K

K

Kilobyte.

kernel

The core of the layered architecture that manages the most basic operations of the operating system, such as sharing the processor between different blocks of executing code, handling hardware exceptions, and other hardware-dependent functions.

kernel mode

The processor mode that allows full, unprotected access to the system. A driver or thread running in kernel mode has access to system memory and hardware.

kernel-mode driver

Driver for logical, virtual, or physical devices. Part of the underlying operating system that supports ring 0 operations.