The components of an operating system exist to make different parts of a computer work together. The fundamental concepts that underlie operating systems include process management, memory management, device management, file management, error detecting, and security. Operating systems are essential in a computer system. Some common contemporary operating systems include Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. Features of an operating systems includes user interface, program execution, I/O operations, file system manipulation, communications, error detection, resource allocation, accounting, and security.
Operating systems “allocate resources that allow the process to exchange information. It synchronizes among processes and safeguards the resources of other processes” (Mishra, 2023).
Memory management controls and coordinates a computer’s main memory by accessing, allocating and protecting the memory. Memory management considers “the capacity limitations of the memory device itself, deallocating memory space when it is no longer needed or extending that space through virtual memory” (Sheldon, 2022). The memory management unit (MMU) controls the processor's memory and caching operations at the physical level. It translates logical addresses used by running processes to the physical address on memory devices. At operating system level, memory management involves the allocation of memory blocks to processes as the demands for CPU resources change. The operating system moves processes between memory and storage devices to assist in memory allocation. However, once the computer runs out of physical memory space, the operating system turn to virtual memory. Virtual memory is just “a technique that allows the execution of a process that is not completely in memory. The main advantage of the virtual-memory scheme is that it enables users to run programs that are larger than actual physical memory” (Silberschatz, Galvin, and Gagne, 2014). If memory demand surpasses the physical memory's capacity, the operating system can automatically allocate virtual memory to a process.
Files, mass storage, and I/O are managed directly by the operating system. File management is a critical feature of operating systems, and it controls files in the computer system by creating, modifying, and deleting files. It allows a user to create, write, and read files, while input/output devices use hardware and software to place the data into the files. Device drivers help the operating system handle I/O devices. Device drivers are software components that can be plugged into an operating system to handle a specific device. Mass storage refers to systems meant to store huge volumes of data. “Massive storage is synonymous with peripheral storage, where external devices or media help to manage larger amounts of information that have exceeded the capacity of a computer or device’s native storage capabilities” (Rouse, 2013). It is associated with associated with data backup and data recovery.
The operating system uses access control lists (ACLs) to control the access of programs or users to the resources defined by a computer system. They determine which users or processes have permission to access specific resources or perform specific actions. ACLs control traffic flow to increase network performance and are a level of security for network access that specifies which areas of the server, network, or service can and cannot be accessed by a user.
Understanding operating system theory and design is important because it manages the computer’s memory and processes and provides the opportunity to understand so much about a computer. I will use these concepts about operating systems theory in future to help me understand how different processes are created and scheduled by the CPU, where data is saved, and how to deal with different I/O devices. Being familiar with these basic concepts can help in the future to troubleshoot and interpret basic issues and understand what approach to take when handling them.
References
Mishra, S. (2023, June 30). Introduction to Process Management in OS. Coding Ninjas Studio. Retrieved from https://www.codingninjas.com/studio/library/introduction-to-process-management
Rouse, M. (2013, June 28). Mass Storage. Techopedia. Retrieved fromhttps://www.techopedia.com/definition/2619/mass-storage
Sheldon. R. (2022, June). Memory Management. TechTarget. Retrieved from https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/memory-management
Silberschatz, A., Galvin, P. B., & Gagne, G. (2014). Operating system concepts essentials (2nd ed.). Retrieved from https://redshelf.com/
Comments
Post a Comment