--- title: Frame: A New X11 Server Implementation Written Entirely... description: Frame is a new X11 server implementation written entirely in x86_64 Assembly — a single file of nearly 25,000 lines with no external dependencies on Mesa,... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/frame-a-new-x11-server-implementation-written-entirely-in-x86-64-assembly-hwedrjfgl twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Frame: A New X11 Server Implementation Written Entirely In x86_64 Assembly | daily.dev og:description: Frame is a new X11 server implementation written entirely in x86_64 Assembly — a single file of nearly 25,000 lines with no external dependencies on Mesa,... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/frame-a-new-x11-server-implementation-written-entirely-in-x86-64-assembly-hwedrjfgl og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/HWEdrjfgl.png og:image:alt: Frame: A New X11 Server Implementation Written Entirely In x86_64 Assembly og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Frame: A New X11 Server Implementation Written Entirely In x86_64 Assembly **[Phoronix](https://daily.dev/sources/phoronix)** · 3 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Frame is a new X11 server implementation written entirely in x86_64 Assembly — a single file of nearly 25,000 lines with no external dependencies on Mesa, FreeType, Xlib, or libc. It interfaces directly with Linux system calls, DRM/KMS, and evdev for input. Created over the past month by Geir Isene largely with the help of Claude Code, Frame is part of a broader all-Assembly desktop stack called CHasm (~100k lines total), replacing a conventional stack (gdm, X11, i3, conky, wezterm, zsh) that is reportedly 50x larger. The author reports Xorg burns nearly three times the CPU at idle compared to Frame, and daily-drives the setup. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### What is Frame and how was it built? Frame is an X11 server written entirely in x86_64 Assembly, contained in a single file of nearly 25,000 lines, with no dependencies on Mesa, FreeType, Xlib, or libc. It talks directly to Linux system calls, DRM/KMS interfaces, and evdev for input. It was created over about a month largely with Claude Code by developer Geir Isene, who describes it as part of a broader all-Assembly desktop stack called CHasm. _Anyone curious how far AI pair-programming can push low-level systems work can follow projects like this on daily.dev._ ### How does Frame's CPU and battery usage compare to Xorg? Idle on battery, Frame and Xorg draw the same wattage since the display panel and wifi dominate that number, but Xorg burns almost three times the CPU that Frame needs to do nothing. The window manager and terminal components in the same stack used zero measured milliseconds over three minutes of idle measurement, according to the developer's own benchmarking on his laptop. _Developers chasing battery life on Linux laptops can track experiments like this on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Frame: A new X11 server – implemented directly in assembly](https://daily.dev/posts/frame-a-new-x11-server-implemented-directly-in-assembly-kw0m24ezc) · The Register · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [GitHub - mindbox77/zxdesk: A GUI operating system for the 48K ZX Spectrum, in Z80 assembly](https://daily.dev/posts/github---mindbox77-zxdesk-a-gui-operating-system-for-the-48k-zx-spectrum-in-z80-assembly-6pjwfvgog) · Two Stop Bits · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [A desktop made for one](https://daily.dev/posts/a-desktop-made-for-one-a0rezjpzu) · Hacker News · 124 upvotes · 4 comments - [yserver: A modern X11 server written from scratch in Rust](https://daily.dev/posts/yserver-a-modern-x11-server-written-from-scratch-in-rust-5sofmpjoz) · Lobsters · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#linux](https://daily.dev/tags/linux), [#claude-code](https://daily.dev/tags/claude-code), [#assembly](https://daily.dev/tags/assembly) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/frame-a-new-x11-server-implementation-written-entirely-in-x86-64-assembly-hwedrjfgl) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Frame: A New X11 Server Implementation Written Entirely In x86_64 Assembly","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/frame-a-new-x11-server-implementation-written-entirely-in-x86-64-assembly-hwedrjfgl","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/frame-a-new-x11-server-implementation-written-entirely-in-x86-64-assembly-hwedrjfgl"},"datePublished":"2026-07-17T01:01:11.794Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T06:51:02.139Z","description":"Frame is a new X11 server implementation written entirely in x86_64 Assembly — a single file of nearly 25,000 lines with no external dependencies on Mesa,...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/1759ad6fb397007aaa72b13462ac5211?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/1759ad6fb397007aaa72b13462ac5211?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Phoronix","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Phoronix","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/6a26ba379dd64932830aa0c9803dd7ee","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/phoronix"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/frame-a-new-x11-server-implementation-written-entirely-in-x86-64-assembly-hwedrjfgl","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"linux,claude-code,assembly","timeRequired":"PT3M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Phoronix","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/phoronix"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Frame: A New X11 Server Implementation Written Entirely In x86_64 Assembly"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/frame-a-new-x11-server-implementation-written-entirely-in-x86-64-assembly-hwedrjfgl#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What is Frame and how was it built?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Frame is an X11 server written entirely in x86_64 Assembly, contained in a single file of nearly 25,000 lines, with no dependencies on Mesa, FreeType, Xlib, or libc. It talks directly to Linux system calls, DRM/KMS interfaces, and evdev for input. It was created over about a month largely with Claude Code by developer Geir Isene, who describes it as part of a broader all-Assembly desktop stack called CHasm. Anyone curious how far AI pair-programming can push low-level systems work can follow projects like this on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How does Frame's CPU and battery usage compare to Xorg?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Idle on battery, Frame and Xorg draw the same wattage since the display panel and wifi dominate that number, but Xorg burns almost three times the CPU that Frame needs to do nothing. The window manager and terminal components in the same stack used zero measured milliseconds over three minutes of idle measurement, according to the developer's own benchmarking on his laptop. Developers chasing battery life on Linux laptops can track experiments like this on daily.dev."}}]} ```