Operating Systems: CSE 3204

Chapter One
Introduction to Operating System
and its Structures
(Materials partly taken from Operating System Concepts by Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne, 2005 – 7th Edition, chapter 1-2)

Lecture 1: Introduction to Operating Systems

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Operating Systems ASTU

Department of CSE
 Contents
• What operating systems do

• Computer system structure

• Computer system organization

• Operating system operations

• Computing environments

• Operating system-views

• Reading Assignments

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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.
• It’s a resource allocator Manages all resources
• Decides between conflicting requests for efficient and fair
resource use
• It’s a control program
• Controls the execution of programs to prevent errors and
improper use of the computer

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 Operating System Definition (Contd.)
• Operating system is the first layer of software loaded into the
computer working memory.
 An interface between the user, the computer software and
the hardware resources.
• It provides a software platform on top of which other
program can run.

• “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.

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Computer System structure
Components of a
computer:

• User
•machine/person /computer

•Application programs
• a special software used to solve
particular problems of users

•Operating system
•Controls and coordinates use of
hardware among various users and
applications
•Computer hardware
•I/O device, Memory, CPU

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 Computer System Organization
 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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 Computer Startup

• bootstrap program is loaded at power-up or reboot

• Typically stored in ROM or EEPROM (Electronic Erasable
Programmable Read Only Memory), generally known as
firmware, within the computer hardware
• Initializes all aspects of the system
• Loads operating system kernel and starts execution

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 Interrupts
• An interruption of the normal sequence of execution
• Improves processing efficiency
• Allows the processor to execute other instructions while an
I/O operation is in progress
• A suspension of a process caused by an event external to that
process and performed in such a way that the process can be
resumed
• Interrupt Handler:
• A program that determines nature of the interrupt and
performs whatever actions are needed
• Control is transferred to this program
• Generally part of the operating system
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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.
• Incoming interrupts are disabled while another interrupt is
being processed to prevent a lost interrupt.
• A trap is a software-generated interrupt caused either by an
error or a user request.
• An operating system is interrupt driven.

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 Operating System Structure
• Multiprogramming is needed for
efficiency
• A single user cannot keep CPU and I/O
devices busy at all times
• Multiprogramming increases CPU
utilization by organizing jobs (code and
data) so CPU always has one to execute
• A subset of total jobs in system is kept in
memory
• One job selected and run via job
scheduling
• When it has to wait (for I/O for example),
OS switches to another job Memory Layout for
multiprogramed system
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 Operating System Structure (contd.)
• Timesharing (multitasking) is a logical extension of multiprogramming
in which CPU executes jobs by switching among them
• The switch occurs so frequently that users can interact with each job
while it is running, creating an interactive computing
•The user gives instruction to the operating system or the program
running using an input device and waits for immediate result on an
output device
 Therefore, the response time should be < 1 second
•Since the time a command/action takes in such systems is short, little
CPU time is needed for each user
 This allows many users to share the computer simultaneously
•Each user has at least one program executing in memory
 Process
•If several jobs ready to run at the same time
 CPU scheduling
•If processes don’t fit in memory, swapping moves them in and out to
run
•Virtual memory allows execution of processes not completely in
memory
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 Operating-System Operations
• Interrupt driven by hardware
• Software (program) error or request creates exception or trap
– Division by zero, request for operating system service
• Other process problems include infinite loop, processes modifying each
other or the operating system
• In order to ensure an appropriate execution of operating system code and
user defined code, most systems provide a hardware support
• Dual-mode operation allows OS to protect itself and other system
components
– User mode: execution done on behalf of a user.
– Monitor mode (also kernel mode or system mode) : execution
done on behalf of operating system.
• Mode bit added to computer hardware to indicate the current mode:
monitor (0) or user (1).
• Some instructions designated as privileged are only executable in
kernel mode
• System call changes mode to kernel, return from call resets it to
user mode
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 Transition from User to Kernel Mode
• Timer to prevent infinite loop / process hogging resources
• Set interrupt after specific period
• Operating system decrements counter
• When counter zero generate an interrupt
• Set up before scheduling process to regain control or
terminate program that exceeds allotted time

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 Computing Environments

• Computing Environment is a collection of computer

hardware, software, machines and networks that support the
processing and interaction of electronic information to solve
different computational problems.
• There are four basic environment
• Traditional
• Client Server
• Peer-to-Peer (P2P)
• Web-based

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 Computing Environments (contd.)
• Traditional
• Office environment
• PCs connected to a network, terminals attached to
mainframe or minicomputers providing batch and
timesharing
• Now portals allowing networked and remote systems
access to same resources
• Home networks
• Used to be single system, then modems
• Now firewalled, networked

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 Computing Environments (Cont.)
• Client-Server Environment
• Dumb terminals supplanted by smart PCs
• Many systems now servers, responding to requests
generated by clients
 Compute-server provides an interface to client to request
services (i.e. database)
 File-server provides interface for clients to store and
retrieve files

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 Peer-to-Peer Environment
• Another model of distributed system
• P2P does not distinguish clients and servers
• Instead all nodes are considered peers
• Each node may act as client, server or both
• Node must join P2P network
• Registers its service with central lookup service on
network, or
• Broadcast request for service and respond to requests
for service via discovery protocol

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Web Based Environment
• The Web has become ubiquitous
• PCs most prevalent devices
• More devices becoming networked to allow web access
• New category of devices to manage web traffic among
similar servers: load balancers
• Use of operating systems like Windows 95, client-side, have
evolved into Linux and Windows XP, which can be clients
and servers

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 Special Purpose Systems
Real-time embedded systems
•These systems have fixed time constraint, so that their operations should be
finished with in that time
•Embedded computers are commonly found everywhere (at home, in industries,
manufacturing robots, care engines, etc)
•They monitor and control devices and usually they have no or little user interface
•Systems that control scientific experiments, industry processes, home appliances etc
are real-time systems
Multi-media systems
• Handles multimedia data (video, audio) in addition to conventional data (text
files, programs, spreadsheets etc
Hand-held
• Includes personal digital assistants (PDAs) like pocket PCs and palm PCs and
cellular telephones
•They use special-purpose embedded operating systems

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Operating-System View

There are several points to view Operating Systems:

• Functional view (what it does)
• Components view (Designers view)
• Services view (Users/Programmers view)
• Structure view (How it is implemented)

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 Functional view (What it does)

• Program execution and handling

• Starting programs, managing their execution and communicating their
results.
• I/O operations
• Mechanisms for initiating and managing I/O
• File-system Management
• Creating, maintaining and manipulating files
• Communications
• Between processes of the same user
• Such as sending result of input request to a user program
• Between different users
 Functional view (…)
• Exception detection and handling
• Protection related issues
• Safety in the case of power failures via backups.
• Detecting undesirable state such as printers out of paper.
• Resource allocation
• Includes processor and I/O scheduling, memory management
• Accounting
• To track users usage of resources for billing and statistical reasons
• Protection
• Maintaining integrity of user’s data
• Integrity checks to keep out unauthorized users
• Maintaining logs of incorrect attempts
 Component view: Processes
• A process is
• A process is a program in execution. It is a unit of work within the
system. Program is a passive entity, process is an active entity.
• Dynamic entity created by the execution of the program.
• Processes may play different roles
• User processes
• OS (system) processes
• A single process can swap other processes
• A computation requires typically many processes
• Shell, one or more user processes, one or more system processes

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Component view: Process management
• Operations:
• Creation and termination
• Suspension and resumption
• Due to interrupts, context switches
• Synchronizing processes
• Making sure that a process that is waiting on an I/O
waits till it is completed and does not wait forever, i.e.,
wakes-up soon after an I/O process terminates.
• Communication
• Between two processes enabling them to cooperate.
• Deadlock detection and avoidance.

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 Component view: Storage management
• Managing main memory
• Allocating main memory to active processes
• Maintaining a map of allocated vs. free memory
• De-allocating currently used memory to make a room for other
processes.
• Managing secondary storage
• Managing the free sectors/tracks on the disk
• Allocating this storage to programs
• Scheduling access requests to the disk

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 Component view: I/O Management
• Devices
• Device drivers
• Accepting an I/O request and invoking appropriate device driver
• Buffering, caching, spooling
• Files
• Non-volatile representation of users/system programs and data.
• File systems
• A file is a collection of related information defined by its creator.
• Support logical organization of data that the user might want to see
• Map data onto the physical storage devices and orchestrate their access
and update.
• Operations
• Creation, manipulation and deletion of files and directories
• Moving files from primary to secondary storage while maintaining structure.
• Interaction with the memory manager
• Backup and protection
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 Component view: Networking
• Support to communication in a distributed system
• FTP
• http
• Network file system
Component view: Protection
• Controlling the access of programs, processes, or users to
the resources defined by the computer system.

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 Services view
1. Command Interpreters
• User interface between users and the kernel
2. System calls
• Programming interface to the services provided by the OS
• Typically written in high level language like C or C++
• Mostly accessed by programs via a high-level Application Program
Interface (API) rather than direct system call use
• Three most common APIs are
• Win32 API for Windows,
• POSIX API for POSIX-based systems (including virtually all
versions of UNIX, Linux, and Mac OS X), and
• Java API for the Java virtual machine (JVM)
3. System programs
• System programs provide convenient environment for program
execution and development.
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 Services View (contd.)
System programs ( contd.)
• Some are user interfaces to system calls; some are more complex.
• Each system call is usually supported by a system program.
• They can be divided into:
• File manipulation
• Status information
• File modification
• Programming language support
• Program loading and execution
• Communications
• Application programs

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Operating Systems
 Shell: an OS interface
• Program that sits on the kernel as an interface between users
and the kernel.
• It is a command interpretor and also has programming
capability of its own
• Interactive access to the OS system calls
• copy from File to File
• Contains a simple programming language
• Popularized by UNIX
• Before UNIX: JCL, OS CLs (command languages)
• Bourne shell, C shell (csh), Korn shell (ksh), Bourne-again
shell (bash), etc.
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 Structure View: Simple Structure
• MS-DOS – written to provide
the most functionality in the
least space
• Not divided into modules
• Although MS-DOS has some
structure, its interfaces and
levels of functionality are
not well separated
• MSDOS is vulnerable to
errant (or malicious)
programs

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 Structure View: Layered Approach
• The operating system is
divided into a number of
layers (levels), each built on
top of lower layers. The
bottom layer (layer 0), is the
hardware; the highest (layer
N) is the user interface.

• With modularity, layers are

selected such that each uses
functions (operations) and
services of only lower-level
layers
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 Structure View: Layered Approach
• UNIX – limited by hardware functionality, the original UNIX
operating system had limited structuring. The UNIX OS consists of
two separable parts:
• Systems programs
• The kernel
 Consists of everything below the system-call interface and
above the physical hardware
 Provides the file system, CPU scheduling, memory
management, and other operating-system functions; a
large number of functions for one level

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Structure View: Layered Approach

UNIX System Structure

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 Structure View: Microkernel
• Moves as much from the kernel into “user” space
• Communication takes place between user modules using
message passing
• Benefits:
• Easier to extend a microkernel
• Easier to port the operating system to new architectures
• More reliable (less code is running in kernel mode)
• More secure
• Detriments:
• Performance overhead of user space to kernel space
communication

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 Structure View: Microkernel (contd.)

Mac OS X Structure
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 Structure View: Modules
• Most modern operating systems
implement kernel modules
• Uses object-oriented
approach
• Each core component is
separate
• Each talks to the others over
known interfaces
• Each is loadable as needed
within the kernel
• Overall, similar to layers but Solaris Modular Approach
with more flexible nature
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 Structure View: Virtual Machines
• A virtual machine takes the layered approach to its logical conclusion.
It treats hardware and the operating system kernel as though they were
all hardware
• A virtual machine provides an interface identical to the underlying bare
hardware
• The operating system creates the illusion of multiple processes, each
executing on its own processor with its own (virtual) memory
• The resources of the physical computer are shared to create the virtual
machines
• CPU scheduling can create the appearance that users have their own
processor
• Spooling and a file system can provide virtual card readers and virtual
line printers
• A normal user time-sharing terminal serves as the virtual machine
operator’s console
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 Structure View: Virtual Machines (contd.)

(a) Non virtual machine (b) virtual machine

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 Structure View: Virtual Machines (contd.)
• The virtual-machine concept provides complete protection of
system resources since each virtual machine is isolated from all
other virtual machines. This isolation, however, permits no direct
sharing of resources.

• A virtual-machine system is a perfect vehicle for operating-

systems research and development. System development is done
on the virtual machine, instead of on a physical machine and so
does not disrupt normal system operation.

• The virtual machine concept is difficult to implement due to the

effort required to provide an exact duplicate to the underlying
machine

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 Structure View: Virtual Machines (contd.)

VMware Architecture
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 The Java Virtual Machine

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 Reading Assignments
1. As discussed in today’s lecture, OS can be viewed from different perspectives.
Read more about the functional and service views.
2. What are the uses of system calls and system programs. Identify their different
types
3. What is cache memory? Discuss its advantages?
4. Operating system provides helpful services to users which are categorized in to
two groups:
• User interface, program execution, I/O operation, File-system
Manipulation, Communications, Error detection
• Resource Allocation, Accounting, Protection and Security
Study the functions each of the services in the two categories
5. Read about the following operating systems and list out the major characteristics
of each:
• Serial processing
• Simple batch systems
• Multiprogrammed batch systems
• Timesharing systems
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 Recommended Websites
• The Operating System Resource Center: A useful collection of documents
and papers on a wide range of operating system topics.
• Review of Operating Systems: A comprehensive review of commercial,
free, research and hobby operating systems.
• Operating System Technical Comparison: Includes a substantial amount
of information on a variety of operating systems.
• ACM Special Interest Group on Operating Systems: Information on
SIGOPS publications and conferences.
• IEEE Technical Committee on Operating Systems and Application
Environments: Includes an online newsletter and links to other sites.
• The comp. os. research FAQ: Lengthy and worthwhile FAQ covering
operating system design issues.

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