The Computer Operating System

Why You Need an Operating System

A computer is a massive productivity tool on steroids. It can help you find new information
about any topic you want to learn more about. It can show you the layout of your geographical
area or faraway destinations that you might want to visit one day. It can help you create that
business report your boss wants and print it to a printer that is directly attached to your computer
or is located near your boss’s office. It can help you stay in touch and communicate with
members of a work team or your relatives through applications such as email, Lync, or instant
message. In fact, it can host dozens of applications that you can utilize for work or entertainment.
There are so many things that a computer can do, but in order to accomplish these things, it
needs a way for you to interface with it so that you can issue a command or series of commands
to instruct the computer what it is you want it to do. This is the primary purpose of the operating
system.

The operating system also provides the ability for peripheral devices to be integrated with the
computer. If you have ever installed a new printer or external device to your computer, you have
noticed that the operating system requires a driver to be installed. This driver is the liaison
between the device and the operating system so that the two can communicate with one another.
Once installed, the user can access the printer or newly installed device through the operating
system.

For more information on the purpose of a computer’s operating system, click here.

The History of the PC Operating System

An operating system provides an interface for you to interact with the computer. In the
beginning of the era of the PC, the interface was simply a black screen provided by an operating
system called DOS, which stood for disk operating system. It was Microsoft’s first operating
system and was released in 1986. Users could type commands at a computer prompt to have the
computer perform various tasks. DOS looked pretty much like the Command Prompt utility of
Windows today.
This was a very primitive operating system and required users to memorize or have access to a
list of the available commands in order to navigate their local files or perform basic tasks.
Because of this, the market for the PC was limited, as many people felt intimidated by this
interface. Even among highly active DOS users, few people knew all of the available commands.
A new interface was needed in order to bring the true potential of the PC to a broader market of
users.

Windows 3.1 was released by Microsoft in 1992. It provided a GUI, or graphical user
interface. Although it was crude by today’s GUI standards, it integrated the input device that we
commonly refer to today as the mouse, which allowed users to easily navigate across the screen
and access files and accessories with the simple click of a mouse.

This was followed up by Windows 95, named after the year of its release. It had a redefined look
that became the template for all of Microsoft’s operating systems up until Windows 7. It was
also Microsoft’s first 16/32-bit hybrid operating system.
This was followed up by its even more popular Windows 98, which was released in its titled
year. This was followed up by Windows Millennium in the year 2000, which failed to capture
much interest within the marketplace. This was also the last operating system of the Windows 95
lineage.

One of the confusing aspects in the history of the Windows operating system is the dual line of
operating systems that Microsoft supported for almost a decade. Windows 3.1, 95, 98, and
Millennium were consumer-driven operating systems. They had no built-in security. You didn’t
even need a username/password to log on. This lack of security, along with the lack of a true 32-
bit operating structure, prevented it from being a viable enterprise-level operating system. This
was the reason why in 1993 Microsoft released Windows NT. Windows NT came in two
versions, NT Server and NT Workstation.

Microsoft then released Windows 2000, again in both server and workstation versions, and
began obtaining market leadership in the enterprise market. Windows 2000, XP, Vista, Windows
7, and Windows 8 were all members of the NT family. The consumer-driven line of operating
systems was abandoned with Millennium once Windows XP was released in 2001 as the upgrade
to Windows 2000. At the time of this writing, XP continues to be prominently utilized despite its
being more than 15 years old. This is partly due to its upgrade, Windows Vista, which proved to
be a PR disaster for Microsoft as it garnered a reputation as being buggy and awkward to use in
some instances. This was followed up by Windows 7, which revamped the Microsoft name and
provided a very dependable and secure operating system that users appreciated. Windows 8 was
Microsoft’s attempt at creating a universal operating system for just about any type of computing
device, be it a desktop, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. Although there were glitches, the attempt
was successful, and has been improved upon with Microsoft’s latest OS, Windows 10. Windows
10 supports 3D models, emojis from the keyboard, the ability to pin frequently used contacts and
applications, voice recognition, and other features.

You will also see that XP, Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 10 come in different versions
as well, such as Home Edition, Professional Edition, and Ultimate Edition. The difference
between these versions is the variety of features offered. While Home Edition is usually more
than suitable for the average home user, it lacks the features required by a work or enterprise
environment.

You can read more about the Windows 10 operating system here.

32-bit and 64-bit Operating Systems

Today’s operating systems are available in 32-bit and 64-bit versions. The terms 32-bit and 64-
bit refer to the way a computer's processor handles information. Most new computers available
for purchase today are 64-bit machines, but if you have a choice between 32-bit and 64-bit, you
should always go with the 64-bit machines if you can.

The number of bits refers to the width of the CPU’s register. The register is a small amount of
storage used by the CPU where the CPU keeps the data it needs to access the quickest in order
for optimum computer performance. The bit designation refers to the width of the register; thus a
64-bit register can hold more data than a 32-bit register, which in turn holds more than 16-bit and
8-bit registers. The more ample the space in the CPU’s register system, the more it can handle,
especially in terms of utilizing system memory.

The primary advantage of 64-bit machines is the greater amount of memory that they support.
All 32-bit operating systems can only support up to 4 GB of memory. The Windows Home
editions of 64-bit operating systems can support up to 16 GB of memory, while the Professional
and Ultimate versions can support up to 192 GB, which is more than a workstation would ever
need. What’s more, it reserves less memory, which frees up more memory to your applications.
For this reason, a 64-bit machine can run more applications simultaneously with improved
performance.

A 64-bit application won’t install on a 32-bit application, but most 32-bit applications will install
on a 64-bit computer. You should also keep in mind that these two architectures require a
different driver set. If you purchase a computer with a 64-bit operating system, you cannot use
the same drivers you installed with your former 32-bit operating system.

To determine if your computer is running a 32-bit or 64-bit OS, simply access the system
properties in your Windows computer. An example is shown below.

You can read more about the 64-bit operating system here.

Servers Operating Systems

As mentioned, Windows NT came in two versions, one of them being NT Server. From that
operating system came Server 2000, Server 2003, Server 2008, Server 2012, and Server 2016.
The desktop of one of these server operating systems looks much like that of a workstation at
first glance, but there are vast differences between the two operating systems. A workstation OS
such as XP or Windows 7 is designed to create a computing platform for a single user, as only
one user can log on to a workstation at a time. Although they can share a printer or file directory
with remote users, these operating systems are limited in the number of simultaneous
connections they can support (XP can support 10 remote connections, while Windows 7 can
support 20). Even a robust desktop has hardware limitations when it comes to memory, volume
size, and processing speed, which puts definite limitations on its ability to share resources with
remote users.

A server is designed with the specific purpose of sharing resources with remote users. A resource
can be a group of files, an application, a series of printers, or an Internet connection. Because of
this, server operating systems such as Windows Server 2016 are built to support vast amounts of
memory and file storage as well as extremely fast processors. They are also built with
redundancy in mind. Servers often have redundant power supplies, hard drives, and network
interface cards so if one power supply goes down, the system remains up. Should a single hard
drive fail, no data is lost and users can continue to access hosted files and applications. Although
Microsoft Server operating systems can be utilized as a user desktop, most servers reside in a
data center and are rarely accessed by anyone other than a network administrator who may be
installing new applications or troubleshooting a server problem.

A software license for a server operating system costs much more than one for a single
workstation. Servers are often licensed by the number of connections they will support.

You can download the Windows Server 2016 operating system here for a free trial period.

Up-to-date information on Windows Server 2016, the latest server operating system, is available
here.

Logging onto the Operating System

One of the things you will discover in this course is that there are many ways to navigate the
operating system. How you decide to access your applications and configure menus and files is
all a matter of preference.

After you first power the computer on, you will most likely be asked to log on with your
credentials. This consists of a username and a password. A good password should consist of at
least seven characters or more and should consist of a combination of alpha and non-
alphanumeric characters. You should also consider using a mix of uppercase and lowercase
letters. The following are examples of good passwords:

• w1nterCold
• iL0ve1T
• l0gg1nGoN
Note that we used actual word combinations for these passwords and substituted numbers for
some of the letters. This makes it easy to remember. An example of a logon screen is shown
below; in this case, it happens to be the logon screen for the Windows Server 2008 R2 operating
system but the same idea applies.

Navigating the OS

Once you log on, you will be presented with the desktop and taskbar. The taskbar is the
horizontal bar at the bottom of your computer (you can place it at the top if you wish or at the
sides but this is rarely done). The taskbar consists of four areas:

• Start Button
• Pinned Items
• Open Applications
• Notification Area
Below is the task bar as appears with Windows 7.
The Start button allows you to access the Start Menu where nearly all of the installed
applications can be accessed. Pinned Icons are icons of frequently used applications or items. By
default, Windows pins Internet Explorer and Windows Explorer, but you can manage which
items are pinned at any time. Open Applications are simply applications that you are currently
running. It is very common to have multiple applications open at the same time. The
Notifications area alerts you of various real-time notifications such as the arrival of Windows
Updates or new email messages.

You access the Start Menu by left-clicking the Start Button. Below is a typical Windows 7 Start
Menu. Windows automatically displays the most common applications in random order. The
arrows at top point to applications that are pinned to the Start Menu. Applications that are pinned
to the Start Menu are always present at the top.
By left-clicking “All Programs” at the bottom, you can then access the complete listing of
installed applications. If you have a lot of applications, you will have to scroll down to see them
all. In the example below, I have scrolled down in order to access one of the Microsoft Office
2013 applications.

You can configure various aspects of the Start Menu and Taskbar by right-clicking on either of
them. Right-clicking allows you to access the Context Menu. In this case, the context menu
presents you with various selections, including Properties.

Here is the Context Menu of the taskbar.

If you then click “Properties,” you will be presented with this menu:

Managing Your Desktop

Besides using the traditional Start Menu to access your applications, you can also create
shortcuts on your desktop as well. Although applications are the most common examples of
desktop shortcuts, you can create a shortcut to a particular file stored on your computer or your
favorite website. To create a shortcut on the desktop, simply right-click anywhere on the
desktop, select “New” from the Context Menu and then select “shortcut.”

This will present you with the following screen.

Windows 8/10

The Start Menu, Taskbar, and Desktop Shortcuts are common among nearly all of the Windows
operating systems, including Windows 7, Vista, XP, and Windows 2000. Windows 8 was
designed first and foremost for touch screen tablets and phones. For this reason, neither
Windows 8 nor Windows 10 have any of the traditional navigation elements we have discussed
thus far. Windows 8 and Windows 10 have a tile-based navigation system. These tiles are similar
to shortcuts in that they appear on the desktop. The user has the ability to manage the tiles.
Although this new navigation system is ideal for touchscreen devices, it can take some getting
used to as a desktop operating system. For users who don’t have a touchscreen and depend solely
on a keyboard and mouse, Windows 8 and Windows 10 can be somewhat challenging. These
types of users will be more accustomed to the desktop rather than the Start Screen that features
tiles. To easily switch to the desktop, simply ensure that the desktop tile is located in the topmost
left corner of the Start Screen.
Then simply type CTRL + ENTER. This will take the user to the desktop which will display the
customary task bar. To access the Start Screen, simply point the mouse into the far left-hand
lower corner of the desktop and click on the Start Screen icon when it appears.
Windows 10 will give you the desktop you normally see. The taskbar will have a window icon
in the far-left bottom corner of the screen. When you click it, you will see the tile view and
all the programs in alphabetical order.

Click here for lots of additional information on Windows 10.

Click here for a more in-depth description of the tile system of Windows 8/10.

Windows File System

You can access your volumes and files with Windows Explorer. The three easiest ways to access
Windows Explorer are from the Start Menu, the taskbar, or by right-clicking the Start button.
The screenshot below shows Windows Explorer on a Windows 7 machine. Notice the libraries
section on the left. The library contains common folder destinations such as Documents,
Downloads, Pictures, etc. These folders are created automatically for each user who logs on to
the machine. When you download an application, the OS automatically steers it to the
Downloads folder by default. When you save a picture or image file, it is automatically saved to
the Pictures folder. When you open up a music program, it automatically looks for music in the
Music folder. The library folders are a part of your user profile. Whenever you log onto a
Windows machine, you create a profile by default. This profile contains your library folders and
the files contained within them.

Note the arrow pointing to the C drive. This is known as the System Volume in this case
because it is the volume that Windows is installed on. We know this because the Windows
Directory is located on this volume. The Windows folder contains the operating system files.
Notice the Users folder above it in the screenshot above. This is where the profile for each user
who has logged on to the operating system is located.
Notice the two folders called Program Files and Program files (x86). These are the folders that
applications are assigned to when they are installed onto the computer. You see both of these
Program Files on a computer that contains a 64-bit operating system. The folder that is appended
with (x86) is for applications that are 32-bit applications.

Folders are also referred to as directories. Folders allow you the ability to organize your
volumes for file storage. You can make your own folders by simply right-clicking anywhere
within Windows Explorer inside a volume or folder by choosing “New” and then “Folder.”

In order for an operating system to read your volume, it has to be formatted. All operating
systems since Windows 2000 use NTFS, which stands for New Technology File System. It
replaced the DOS-based FAT (File Allocation Table) file system found in older operating
systems such as Windows 98. NTFS includes built-in security features such as file and folder
permissions and encryption, which is the technology used to store encrypted files on NTFS
volumes. Only volumes that are formatted by the operating system itself can be NTFS. Other
capabilities of NTFS include the following:

• Support for volumes up to 256 terabytes in size

 • Support for disk quotas and compression
• Support for mounted drives
• The ability to reconstruct files in the event of hardware failures

Below is an example of NTFS permissions for a file. Permissions include Read, Write, Modify
(changing the name of a file or deleting it), and Full, which includes all three of the former
permissions and the ability to assign permissions to other users as well.

Only a volume that is formatted by the host operating system can be NTFS. For instance, a USB
stick is formatted with FAT32 by default. However, by using Disk Manager in the Windows OS,
you can reformat it with NTFS.

Click here for a greater understanding of NTFS and Share permissions within the Windows
operating system.
Windows Explorer allows the user to browse volumes and directories, but today’s Windows
operating systems don’t allow users to see everything by default. Windows always tries to
preserve itself from the user whenever possible. This includes hiding critical files and file
extensions from the user. For this reason, certain files and directories are hidden from the user by
default. Advanced users may want to change this. To do so, go to “Start,” “Run,” and then type
“Folder Options.” Doing so will display the following pop-up window.

Notice that there is a checkbox for “Hide protected operating system files.” By default, this
setting is unchecked, as is “Don’t show hidden files, folders and drives.” Users can also decide to
display or hide file extensions for known file types.

Hardware
One of the key things that an operating system does is manage your hardware. Whether it is your
monitor, video card, sound card, mouse, keyboard, or printer, the operating system needs a way
to integrate with these devices. In order for the operating system to communicate with the
hardware device, a drive specifically designed for the device must be installed. For instance, if
you purchase a new printer for your Windows 7 computer, the printer will usually come with a
driver disk you can use to install it. By default, the operating system already comes with some
printers. Without the correct driver, your printer or hardware device will not operate properly.
Many times, the driver may be OS specific as well. Just because the driver works for a
designated printer on Windows 7 doesn’t mean it will work for Windows 8 or Windows 10. If
you suspect you have the incorrect driver for a device you can always download it from the
Internet. Most hardware manufacturers list their drivers on their websites for customers to
download. You should check now and then for updated drivers for all of your devices as
manufacturers release updated drivers that fix problems and bugs that have been discovered.

Management Tools

Every Windows operating system has a management tool called the Control Panel. The Control
Panel allows the user to manage various aspects of the operating system, such as changing the
Display properties, managing local user accounts, changing the time on the computer, or
installing the latest drivers for a piece of hardware. The easiest way to access the Control Panel is
from the Start Menu. The screenshot below shows a typical Control Panel interface.
Another common management tool is Computer Management. You can access it by right-
clicking the “Computer” listing in the Start Menu and the selecting “Manage” within the context
menu.
The Computer Management interface looks like this:
Here is an explanation of the listed tools in Computer Management:

• Task Scheduler: Allows you to create automated tasks for your computer, such as
backups or defrags.
• Event Viewer: This is where you can view the log files of your computer to find errors
or clues as to why something isn’t working correctly.
• Share Folders: You share a folder so that remote users can access it. Here you can share
folders or manage folders that are already shared.
• Local Users and Groups: Here you can manage the local user accounts contained on
your computer.
• Performance Monitor: This gives you access to the Resource Monitor, where you can
monitor things such as memory and CPU usage on your computer.
• Device Manager: Here you can view all of the hardware that is installed on your
computer and update your drivers.
• Disk Management: Here you can view all of the volumes on your computer, which
includes hard drives, DVD drives, external drives, and USB drives.
• Services and Applications: Your computer runs a number of services, and here you can
view the status of these services.
Below is a screenshot showing what the Resource Monitor looks like.
The Device Manager is a valuable tool for troubleshooting hardware problems. You can access it
through Control Panel or through System Properties.

If you suspect there is a hardware problem on your computer, you should access the Device
Manager and look for any alerts that may indicate hardware problems or conflicts. It is common
to see yellow exclamation marks.
Yellow exclamation marks usually appear due to a missing driver, and as a result the OS is
unable to recognize the connected hardware. You may also see a red X. A red X doesn't
necessarily mean there's a problem with the hardware device; it simply means that Windows is
not allowing the hardware to be used and that it has not assigned any system resources to the
hardware.

Event Viewer has a number of logs to help you troubleshoot problems. It can be your best
troubleshooting tool in many cases. The screenshot below shows the basic log files of Event
Viewer, which are the Application log, Security log, Setup log, and System log.
If you are having problems with a certain application on your computer, you would examine the
Application log. The System log file contains events that have to do with the operating system
itself. The Security log deals with successful and unsuccessful authentication attempts. There is
no technician in the world who knows what every single log means. What you can do is copy the
error or warning log and do a web search for it to see if Microsoft has any published
documentation on it or if other users have solved this problem via a discussion board online.

Windows Registry

The Windows Registry is where nearly all of the configuration settings are stored in Windows.
It is used to store much of the information and settings for software programs, hardware devices,
user preferences, operating system configurations, and much more. The average computer user
has no reason to access the registry (it requires administrative rights to access it anyway), and
you should only modify registry settings if you know what you are doing. You can access the
registry by going to “Start,” “Run,” and then typing the command regedit. The registry looks
like this.
In Windows 10, you can access the registry by clicking the Search icon (the circle icon at the
bottom left task bar) and typing regedit.

The registry is critical to the Windows operating system, and here is lots of information about it.

Application Installation

There are several ways to install an application on a Windows computer. Traditionally, in the
past users installed an application from a CD or DVD that they purchased from the store. The
more common way to do so today is to download the application from the Internet. As
mentioned earlier, downloads are made to the Downloads folder. You can then run the file and
install the application.

When you install an application, many of the application files are stored within the Program Files
directory. It is these files that allow an application to integrate with the operating system. Some
applications are free, and may be referred to as shareware. You should know, however, that free
isn’t always free. Many times these free applications come with other applications such as web
browser toolbars and spyware applications that are used to target advertising based on your
Internet behavior.
When you click an application installation file, you are usually presented with some type of
installation wizard that takes you through the installation process. It is natural to simply click the
“Next” button without paying much attention, but you should take your time and know what you
are installing to ensure that other applications aren’t being installed as well.

Some applications offer a trial period of anywhere from 10 to 120 days. After the trial period,
you will have to purchase a license in order to run the application again. Some applications
require a license right away.

Sometimes you may need to uninstall an application. Some applications provide an uninstaller
within the Start Menu. Most of the time, however, you need to go to the Control Panel and click
Programs and Features. The next screen will list all of your installed applications. Simply right-
click and choose Uninstall, as shown below.

ISO Files
Sometimes when you download an application, it downloads as an ISO file. ISO stands for
International Standards Organization. An ISO file is like a virtual DVD; it is a compressed
file so that it doesn’t take so long to download it from the Internet.

Once downloaded, you will have to expand the ISO file, which is also referred to as
uncompressing it. Most any file compression application today will work with ISO files but the
most popular application for managing ISO files is 7-Zip.

Below is a screenshot of the 7-Zip interface.

Note all of the ISO files that are shown. If you look at the drive path, you will see that all of
these files are located in the Downloads folder. To open an ISO file, simply double-click on it
within the 7-Zip interface. You will then be shown the contents of the file.
Once opened, you can extract the files to a designated folder on your computer so that you can
access these files at any time. Once extracted, simply click the setup.exe or installation file and
install the application.

For further information on working with ISO files, click here.

Administrative Users Versus Regular Users

All users are not created equal, and you want it that way. The last thing you want as an enterprise
administrator is to allow all users free rein of the operating system. You don’t want uneducated
users to delete vital system files or install unauthorized applications that may be riddled with
malware and spyware. You also don’t want them making configuration changes that will result
in unexpected results that may initiate a help desk call to undo the changes they made.

An organization will identify designated users who have administrative rights. These users have
enhanced permissions and have complete access to critical file locations of the Windows
directory, designated tools such as Computer Management, and the Windows registry. They also
have permission to install application or uninstall them.

Perhaps you have been on a Windows 8 or Windows 10 computer and have attempted to do
something such as install an application. You may have received a prompt asking you for a
username and password. In this instance, you need to type in the credentials of someone who has
an administrator account. In order to have administrative rights, a user must be in the
Administrators group.

Administrative rights have a cost however. Click here for the consequences of Administrative
rights.