says it is designed for low latency, quick boot times, and responsive hardware communication. CPU, I/O, and networking virtualization are included; I/O mediators allow VMs to share graphics and audio functions. Resource partitioning is intended to keep safety-critical and non-safety-critical domains operating on one system-on-chip. The ACRN Device Model provides virtual device emulation. ACRN is free and uses the BSD 3-Clause license. Management is through a CLI, and nested virtualization is supported. Source code is maintained in a public GitHub repository, with documentation online. Community help is available through mailing lists and IRC, alongside monthly technical meetings.

Good

  • Free and licensed under BSD 3-Clause.
  • Supports Linux, Windows, and several other guest systems.
  • Includes CPU, I/O, and networking virtualization.
  • Nested virtualization is supported.
  • Community support includes mailing lists and IRC.

Watch out

  • Host platform is Intel x86 bare-metal hardware.
  • Management interface is CLI-based.

Who it suits

ACRN suits developers building embedded IoT systems on Intel x86 bare-metal hardware who need to host multiple guest environments. Its CLI management and domain partitioning may also fit teams separating safety-critical and non-safety-critical workloads.

Verdict

ACRN provides a focused hypervisor stack for embedded development, with virtualization, device emulation, and resource partitioning. Its hardware requirement and command-line management are important fit considerations.

Plans and prices

From ACRN Hypervisor's own pricing page, checked 8 Oct 2026.

All about pricing
PlanPriceWhat it gives you
ACRN HypervisorFreeOpen source reference hypervisor · BSD 3-Clause license

The facts

Each one read from ACRN Hypervisor's own pages, with the date it was checked.

What it does

Architecture
It is a Type 1 hypervisor stack that runs directly on bare-metal hardware.checked 8 Oct 2026
Download and documentation
The source code is maintained in a public GitHub repository, with project documentation available online.checked 8 Oct 2026
Guest operating systems
The site says guest VMs can run Linux, Windows, or an RTOS such as Zephyr.checked 8 Oct 2026
License
The source code is provided under the BSD 3-Clause license.checked 8 Oct 2026
Performance
The site says ACRN delivers low latency, fast boot times, and responsive hardware communication.checked 8 Oct 2026
Purpose
ACRN is an open source reference hypervisor designed for embedded IoT development.checked 8 Oct 2026
Safety and isolation
Its system architecture uses resource partitioning to support coexisting safety-critical and non-safety-critical domains on one SoC.checked 8 Oct 2026
Security reporting
The project directs people who find a potential ACRN security vulnerability to [email protected].checked 8 Oct 2026
Small footprint
The project describes its codebase as less than 40K lines of code.checked 8 Oct 2026
Support
The project offers community support through mailing lists and IRC channels, and holds monthly technical community meetings.checked 8 Oct 2026
Virtualization
ACRN includes CPU, I/O, and networking virtualization, with I/O mediators for sharing graphics and audio functions across VMs.checked 8 Oct 2026

Where it runs

Device emulation
ACRN defines a virtual device emulation framework called the ACRN Device Model.checked 8 Oct 2026

The company

Founded
2018checked 28 Sep 2026

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