Definition
Privilege Mode (RISC-V)
A privilege mode is an execution level in RISC-V that controls which instructions, memory regions, and system resources a program may access.
RISC-V privilege modes are, from highest to lowest:
- Machine mode (
M-mode): highest privilege; can access all memory and instructions.- Hypervisor mode (
H-mode): used to support virtual machines.- Supervisor mode (
S-mode): used by the operating system; corresponds to kernel mode.- User mode (
U-mode): lowest privilege; corresponds to user mode.