A general-purpose programmable photonic processor is introduced, integrating a silicon photonic programmable core with an electronic monitoring and control layer and a software layer for resource control and programming. This processor leverages the unique properties of photonics, including ultra-high bandwidth, high-speed operation, and low power consumption, in a complementary and synergistic way with electronic processors. It can implement all the required basic functionalities of a microwave photonic system through suitable programming of its resources. The processor is fabricated in silicon photonics and incorporates the full photonic/electronic and software stack. The processor uses programmable photonic circuits to manipulate the flow of light on a chip by electrically controlling tunable analog gates connected by optical waveguides. Light is distributed and spatially rerouted to implement various linear functions by interfering signals along different paths. The proliferation of ultra-high-speed 5/6 G mobile networks, satellite communications, photonic computing, advanced communications, lidar, microwave spectroscopy, edge cloud computing, and the internet of things is exerting considerable pressure on existing hardware infrastructures. The solution lies in extending the radiofrequency operation spectrum to the microwave and millimeter-wave regions and developing compact, flexible, and agile solutions capable of interfacing the radiofrequency (RF) and photonic domains. Microwave photonics (MWP), which uses optical devices and techniques to generate, manipulate, transport, and measure high-speed radiofrequency signals, is one of the few technologies capable of supporting this evolution. Traditional RF systems are static, bulky, vulnerable to electromagnetic interference (EMI), and have limited frequency bandwidth. Translating RF systems into the optical region using frequency up-conversion brings the possibility of leveraging the advantages of photonic systems, including tunability, broadband operation, immunity to EMI, and potential space weight and power (SWAP) gains. Integrated photonic circuits offer a compact footprint, modularity, and scalable fabrication methods. The convergence of integrated MWP has allowed a dramatic reduction in the footprint and losses of complex MWP systems. However, most integrated photonic microwave subsystems are implemented as application-specific photonic integrated circuits (ASPICs), which are designed for a particular functionality. These chips require several fabrication cycles and result in long fabrication times and costs. A way out is to leverage the strong push toward programmable photonic circuits for related application areas such as quantum photonics, artificial intelligence, neuromorphic computing, and sensing. Two particular routes are being explored: circuits based on traditional interferometric and photonic waveguide structures for flexible programming, and a generic signal processor or field programmable photonic gate array (FPPGA) where a photonic core made from a mesh of uniform tunable building blocks can be easily programmed to support multiple functions. The general-purpose photonic processor presented in this work aggregates the complex full-stack necessary to operate a programmable photonic device: the optical layer, the control layer, and the software layer. TheA general-purpose programmable photonic processor is introduced, integrating a silicon photonic programmable core with an electronic monitoring and control layer and a software layer for resource control and programming. This processor leverages the unique properties of photonics, including ultra-high bandwidth, high-speed operation, and low power consumption, in a complementary and synergistic way with electronic processors. It can implement all the required basic functionalities of a microwave photonic system through suitable programming of its resources. The processor is fabricated in silicon photonics and incorporates the full photonic/electronic and software stack. The processor uses programmable photonic circuits to manipulate the flow of light on a chip by electrically controlling tunable analog gates connected by optical waveguides. Light is distributed and spatially rerouted to implement various linear functions by interfering signals along different paths. The proliferation of ultra-high-speed 5/6 G mobile networks, satellite communications, photonic computing, advanced communications, lidar, microwave spectroscopy, edge cloud computing, and the internet of things is exerting considerable pressure on existing hardware infrastructures. The solution lies in extending the radiofrequency operation spectrum to the microwave and millimeter-wave regions and developing compact, flexible, and agile solutions capable of interfacing the radiofrequency (RF) and photonic domains. Microwave photonics (MWP), which uses optical devices and techniques to generate, manipulate, transport, and measure high-speed radiofrequency signals, is one of the few technologies capable of supporting this evolution. Traditional RF systems are static, bulky, vulnerable to electromagnetic interference (EMI), and have limited frequency bandwidth. Translating RF systems into the optical region using frequency up-conversion brings the possibility of leveraging the advantages of photonic systems, including tunability, broadband operation, immunity to EMI, and potential space weight and power (SWAP) gains. Integrated photonic circuits offer a compact footprint, modularity, and scalable fabrication methods. The convergence of integrated MWP has allowed a dramatic reduction in the footprint and losses of complex MWP systems. However, most integrated photonic microwave subsystems are implemented as application-specific photonic integrated circuits (ASPICs), which are designed for a particular functionality. These chips require several fabrication cycles and result in long fabrication times and costs. A way out is to leverage the strong push toward programmable photonic circuits for related application areas such as quantum photonics, artificial intelligence, neuromorphic computing, and sensing. Two particular routes are being explored: circuits based on traditional interferometric and photonic waveguide structures for flexible programming, and a generic signal processor or field programmable photonic gate array (FPPGA) where a photonic core made from a mesh of uniform tunable building blocks can be easily programmed to support multiple functions. The general-purpose photonic processor presented in this work aggregates the complex full-stack necessary to operate a programmable photonic device: the optical layer, the control layer, and the software layer. The