3.2. What was done to fit Linux onto the mainframe

Let us take a look at how the IBM team ported Linux to the mainframe and how the mainframe Linux distributions have developed.

IBM calls Linux on the mainframe “Linux for S/390” or “Linux for zSeries.” Don't let the “for” confuse you. The Linux that IBM ported on the mainframe is the same Linux that is out there on the Internet. What the developers at IBM did was contribute a new architecture for inclusion in the Linux source tree—the zSeries (and S/390) architecture. Linux for zSeries supports the 64-bit z/Architecture in both real mode and virtual mode on zSeries CPUs. Linux for S/390 supports the 31-bit S/390 architecture and will also run on zSeries in 31-bit mode. The Linux code maintainers ...

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