Top University Courses in Systems Programming, Compilers, and Low-Level Computing
Compilers & Language Design
- MIT 6.035 - Computer Language Engineering
- Course Materials: MIT OCW
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Projects: Course Projects Repository
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Stanford CS143 - Compilers
- Course Videos: YouTube Playlist
- Course Materials: Stanford EDU
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Additional Resources: Course Reader
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Berkeley CS164 - Programming Languages and Compilers
- Course Materials: Berkeley Course Page
- Video Lectures: Berkeley Webcasts
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Projects Repository: GitHub
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CMU 15-411 - Compiler Design
- Course Materials: CMU Course Page
- Lectures: YouTube Playlist
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Lab Resources: Course Labs
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Cornell CS4120 - Introduction to Compilers
- Course Website: Cornell Course Page
- Lecture Notes: Course Materials
Operating Systems
- MIT 6.828 - Operating System Engineering
- Course Materials: MIT OCW
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
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xv6 Resources: xv6 Book
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Stanford CS140 - Operating Systems
- Course Materials: Stanford EDU
- Reference Documentation: Course Reader
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PintOS Project: Project Repository
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Berkeley CS162 - Operating Systems and System Programming
- Course Materials: Berkeley Course Page
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
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Projects: CS162 GitHub
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Harvard CS161 - Operating Systems
- Course Materials: Harvard EDU
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OS/161 Resources: OS/161 Documentation
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MIT 6.S081 - Operating System Engineering (RISC-V Focus)
- Course Materials: MIT Course Page
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
- Lab Assignments: Course Labs
Computer Architecture & Assembly
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MIT 6.004 - Computation Structures
- Course Materials: MIT OCW
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
- Lab Assignments: Course Labs
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Berkeley CS61C - Great Ideas in Computer Architecture
- Course Materials: Berkeley Course Page
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
- Labs & Projects: Course Resources
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CMU 15-213 - Introduction to Computer Systems
- Course Materials: CMU Course Page
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
- Lab Assignments: Course Labs
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Stanford CS107 - Computer Organization & Systems
- Course Materials: Stanford EDU
- Course Reader: CS107 Reader
Performance Engineering & Systems Optimization
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MIT 6.172 - Performance Engineering of Software Systems
- Course Materials: MIT OCW
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
- Projects: Course Projects
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Stanford CS315A - Parallel Computer Architecture and Programming
- Course Materials: Stanford Course Page
- Additional Resources: Course Notes
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CMU 15-418 - Parallel Computer Architecture and Programming
- Course Materials: CMU Course Page
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
Distributed Systems
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MIT 6.824 - Distributed Systems
- Course Materials: MIT Course Page
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
- Labs: Course Labs
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Stanford CS244b - Distributed Systems
- Course Materials: Stanford Course Page
- Reading List: Course Readings
Security & Systems
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MIT 6.858 - Computer Systems Security
- Course Materials: MIT Course Page
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
- Labs: Security Labs
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Stanford CS155 - Computer and Network Security
- Course Materials: Stanford Course Page
- Projects: Course Projects
Systems Programming & Low-Level Programming
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Harvard CS50 - Introduction to Computer Science (Heavy C Focus)
- Course Materials: CS50 Website
- Video Lectures: YouTube Playlist
- Problem Sets: CS50 Problems
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Stanford CS107E - Computer Systems from the Ground Up
- Course Materials: Stanford Course Page
- Labs: Course Labs
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CMU 15-123 - Principles of Imperative Computation
- Course Materials: CMU Course Page
- Resources: Course Resources
Advanced Topics
- Stanford CS240 - Advanced Topics in Operating Systems
- Course Materials: Stanford EDU
- Reading List: Course Readings
Complete Systems Programming Educational Resources
Additional Learning Resources
Free Textbooks & Online Books
- Operating Systems: Three Easy Pieces
- Online Book
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Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective
- Course Website
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The Craft of Programming
- Online Book
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xv6: a simple, Unix-like teaching operating system
- RISC-V Book
- x86 Book
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Programming from the Ground Up
- PDF Book
- Source Code
Development Environments & Virtual Machines
- MIT JOS Operating System Lab
- Setup Instructions
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Stanford PintOS
- Project Resources
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Harvard OS/161
- Setup Guide
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Berkeley RISC-V Toolchain
- Installation Guide
- Docker Image
Practice Problems & Assignments
- CMU Computer Systems Performance Problems
- Problem Sets
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MIT OCW Problem Sets
- 6.004 Problems
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Stanford Practice Problems
- CS107 Practice
- CS110 Problems
Advanced Architecture & Computer Systems
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University of Washington CSE351 - The Hardware/Software Interface
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Labs: Course Labs
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EPFL CS-323 - Introduction to Operating Systems
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Projects: Course Projects
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UC Berkeley CS152 - Computer Architecture and Engineering
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Labs: RISC-V Labs
Systems Programming & Performance
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UIUC CS241 - System Programming
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Projects: Course Projects
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UW-Madison CS537 - Introduction to Operating Systems
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Projects: Course Projects
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ETH Zürich - Systems Programming and Computer Architecture
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Projects: Course Projects
Embedded Systems & Real-Time Computing
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MIT 6.111 - Introductory Digital Systems Laboratory
- Course Materials: MIT OCW
- Labs: Lab Materials
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Stanford CS341 - Embedded Systems Workshop
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Projects: Project Resources
Advanced Topics
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MIT 6.826 - Principles of Computer Systems
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Reading List: Course Readings
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Berkeley CS262A - Advanced Topics in Computer Systems
- Course Materials: Course Website
- Reading List: Research Papers
Online Learning Platforms with Systems Programming Courses
- Coursera
- Computer Architecture
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edX
- Computer Science: Programming with a Purpose
- Computation Structures
GitHub Repositories with Learning Resources
- The Missing Semester of Your CS Education
- Command-line tools
- Version control
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Debugging tools
- Curated list of free courses
- Project-based learning
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Community support
- Frameworks
- Libraries
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Resources
- Assembly
- Operating Systems
- Compiler Construction
Development Tools & Resources
- Debugging Tools
- GDB Tutorial: Guide
- Valgrind: Documentation
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LLDB: Tutorial
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Performance Analysis Tools
- Perf: Tutorial
- VTune: Guide
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DTrace: Documentation
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Compiler Tools
- LLVM: Getting Started
- GCC: Documentation
Practice Projects
- Build Your Own X
- Operating System
- Compiler
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System Programming Projects
- Mini Redis
- Mini Shell
- HTTP Server
Community Resources
- Forums & Discussion
- OS Dev
- Low Level Programming Subreddit
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Conferences & Workshops
- USENIX OSDI
- SOSP
- EuroSys
Important Notes
- Course availability and materials may vary by semester
- Some resources might require university credentials
- Always check for the most recent version of course materials
- Many courses update their materials yearly
- Some resources might be architecture-specific (x86, ARM, RISC-V)
- Practice proper security when downloading virtual machines or tools
- Consider contributing back to open-source educational resources