docs(amiga): complete AmigaOS 3.1/3.2 developer reference — 172 files across 17 sections

Comprehensive technical documentation covering:
- Hardware: OCS/ECS/AGA custom chip registers, Copper & Blitter deep dives
- Boot sequence: cold boot through startup-sequence
- Binary format: HUNK executable spec, relocation, debug info
- Linking & ABI: .fd files, LVO tables, register calling conventions
- Exec kernel: tasks, interrupts, memory, signals, semaphores
- AmigaDOS: file I/O, FFS/OFS layout, CLI/Shell scripting
- Graphics: planar bitmaps, Copper programming, HAM/EHB modes
- Intuition: screens, windows, IDCMP, BOOPSI
- Devices: trackdisk, SCSI, serial, timer, audio, keyboard
- Libraries: utility, expansion, IFFParse, locale, ARexx
- Networking: bsdsocket API, SANA-II, TCP/IP stack comparison
- Toolchain: GCC, vasm/vlink, SAS/C, NDK, debugging
- Reverse engineering: IDA/Ghidra setup, compiler fingerprints, case studies
- CPU & MMU: 68040/060 emulation libs, PMMU, cache management
- Driver development: SANA-II, Picasso96/RTG, AHI audio

All files include breadcrumb navigation. No local paths or proprietary content.
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[← Home](../README.md) · [Exec Kernel](README.md)
# Resident Modules — RomTag, RTF_AUTOINIT, FindResident
## Overview
AmigaOS ROM and disk-resident modules (libraries, devices, resources) identify themselves via a **RomTag** structure. At boot, exec scans the ROM and loaded segments for RomTags and initialises every module it finds.
---
## struct Resident (RomTag)
```c
/* exec/resident.h — NDK39 */
struct Resident {
UWORD rt_MatchWord; /* always $4AFC — magic identifier */
struct Resident *rt_MatchTag; /* pointer back to this struct (self-ref) */
APTR rt_EndSkip; /* pointer past end of this module's code */
UBYTE rt_Flags; /* RTF_* flags */
UBYTE rt_Version; /* module version number */
UBYTE rt_Type; /* NT_LIBRARY, NT_DEVICE, NT_RESOURCE, ... */
BYTE rt_Pri; /* initialisation priority (higher = earlier) */
char *rt_Name; /* module name string, e.g. "dos.library" */
char *rt_IdString; /* human-readable ID, e.g. "dos.library 40.1" */
APTR rt_Init; /* init function or InitTable pointer */
};
```
### Magic Word
`rt_MatchWord = $4AFC` is the 68k opcode for `ILLEGAL` — a deliberate trap instruction chosen so that an accidental execution of a RomTag causes an immediate CPU exception rather than silent corruption.
### RTF_ Flags
```c
#define RTF_AUTOINIT (1<<7) /* use rt_Init as pointer to InitTable */
#define RTF_SINGLETASK (1<<1) /* init runs in single-task context */
#define RTF_COLDSTART (1<<0) /* init on cold boot only */
```
---
## RTF_AUTOINIT — Automatic Initialisation
When `RTF_AUTOINIT` is set, `rt_Init` points to an **InitTable** rather than a bare function:
```c
struct InitTable {
ULONG it_DataSize; /* size of library instance struct */
APTR *it_FuncTable; /* pointer to function pointer table */
APTR it_DataTable; /* pointer to INITBYTE/INITWORD/INITLONG table */
APTR it_InitRoutine;/* pointer to actual LibInit() function */
};
```
exec uses `MakeLibrary()` to allocate the library, install the JMP table, and initialise the data, then calls `it_InitRoutine`. For most libraries, the author only needs to provide `it_FuncTable` and `it_DataTable` and `RTF_AUTOINIT` handles the rest automatically.
---
## Finding a Resident by Name
```c
struct Resident *res = FindResident("dos.library"); /* LVO -60 */
if (res) {
printf("Found: %s v%d\n", res->rt_Name, res->rt_Version);
}
```
`FindResident` scans `SysBase->ResModules` — the list of all RomTag pointers collected at boot.
---
## ROM Scan at Boot
During exec initialisation, the ROM scanner walks from `$F80000` (Kickstart base) upward looking for the `$4AFC` magic word. For each match it verifies `rt_MatchTag == &rt` (self-referential pointer), confirms `rt_EndSkip` is beyond the RomTag, and adds valid entries to `ResModules`.
The same scan is applied to any loaded segment when `AddResidentModule` is called.
---
## Writing a Minimal RomTag (Assembly)
```asm
; Minimal ROM tag for a library:
dc.w $4AFC ; rt_MatchWord
dc.l _RomTag ; rt_MatchTag (self-ref)
dc.l _EndTag ; rt_EndSkip
dc.b RTF_AUTOINIT ; rt_Flags
dc.b 1 ; rt_Version
dc.b NT_LIBRARY ; rt_Type
dc.b 0 ; rt_Pri
dc.l _Name ; rt_Name
dc.l _IdString ; rt_IdString
dc.l _InitTable ; rt_Init (InitTable when AUTOINIT)
_Name: dc.b "mylib.library", 0
_IdString: dc.b "mylib.library 1.0 (23.4.2026)", 13, 10, 0
even
_EndTag:
```
---
## References
- NDK39: `exec/resident.h`, `exec/execbase.h`
- ADCD 2.1: `FindResident`, `InitResident`, `AddResidentModule`
- *Amiga ROM Kernel Reference Manual: Exec* — resident modules chapter