.dex
| Original author(s) | Dan Bornstein |
|---|---|
| Operating system | Linux kernel |
| Platform | Android |
| Type | Virtual machine |
| License | Apache License 2.0 |
| Website | source |
| Filename extension | .dex |
|---|
Dalvik is a discontinuedprocess virtual machine (VM) in Google's Android operating system that executes applications written for Android. Dalvik is an integral part of the Android software stack in Android versions 4.4 "KitKat" and earlier, which is typically used on mobile devices such as mobile phones and tablet computers, and more recently on devices such as smart TVs and wearables. Dalvik is open-source software, originally written by Dan Bornstein, who named it after the fishing village of Dalvík in Eyjafjörður, Iceland.
Programs for Android are commonly written in Java and compiled to bytecode for the Java virtual machine, which is then translated to Dalvik bytecode and stored in .dex (Dalvik EXecutable) and .odex (Optimized Dalvik EXecutable) files; related terms odex and de-odex are associated with respective bytecode conversions. The compact Dalvik Executable format is designed for systems that are constrained in terms of memory and processor speed.
The successor of Dalvik is Android Runtime (ART), which uses the same bytecode and .dex files (but not .odex files), with the succession aiming at performance improvements transparent to the end users. The new runtime environment was included for the first time in Android 4.4 "KitKat" as a technology preview, and replaced Dalvik entirely in later versions; Android 5.0 "Lollipop" is the first version in which ART is the only included runtime.
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