Feature: PS/2 micocrontroller, full INT9H, fixed Avalonia keyboard enum usage, fix UI/Emu input thread race, full keyboard command and code sets by maximilien-noal · Pull Request #1527 · OpenRakis/Spice86

maximilien-noal · 2025-11-17T22:19:39Z

Description of Changes

Implements the full PS/2 micro controller (INTEL 8049 chip), the internal keyboard buffer, the proper UI VS Emu thread concurrent input queue access handling, typematic events, keyboard delay event, keyboard reset event, code sets, and IBM AT vs XT code set conversions, and keyboard key interception (can be overriden by TSRs), and all the keyboard commands.

Rationale behind Changes

Implements most of #329

Previously, the PS/2 micro controller, and full INT9H were partially or entirely unimplemented. Same for the rest.

It should vastly improve the usability and compatibility of the keyboard and PS/2 micro controller emulation.

It already makes the keyboard easier to use, but there is still a big DOS issue with a key IOCTL INT21H function to fix for the DOS console.

The reason why essentially is that the keyboard event flow now properly flows from: UI → InputEventQueue → EmulationLoop.ProcessAllPendingInputEvents() → PS2Keyboard → BIOS keyboard buffer.

Since this is focused on hardware, I left DOS out of this PR.

Suggested Testing Steps

Already tested with:

Dune
Dune 2
Jill of the Jungle
Krondor
Hocus Pocus
Another World

Compared to master, it's especially better with Jill of the Jungle.

Skipped

DOS Console issues...
DOS Codepage issue...
Mouse AUX and mouse notifications, and mouse frame...
Print Screen special support...
Pause key special support...

Copilot

Pull Request Overview

This PR implements a comprehensive PS/2 keyboard emulation system, replacing the basic keyboard implementation with a full Intel 8042 controller, PS/2 keyboard device, and proper interrupt handling. The changes address keyboard input thread safety, typematic behavior, scancode translation, and keyboard command processing.

Replaced simple Keyboard class with Intel8042Controller and PS2Keyboard for authentic hardware emulation
Introduced InputEventHub to queue keyboard/mouse events and process them safely on the emulation thread
Split monolithic IGui interface into focused interfaces (IGuiVideoPresentation, IGuiKeyboardEvents, IGuiMouseEvents)
Implemented full INT 09H keyboard interrupt handler with BIOS keyboard buffer management and status flag tracking

Reviewed Changes

Copilot reviewed 40 out of 40 changed files in this pull request and generated 6 comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
`src/Spice86/ViewModels/Services/AvaloniaKeyScanCodeConverter.cs`	Removed - scancode conversion now handled by emulator core
`src/Spice86/ViewModels/MainWindowViewModel.cs`	Updated to use PhysicalKey enum and removed scancode/ASCII conversion logic
`src/Spice86/ViewModels/HeadlessGui.cs`	Updated to implement split GUI interfaces
`src/Spice86/Spice86DependencyInjection.cs`	Wired up new Intel8042Controller and InputEventHub with dependency injection
`src/Spice86.Shared/Interfaces/*`	Refactored IGui into focused interfaces for separation of concerns
`src/Spice86.Shared/Emulator/Keyboard/PhysicalKey.cs`	New enum mapping W3C physical key codes to keyboard positions
`src/Spice86.Shared/Emulator/Keyboard/KeyboardEventArgs.cs`	Simplified to use PhysicalKey without scancode/ASCII
`src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/VM/Machine.cs`	Renamed Keyboard property to KeyboardController
`src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/VM/InputEventQueue.cs`	New thread-safe event queue for UI-to-emulation input
`src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/VM/EmulationLoop.cs`	Processes queued input events each slice
`src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/InterruptHandlers/Input/Keyboard/BiosKeyboardInt9Handler.cs`	Complete INT 09H implementation with scancode processing and keyboard intercept
`src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/InterruptHandlers/Bios/SystemBiosInt15Handler.cs`	Added INT 15H AH=4Fh keyboard intercept function
`src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/Intel8042Controller.cs`	Full 8042 controller with command processing, A20 gate control, and port management
`src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/PS2Keyboard.cs`	PS/2 keyboard with typematic, LED control, and scancode set support
`src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/KeyboardScancodeConverter.cs`	Converts PhysicalKey to scancode sets 1/2/3
`tests/Spice86.Tests/Dos/DosFileManagerTests.cs`	Updated test setup for new keyboard architecture

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Copilot

Pull Request Overview

Copilot reviewed 41 out of 41 changed files in this pull request and generated 2 comments.

Updated the PS2Keyboard, Mouse, VgaCard, and MouseDriver classes to use more specific interfaces for handling keyboard, mouse, and video events. Removed the IGui interface and introduced IGuiKeyboardEvents, IGuiMouseEvents, and IGuiVideoPresentation for better separation of concerns. The HeadlessGui class now implements these new interfaces, and the Spice86DependencyInjection and MainWindowViewModel classes were modified accordingly to support the changes.

- Introduced `InputEventQueue` for processing keyboard and mouse events in a thread-safe manner. - Updated `EmulationLoop` to include `_inputEventQueue` and modified its constructor to accept this new parameter. - Enhanced the main execution method of `EmulationLoop` to process input events during each iteration. - Updated documentation for the `IsPaused` property for clarity. - Modified `Spice86DependencyInjection` and `DosFileManagerTests` to integrate the new input event handling functionality.

Copilot

Pull request overview

Copilot reviewed 41 out of 41 changed files in this pull request and generated 5 comments.

Co-authored-by: Copilot <175728472+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

xorangekiller

I'm certainly not an expert on anything being modified here, but I did my best to review it, and I don't see any problems.

I also tried it out with Exodus, and it seems to fix the keyboard issues I had with it before. For example, if I hold down the spacebar to shoot while using the arrow keys to move, it works now without stuttering or stopping, which it doesn't on master. This is definitely a big improvement, and I think that it makes Exodus playable enough that I could probably beat most levels with it now.

+        if ((isFromKbd && _config.TranslationEnabled)) {
+            entry.Data = GetTranslated(value);
+        } else {
+            entry.Data = value;
+        }


To fix this problem, replace the if statement on line 342 and its corresponding else-block (lines 342–346) with a single assignment statement to entry.Data using the ternary (? :) operator. This change should remain entirely within the confines of the presented code, specifically the method BufferAdd in src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/Intel8042Controller.cs. This fix preserves existing functionality and improves readability, with no modifications needed elsewhere in the file.

maximilien-noal self-assigned this Nov 17, 2025

Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings November 17, 2025 22:19

maximilien-noal added hardware hardware device (can be virtual) emulation keyboard related to keyboard handling and emulation labels Nov 17, 2025

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of maximilien-noal November 17, 2025 22:20 View session

maximilien-noal added the compatibility Emulator compatibility with DOS apps label Nov 17, 2025

Copilot finished reviewing on behalf of maximilien-noal November 17, 2025 22:21

maximilien-noal force-pushed the fix/keyboard_mini branch from f8a6725 to 343a63b Compare November 17, 2025 22:23

Copilot AI reviewed Nov 17, 2025

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github-advanced-security AI found potential problems Nov 17, 2025

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Comment thread src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/Intel8042Controller.cs Fixed

Comment thread src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/InterruptHandlers/Input/Keyboard/BiosKeyboardInt9Handler.cs Fixed

kevinferrare reviewed Nov 17, 2025

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Comment thread src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/Intel8042Controller.ConfigByte.cs

maximilien-noal force-pushed the fix/keyboard_mini branch 4 times, most recently from 4314c89 to 13ba4fb Compare November 18, 2025 19:35

maximilien-noal requested a review from Copilot November 18, 2025 20:53

Copilot AI reviewed Nov 18, 2025

maximilien-noal force-pushed the fix/keyboard_mini branch 2 times, most recently from b03171b to 472ee6f Compare November 19, 2025 06:40

maximilien-noal requested a review from Copilot November 19, 2025 06:41

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of maximilien-noal November 19, 2025 06:42 View session

Copilot finished reviewing on behalf of maximilien-noal November 19, 2025 06:42

Copilot AI reviewed Nov 19, 2025

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Comment thread src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/InterruptHandlers/Input/Keyboard/BiosKeyboardInt9Handler.cs Outdated

Comment thread src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/PS2Keyboard.cs Outdated

maximilien-noal added 7 commits November 25, 2025 22:41

refactor: full keyboard command enum

701b863

doc: replaced link in KeyboardCommands XML

90c53c9

fix: A20Gate enabled/disabled was switched

65181d8

feature: Full fat PS/2 controller, keyboard, and INT9H

b5ee118

refactor: clearer INT9H code (four refs = one class)

30f7ba4

maximilien-noal added 14 commits November 25, 2025 22:41

refactor: code set 1 enum

2851ff2

docs: clearer KeyboardScancodeConverter summary

65e9dd5

refactor: (INT9H) : renamed ProcessScancode

903f8b5

fix: KeyboardReset was called twice

0a0644e

refactor: renamed some fields (PS2Keyboard)

ca57453

refactor: removed labels and goto statements in INT9H

ac24049

refactor: INT9H uses ScanCode 1 enum, not magic bytes

9aeff9e

doc: INT9H is better documented

caeaffa

chore: remove+sort usings

6acf3ca

chore: revert 'remove gots and labels' (regression)

989d6ab

doc: convert comments to XML doc

67d5f74

doc: more XMl doc in Intel8041Controller

8d433e3

chore: fix comment

216f5ce

refactor: removed empty statement

600f9c0

maximilien-noal force-pushed the fix/keyboard_mini branch from 6a4ac09 to 600f9c0 Compare November 25, 2025 21:41

maximilien-noal requested review from Copilot, kevinferrare and xorangekiller November 25, 2025 21:41

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of maximilien-noal November 25, 2025 21:42 View session

Copilot finished reviewing on behalf of maximilien-noal November 25, 2025 21:43

Copilot AI reviewed Nov 25, 2025

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chore: typo

a6025e9

Co-authored-by: Copilot <175728472+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

xorangekiller approved these changes Nov 27, 2025

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kevinferrare reviewed Nov 28, 2025

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Comment thread src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/Intel8042Controller.cs Outdated

kevinferrare reviewed Nov 29, 2025

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Comment thread src/Spice86.Core/Emulator/Devices/Input/Keyboard/PS2Keyboard.cs Outdated

Use a proper FIFO for keyboard

844da40

kevinferrare approved these changes Nov 30, 2025

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github-advanced-security AI found potential problems Nov 30, 2025

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maximilien-noal merged commit 1e8c039 into master Nov 30, 2025
7 of 8 checks passed

maximilien-noal deleted the fix/keyboard_mini branch December 17, 2025 17:42

@@ -339,11 +339,7 @@
                     }
                     var entry = new BufferEntry();
-                    if ((isFromKbd && _config.TranslationEnabled)) {
-                        entry.Data = GetTranslated(value);
-                    } else {
-                        entry.Data = value;
-                    }
+                    entry.Data = (isFromKbd && _config.TranslationEnabled) ? GetTranslated(value) : value;
                     entry.IsFromAux = isFromAux;
                     entry.IsFromKbd = isFromKbd;
                     entry.SkipDelay = skipDelay || (!isFromAux && !isFromKbd);

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maximilien-noal commented Nov 17, 2025 •

edited

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