Hi,
I believe I should have this figured out by now, but I don't .
I've read that the current Linux kernel (or maybe right from the start, can you please confirm?) is a monolithic one.
On the other hand, I've heard people say that the kernel is actually a modular one - I believe this opinion is based on the fact that it is composed of multiple modules that can be loaded / unloaded as needed.
I admit that my knowledge of computer architecture is somewhat limited, and maybe my English skills don't help to explain the little I know about the subject - so I would appreciate if any of you can say a few words about the topic, meaning what type of kernel does Linux have? and why?
Thanks in advance!

To the best of my understanding, it's modular, in that there is a certain fundamenatal monolithic core and then additional modules you can load as needed.

The interactive kernel map might help.

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The linux kernel is considered a monolithic kernel due to the entire kernel (including all modules) use the same memory map.

It DOES have some parts that don't fit that definition. FUSE (file system in user space) allows for entire subsystems to exist external to the kernel. Also, there are some device drivers that are external. These interface with the kernel which passes on their need to the physical device either may providing a memory map to it or essentially peeking/poking values into the device registers. The problem with these is that you/the developers loose speed due to the need to make multiple context switches (and multiple data copies)to accomplish anything (the same problem with microkernel systems where the processor isn't designed for microkernel use).

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Thanks guys!

Thanks.