diff --git a/src/lib.rs b/src/lib.rs
index 235f66d9f67..16ed0cd4e62 100644
--- a/src/lib.rs
+++ b/src/lib.rs
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ pub mod httpd;
 #[cfg(feature = "alloc")]
 // TODO: Ideally should not need "alloc" (also for performance reasons)
 pub mod log;
+pub mod misc;
 #[cfg(esp_idf_config_lwip_ipv4_napt)]
 pub mod napt;
 pub mod netif;
@@ -43,6 +44,9 @@ pub mod nvs_storage;
 pub mod ota;
 pub mod ping;
 pub mod sysloop;
+#[cfg(feature = "alloc")]
+pub mod task;
+pub mod time;
 #[cfg(feature = "alloc")] // TODO: Expose a subset which does not require "alloc"
 pub mod wifi;
 
diff --git a/src/misc.rs b/src/misc.rs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..2ac0fb0396f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/misc.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+use esp_idf_sys::*;
+
+pub fn get_default_efuse_mac() -> Result<[u8; 6], EspError> {
+    let mut mac = [0; 6];
+    unsafe { esp!(esp_efuse_mac_get_default(mac.as_mut_ptr()))? }
+    Ok(mac)
+}
+
+pub fn restart() {
+    unsafe { esp_restart() };
+}
diff --git a/src/private/cstr.rs b/src/private/cstr.rs
index 50e2509442b..ddeda1d4c70 100644
--- a/src/private/cstr.rs
+++ b/src/private/cstr.rs
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ extern crate alloc;
 
 #[cfg(feature = "alloc")]
 pub fn set_str(buf: &mut [u8], s: &str) {
+    assert!(s.len() < buf.len());
     let cs = CString::new(s).unwrap();
     let ss: &[u8] = cs.as_bytes_with_nul();
     buf[..ss.len()].copy_from_slice(ss);
diff --git a/src/private/mod.rs b/src/private/mod.rs
index 26ff2fafc46..cdd5f4eaa3a 100644
--- a/src/private/mod.rs
+++ b/src/private/mod.rs
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 pub mod common;
 pub mod cstr;
 pub mod net;
+pub mod wait;
 
 mod stubs;
 
diff --git a/src/private/wait.rs b/src/private/wait.rs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..6608842f4ce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/private/wait.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,97 @@
+use core::time::Duration;
+#[cfg(feature = "std")]
+use std::sync::{Condvar, Mutex};
+
+use embedded_svc::mutex::Mutex as _;
+#[cfg(not(feature = "std"))]
+use esp_idf_sys::*;
+
+#[cfg(not(feature = "std"))]
+use super::time::micros_since_boot;
+
+pub struct Waiter {
+    #[cfg(feature = "std")]
+    cvar: Condvar,
+    #[cfg(feature = "std")]
+    running: Mutex<bool>,
+    #[cfg(not(feature = "std"))]
+    running: EspMutex<bool>,
+}
+
+impl Waiter {
+    pub fn new() -> Self {
+        Waiter {
+            #[cfg(feature = "std")]
+            cvar: Condvar::new(),
+            #[cfg(feature = "std")]
+            running: Mutex::new(false),
+            #[cfg(not(feature = "std"))]
+            running: EspMutex::new(false),
+        }
+    }
+
+    pub fn start(&self) {
+        self.running.with_lock(|running| *running = true);
+    }
+
+    #[cfg(feature = "std")]
+    pub fn wait(&self) {
+        if !self.running.with_lock(|running| *running) {
+            return;
+        }
+
+        let _running = self
+            .cvar
+            .wait_while(self.running.lock().unwrap(), |running| *running)
+            .unwrap();
+    }
+
+    #[cfg(not(feature = "std"))]
+    pub fn wait(&self) {
+        while self.running.with_lock(|running| *running) {
+            unsafe { vTaskDelay(500) };
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// return = !timeout (= success)
+    #[cfg(feature = "std")]
+    pub fn wait_timeout(&self, dur: Duration) -> bool {
+        if !self.running.with_lock(|running| *running) {
+            return true;
+        }
+
+        let (_running, res) = self
+            .cvar
+            .wait_timeout_while(self.running.lock().unwrap(), dur, |running| *running)
+            .unwrap();
+
+        return !res.timed_out();
+    }
+
+    /// return = !timeout (= success)
+    #[cfg(not(feature = "std"))]
+    pub fn wait_timeout(&self, dur: Duration) {
+        let now = micros_since_boot();
+        let end = now + dur.as_micros();
+
+        while self.running.with_lock(|running| *running) {
+            if micros_since_boot() > end {
+                return false;
+            }
+            unsafe { vTaskDelay(500) };
+        }
+
+        return true;
+    }
+
+    #[cfg(feature = "std")]
+    pub fn notify(&self) {
+        *self.running.lock().unwrap() = false;
+        self.cvar.notify_all();
+    }
+
+    #[cfg(not(feature = "std"))]
+    pub fn notify(&self) {
+        self.running.with_lock(|running| *running = false);
+    }
+}
diff --git a/src/task.rs b/src/task.rs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..6fd23a535e3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/task.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,130 @@
+use core::time::Duration;
+
+use log::*;
+
+use esp_idf_sys::c_types::*;
+use esp_idf_sys::*;
+
+use crate::private::cstr::CString;
+
+#[allow(non_upper_case_globals)]
+const pdPASS: c_int = 1;
+
+pub struct TaskHandle(TaskHandle_t);
+
+impl TaskHandle {
+    pub fn stop(&self) {
+        unsafe { vTaskDelete(self.0) };
+    }
+}
+
+struct TaskInternal {
+    name: String,
+    f: Box<dyn FnOnce() -> anyhow::Result<()>>,
+}
+
+pub struct TaskConfig {
+    stack_size: u32,
+    priority: u32,
+}
+
+impl Default for TaskConfig {
+    fn default() -> Self {
+        TaskConfig {
+            stack_size: DEFAULT_THREAD_STACKSIZE,
+            priority: DEFAULT_THREAD_PRIO,
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+impl TaskConfig {
+    pub fn new(stack_size: u32, priority: u32) -> Self {
+        TaskConfig {
+            stack_size,
+            priority,
+        }
+    }
+
+    pub fn stack_size(self, stack_size: u32) -> Self {
+        TaskConfig { stack_size, ..self }
+    }
+
+    pub fn priority(self, priority: u32) -> Self {
+        TaskConfig { priority, ..self }
+    }
+
+    pub fn spawn<F>(
+        self,
+        name: impl AsRef<str>,
+        f: F,
+    ) -> Result<TaskHandle, IdfError>
+        where
+           F: FnOnce() -> anyhow::Result<()>,
+           F: Send + 'static {
+        let parameters = TaskInternal {
+            name: name.as_ref().to_string(),
+            f: Box::new(f),
+        };
+        let parameters = Box::into_raw(Box::new(parameters)) as *mut _;
+
+        info!("starting task {:?}", name.as_ref());
+
+        let name = CString::new(name.as_ref()).unwrap();
+        let mut handle: TaskHandle_t = core::ptr::null_mut();
+        let res = unsafe {
+            xTaskCreatePinnedToCore(
+                Some(esp_idf_svc_task),
+                name.as_ptr(),
+                self.stack_size,
+                parameters,
+                self.priority,
+                &mut handle,
+                tskNO_AFFINITY as i32,
+            )
+        };
+        if res != pdPASS {
+            return Err(EspError::from(ESP_ERR_NO_MEM as i32).unwrap().into());
+        }
+
+        Ok(TaskHandle(handle))
+    }
+}
+
+pub fn spawn<F>(
+    name: impl AsRef<str>,
+    f: F,
+) -> Result<TaskHandle, IdfError>
+where
+    F: FnOnce() -> anyhow::Result<()>,
+    F: Send + 'static,
+{
+    TaskConfig::default().spawn(name, f)
+}
+
+extern "C" fn esp_idf_svc_task(args: *mut c_void) {
+    let internal = unsafe { Box::from_raw(args as *mut TaskInternal) };
+
+    info!("started task {:?}", internal.name);
+
+    match (internal.f)() {
+        Err(e) => {
+            panic!("unexpected error in task {:?}: {:?}", internal.name, e);
+        }
+        Ok(_) => {}
+    }
+
+    info!("destroying task {:?}", internal.name);
+
+    unsafe { vTaskDelete(core::ptr::null_mut() as _) };
+}
+
+#[allow(non_upper_case_globals)]
+pub const TICK_PERIOD_MS: u32 = 1000 / configTICK_RATE_HZ;
+
+/// sleep tells FreeRTOS to put the current thread to sleep for at least the specified duration,
+/// this is not an exact duration and can't be shorter than the rtos tick period.
+pub fn sleep(duration: Duration) {
+    unsafe {
+        vTaskDelay(duration.as_millis() as u32 / TICK_PERIOD_MS);
+    }
+}
diff --git a/src/time.rs b/src/time.rs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..8b0ba70bbe2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/time.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+use core::convert::TryInto;
+
+use esp_idf_sys::*;
+
+pub fn micros_since_boot() -> u64 {
+    unsafe { esp_timer_get_time() }.try_into().unwrap()
+}