Can real-time extensions survive a Windows NT crash?

Windows NT has become a widespread, general purpose operating system and is seeing increased use in real-time applications. However Windows NT was nor designed for real-time operation and, in such environments, the all too common Windows NT system stop event (crash or “Blue Screen of Death”) can prove catastrophic. Consequently three commercial real-time extensions are available for Windows NT: Hyperkernel from Imagination Systems, INtime from RadiSys, and RTX from VenturCom. These extensions add determinism for real-time applications along with the capability for real-time applications to survive a Windows NT stop event. Each solution has a different architecture and our rests revealed that each solution has a different response to Windows NT crashes. These extensions differ in the types of stop events which can be survived the code required to survive a stop event, I/O capabilities after a stop event, and real-time performance during a stop event. However, all of these solutions allow some level of protection until the user can initiate an orderly shutdown at an appropriate time