Chapter 1: Introduction
Operating System Concepts – 10h Edition Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne ©2018
Chapter 1: Introduction
What Operating Systems Do
Computer-System Organization
Computer-System Architecture
Operating-System Structure
Operating-System Operations
Process Management
Memory Management
Storage Management
Protection and Security
Kernel Data Structures
Computing Environments
Open-Source Operating Systems
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Objectives
To describe the basic organization of computer
systems
To provide a grand tour of the major
components of operating systems
To give an overview of the many types of
computing environments
To explore several open-source operating
systems
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What is an Operating System?
A program that acts as an intermediary between a
user of a computer and the computer hardware
Operating system goals:
Execute user programs and make solving user
problems easier
Make the computer system convenient to use
Use the computer hardware in an efficient
manner
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Computer System Structure
Computer system can be divided into four
components:
Hardware – provides basic computing resources
CPU, memory, I/O devices
Operating system
Controls and coordinates use of hardware
among various applications and users
Application programs – define the ways in which
the system resources are used to solve the
computing problems of the users
Word processors, compilers, web browsers,
database systems, video games
Users
People, machines, other computers
Operating System Concepts – 10th Edition 1.5 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne ©2018
Four Components of a Computer System
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What Operating Systems Do
Depends on the point of view
Users want convenience, ease of use and good
performance
Don’t care about resource utilization
But shared computer such as mainframe or
minicomputer must keep all users happy
Users of dedicate systems such as workstations
have dedicated resources but frequently use shared
resources from servers
Handheld computers are resource poor, optimized
for usability and battery life
Some computers have little or no user interface,
such as embedded computers in devices and
automobiles
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Operating System Definition
OS is a resource allocator
Manages all resources
Decides between conflicting requests for
efficient and fair resource use
OS is a control program
Controls execution of programs to prevent
errors and improper use of the computer
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Operating System Definition (Cont.)
No universally accepted definition
“Everything a vendor ships when you order an
operating system” is a good approximation
But varies wildly
“The one program running at all times on the
computer” is the kernel.
Everything else is either
a system program (ships with the operating
system) , or
an application program.
Operating System Concepts – 10th Edition 1.9 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne ©2018
Computer Startup
bootstrap program is loaded at power-up or
reboot
Typically stored in ROM or EPROM,
generally known as firmware
Initializes all aspects of system
Loads operating system kernel and starts
execution
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Computer System Organization
Computer-system operation
One or more CPUs, device controllers connect
through common bus providing access to shared
memory
Concurrent execution of CPUs and devices
competing for memory cycles
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Computer-System Operation
I/O devices and the CPU can execute
concurrently
Each device controller is in charge of a particular
device type
Each device controller has a local buffer
CPU moves data from/to main memory to/from
local buffers
I/O is from the device to local buffer of controller
Device controller informs CPU that it has finished
its operation by causing an interrupt
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Common Functions of Interrupts
Interrupt transfers control to the interrupt
service routine generally, through the interrupt
vector, which contains the addresses of all the
service routines
Interrupt architecture must save the address of
the interrupted instruction
A trap or exception is a software-generated
interrupt caused either by an error or a user
request
An operating system is interrupt driven
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Interrupt Handling
The operating system preserves the state of the
CPU by storing registers and the program
counter
Determines which type of interrupt has
occurred:
polling
vectored interrupt system
Separate segments of code determine what
action should be taken for each type of interrupt
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Interrupt Timeline
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I/O Structure
After I/O starts, control returns to user program
only upon I/O completion
Wait instruction idles the CPU until the next
interrupt
Wait loop (contention for memory access)
At most one I/O request is outstanding at a
time, no simultaneous I/O processing
After I/O starts, control returns to user program
without waiting for I/O completion
System call – request to the OS to allow user
to wait for I/O completion
Device-status table contains entry for each I/O
device indicating its type, address, and state
OS indexes into I/O device table to determine
device status and to modify table entry to
include interrupt
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Storage Definitions and Notation Review
The basic unit of computer storage is the bit. A bit can contain one of two
values, 0 and 1. All other storage in a computer is based on collections of bits.
Given enough bits, it is amazing how many things a computer can represent:
numbers, letters, images, movies, sounds, documents, and programs, to name
a few. A byte is 8 bits, and on most computers it is the smallest convenient
chunk of storage. For example, most computers don’t have an instruction to
move a bit but do have one to move a byte. A less common term is word,
which is a given computer architecture’s native unit of data. A word is made up
of one or more bytes. For example, a computer that has 64-bit registers and
64-bit memory addressing typically has 64-bit (8-byte) words. A computer
executes many operations in its native word size rather than a byte at a time.
Computer storage, along with most computer throughput, is generally measured
and manipulated in bytes and collections of bytes.
A kilobyte, or KB, is 1,024 bytes
a megabyte, or MB, is 1,0242 bytes
a gigabyte, or GB, is 1,0243 bytes
a terabyte, or TB, is 1,0244 bytes
a petabyte, or PB, is 1,0245 bytes
Computer manufacturers often round off these numbers and say that a
megabyte is 1 million bytes and a gigabyte is 1 billion bytes. Networking
measurements are an exception to this general rule; they are given in bits
(because networks move data a bit at a time).
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Storage Structure
Main memory – only large storage media that the CPU
can access directly
Random access
Typically volatile
Secondary storage – extension of main memory that
provides large nonvolatile storage capacity
Hard disks – rigid metal or glass platters covered with
magnetic recording material
Disk surface is logically divided into tracks, which are
subdivided into sectors
The disk controller determines the logical interaction
between the device and the computer
Solid-state disks – faster than hard disks, nonvolatile
Various technologies
Becoming more popular
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Storage Hierarchy
Storage systems organized in hierarchy
Speed
Cost
Volatility
Caching – copying information into faster
storage system; main memory can be viewed
as a cache for secondary storage
Device Driver for each device controller to
manage I/O
Provides uniform interface between
controller and kernel
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Storage-Device Hierarchy
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Caching
Important principle, performed at many levels in
a computer (in hardware, operating system,
software)
Information in use copied from slower to faster
storage temporarily
Faster storage (cache) checked first to
determine if information is there
If it is, information used directly from the
cache (fast)
If not, data copied to cache and used there
Cache smaller than storage being cached
Cache management important design
problem
Cache size and replacement policy
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Direct Memory Access Structure
Used for high-speed I/O devices able to transmit
information at close to memory speeds
Device controller transfers blocks of data from buffer
storage directly to main memory without CPU
intervention
Only one interrupt is generated per block, rather than
the one interrupt per byte
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How a Modern Computer Works
A von Neumann architecture
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