Operating Systems

OS is like the foundation of a building You cannot build unless there is a foundation. No application Software and no goals met without this foundational program

Operating system
An operating system (OS) is: a collection of software that manages computer hardware resources and provides common services for computer programs (software). The operating system is an essential component of the

system software in a computer system. Application

programs require an operating system to function.

System software
System software is computer software designed to operate and control the computer hardware and to provide a platform for running application software. System software includes the following: The Operating System

Utility software helps to analyze, configure, optimize and maintain the computer.
Device Drivers such as computer BIOS and device firmware (Eg. driver program that operates a Printer) provide basic functionality to operate and control the hardware connected to or built into the computer.

 An Operating System or OS is a software program that enables the computer hardware to communicate and operate with the computer software. Without a computer operating system, a computer and software programs would be useless.
It is the software the enables all the programs we use. The OS organizes and controls the hardware. OS acts as an interface between the application programs and the machine hardware.

Examples: Windows, Linux, Unix and Mac OS, etc.,

OPERATING SYSTEM TYPES As computers have progressed and developed so have the operating systems. Many computer operating systems will fall into more than one of the below categories. GUI - Short for Graphical User Interface, a GUI Operating System contains graphics and icons and is commonly navigated by using a computer mouse. Multi-user - A multi-user operating system allows for multiple users to use the same computer at the same time and different times. Multiprocessing - An operating system capable of supporting and utilizing more than one computer processor. Multitasking - An operating system that is capable of allowing multiple software processes to run at the same time. Multithreading - Operating systems that allow different parts of a software program to run concurrently.

What OS does?
An operating system performs basic tasks such as, controlling and allocating memory, prioritizing system requests, controlling input and output devices, facilitating networking and managing file systems.

The usage share of operating systems

Structure of OS
The structure of OS consists of 4 layers: 1. Hardware Tangible parts of a computer. Hardware consists of CPU, Main memory, I/O Devices, etc,

2. Software (Operating System) Software includes process management routines, memory management routines, I/O control routines, file management routines.

Structure of Operating System

3. System programs This layer consists of compilers, Assemblers, linker etc. 4. Application programs This is dependent on users need. Ex. Railway reservation system, Bank database management etc.,

Evolution of OS
The evolution of operating systems went through seven major phases. Six of them significantly changed the ways in which users accessed computers through the open shop, batch processing, multiprogramming, timesharing, personal computing, and distributed systems. In the seventh phase the foundations of concurrent programming were developed and demonstrated in model operating systems.

Evolution of OS
Major Phases Technical Innovations
The idea of OS Tape batching, First-in, first-out scheduling.

Operating Systems
IBM 701 open shop (1954)

Open Shop Batch Processing

BKS system (1961)

Multiprogramming

Processor multiplexing, Indivisible operations, Demand paging, Input/output spooling, Priority scheduling, Remote job entry

Atlas supervisor (1961), Exec II system (1966)

Evolution of OS
Timesharing
Simultaneous user interaction, On-line file systems Hierarchical systems, Extensible kernels, Parallel programming concepts, Secure parallel languages Multics file system (1965), Unix (1974) RC 4000 system (1969), 13 Venus system (1972), 14 Boss 2 system (1975). OS 6 (1972) Pilot system (1980) WFS file server (1979) Unix United RPC (1982) 24 Amoeba system (1990)

Concurrent Programming Personal Computing

Graphic user interfaces

Distributed Systems

Remote servers

Basic functions of an operating system

An operating system is the first program loaded into the computer by a boot program and remains in memory at all times. The basic functions of an operating system are: 1. Booting the computer 2. Performs basic computer tasks eg managing the various peripheral devices eg mouse, keyboard 3. Provides a user interface, e.g. command line, graphical user interface (GUI) 4. Handles system resources such as computer's memory and sharing of the central processing unit (CPU) time by various applications or peripheral devices 5. Provides file management which refers to the way that the operating system manipulates, stores, retrieves and saves data.

Basic functions of an operating system

1. Booting the computer
The process of starting or restarting the computer is known as booting. A cold boot is when you turn on a computer that has been

turned off completely. A warm boot is the process of using the

operating system to restart the computer. 2. Performs basic computer tasks

The operating system performs basic computer tasks, such as

managing the various peripheral devices such as the mouse, keyboard and printers. For example, most operating systems now are plug and

play which means a device such as a printer will automatically be

detected and configured without any user intervention.

Basic functions of an operating system

3. Provides a user interface A user interacts with software through the user interface. The two main types of user interfaces are: command line and a graphical user interface (GUI). With a command line interface, the user interacts with the operating system by typing commands to perform specific tasks. An example of a command line interface is DOS.. With a graphical user interface, the user interacts with the operating system by using a mouse to access windows, icons, and menus. An example of a graphical user interface is Windows Vista or Windows 7. The operating system is responsible for providing a consistent application program interface (API) which is important as it allows a software developer to write an application on one computer and know that it will run on another computer of the same type even if the amount of memory or amount of storage is different on the two machines.

Basic functions of an operating system

4. Handles system resources
The operating system also handles system resources such as the computer's memory and sharing of the central processing unit

(CPU) time by various applications or peripheral devices.

Programs and input methods are constantly competing for the attention of the CPU and demand memory, storage and input/output bandwidth. The operating system ensures that each application gets the necessary resources it needs in order

to maximise the functionality of the overall system.

Basic functions of an operating system

5. Provides file management
The operating system also handles the organization and tracking of files and directories (folders) saved or retrieved from a computer disk. The file management system allows the user to perform such tasks as creating files and directories, renaming files, coping and moving files, and deleting files. The operating system keeps track of where files are located on the hard drive through the type of file system. The type two main types of file system are: 1. File Allocation table (FAT)

2. New Technology File system (NTFS).