TMF 2234 / TMC 1234

OPERATING SYSTEMS
Chapter 2:
Memory Management:
Early Systems
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After completing this chapter, you should be able to describe:
▪ The basic functionality of the three memory allocation schemes
presented in this chapter: fixed partitions, dynamic partitions,
relocatable dynamic partitions
▪ Best-fit memory allocation as well as first-fit memory allocation
schemes
▪ How a memory list keeps track of available memory

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES (CONT'D.)

▪ The importance of
deallocation of memory in a
dynamic partition system
▪ The importance of the
bounds register in memory
allocation schemes
▪ The role of compaction and
how it improves memory
allocation efficiency

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INTRODUCTION
▪ Management of main memory is critical
▪ Entire system performance dependent on two condition;
▪ How much memory is available
▪ Optimization of memory during job processing

▪ This chapter introduces:

▪ Memory manager
▪ Four types of memory allocation schemes
▪ Single-user systems
▪ Fixed partitions
▪ Dynamic partitions
▪ Relocatable dynamic partitions

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EARLY DAYS
▪ Magnetic-core memory
▪ Random-access computer
memory
▪ 1955 – 1975
▪ Just called core memory
▪ Tiny magnetic toroids (ring)
▪ Each core 1 bit.
▪ A 32 x 32 memory core
1024 bits of data

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PRESENT DAYS

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SINGLE-USER CONTIGUOUS SCHEME
▪ Commercially available in 1940s and 1950s
▪ Entire program loaded into memory
▪ Contiguous memory space allocated as needed
▪ Jobs processed sequentially
▪ Memory manager performs minimal work
▪ Register to store the base address
▪ Accumulator to track program size

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SINGLE-USER CONTIGUOUS SCHEME
(CONT'D.)
▪ Disadvantages
▪ No support for multiprogramming or networking
▪ Not cost effective
▪ Program size must be less than memory size to execute

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FIXED PARTITIONS
▪ Commercially available in 1950s and 1960s
▪ Main memory is partitioned
▪ At system startup
▪ One contiguous partition per job

▪ Permits multiprogramming
▪ Partition sizes remain static
▪ Must shut down computer system to reconfigure

▪ Requires:
▪ Protection of the job’s memory space
▪ Matching job size with partition size

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 FIXED PARTITIONS (CONT'D.)
▪ Memory manager allocates memory space to jobs
▪ Uses a table

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FIXED PARTITIONS (CONT'D.)

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 FIXED PARTITIONS (CONT'D.)
▪ Disadvantages
▪ Requires contiguous loading of entire program
▪ Job allocation method
▪ First available partition with required size
▪ To work well:
▪ All jobs must be same size and memory size known ahead of time
▪ Arbitrary partition size leads to undesired results
▪ Partition too small
▪ Large jobs have longer turnaround time
▪ Partition too large
▪ Memory waste: internal fragmentation

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 DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
▪ Main memory is partitioned
▪ Jobs given memory requested when loaded
▪ One contiguous partition per job

▪ Job allocation method

▪ First come, first serve allocation method
▪ Memory waste: comparatively small

▪ Disadvantages
▪ Full memory utilization only during loading of first jobs
▪ Subsequent allocation: memory waste
▪ External fragmentation: fragments between blocks

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DYNAMIC PARTITIONS (CONT'D.)

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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
▪ Two methods for free space allocation
▪ First-fit memory allocation: first partition fitting the requirements
▪ Leads to fast allocation of memory space
▪ Best-fit memory allocation: smallest partition fitting the
requirements
▪ Results in least wasted space
▪ Internal fragmentation reduced, but not eliminated

▪ Fixed and dynamic memory allocation schemes use both

methods

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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
(CONT'D.)
▪ First-fit memory allocation
▪ Advantage: faster in making allocation
▪ Disadvantage: leads to memory waste

▪ Best-fit memory allocation

▪ Advantage: makes the best use of memory space
▪ Disadvantage: slower in making allocation

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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
(CONT'D.)

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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
(CONT'D.)

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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
(CONT'D.)
▪ Algorithm for first-fit
▪ Assumes memory manager keeps two lists
▪ One for free memory
▪ One for busy memory blocks
▪ Loop compares the size of each job to the size of each memory
block
▪ Until a block is found that is large enough to fit the job
▪ Job stored into that block of memory
▪ Memory Manager moves out of the loop
▪ Fetches next job from the entry queue

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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
(CONT'D.)
▪ Algorithm for first-fit (cont'd.):
▪ If entire list searched in vain
▪ Then job is placed into waiting queue
▪ Otherwise, Memory Manager fetches next job
▪ Process repeats

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 BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION (CONT'D.)

▪ A request for a block of 200 spaces has just been given to the Memory
Manager.
▪ Using First-Fit Algorithm, Memory Manager locate the first block that are
enough to accommodate the job. Now pointing at 6785.
▪ Loaded to location 6795 add 200 spaces
▪ Now the free spaces starts from 6985 with only size of 400.
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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
(CONT'D.)
▪ Algorithm for best-fit
▪ Goal
▪ Find the smallest memory block into which the job will fit
▪ Entire table searched before allocation

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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
(CONT'D.)

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BEST-FIT VERSUS FIRST-FIT ALLOCATION
(CONT'D.)
▪ Hypothetical allocation schemes
▪ Next-fit: starts searching from last allocated block, for next available
block when a new job arrives
▪ Worst-fit: allocates largest free available block to new job
▪ Opposite of best-fit
▪ Good way to explore theory of memory allocation
▪ Not best choice for an actual system

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DEALLOCATION
▪ Deallocation: freeing allocated memory space
▪ For fixed-partition system:
▪ Straightforward process
▪ Memory Manager resets the status of job’s memory block to “free”
upon job completion
▪ Any code may be used
▪ Example code: binary values with zero indicating free and one
indicating busy

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DEALLOCATION (CONT'D.)
▪ For dynamic-partition system:
▪ Algorithm tries to combine free areas of memory
▪ More complex

▪ Three dynamic partition system cases

▪ Case 1: When the block to be deallocated is adjacent to another
free block
▪ Case 2: When the block to be deallocated is between two free
blocks
▪ Case 3: When the block to be deallocated is isolated from other free
blocks

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CASE 1: JOINING TWO FREE BLOCKS
▪ Blocks are adjacent
▪ List changes to reflect starting address of the new free block
▪ Example: 7600 - the address of the first instruction of the job that
just released this block
▪ Memory block size changes to show its new size for the new
free space
▪ Combined total of the two free partitions
▪ Example: (200 + 5)

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CASE 1: JOINING TWO FREE BLOCKS
(CONT'D.)

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CASE 1: JOINING TWO FREE BLOCKS
(CONT'D.)

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CASE 2: JOINING THREE FREE BLOCKS
▪ Deallocated memory space
▪ Between two free memory blocks

▪ List changes to reflect starting address of new free block

▪ Example: 7560 was smallest beginning address

▪ Sizes of the three free partitions must be combined

▪ Example: (20 + 20 + 205)

▪ Combined entry (last of the three) given status of “null”

▪ Example: 7600

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CASE 2: JOINING THREE FREE BLOCKS
(CONT'D.)

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CASE 2: JOINING THREE FREE BLOCKS
(CONT'D.)

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CASE 3: DEALLOCATING AN ISOLATED
BLOCK
▪ Deallocated memory space
▪ Isolated from other free areas

▪ System determines released memory block status

▪ Not adjacent to any free blocks of memory
▪ Between two other busy areas

▪ System searches table for a null entry

▪ Occurs when memory block between two other busy memory
blocks is returned to the free list

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CASE 3: DEALLOCATING AN ISOLATED
BLOCK (CONT'D.)

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CASE 3: DEALLOCATING AN ISOLATED
BLOCK (CONT'D.)

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CASE 3: DEALLOCATING AN ISOLATED BLOCK
(CONT'D.)

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CASE 3: DEALLOCATING AN ISOLATED
BLOCK (CONT'D.)

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RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
▪ Memory Manager relocates programs
▪ Gathers together all empty blocks

▪ Compact the empty blocks

▪ Make one block of memory large enough to accommodate some or
all of the jobs waiting to get in

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RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)
▪ Compaction: reclaiming fragmented sections of memory
space
▪ Every program in memory must be relocated
▪ Programs become contiguous
▪ Operating system must distinguish between addresses and data
values
▪ Every address adjusted to account for the program’s new location in
memory
▪ Data values left alone

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**RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)

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**RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)

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RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)

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RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)

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RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)
▪ Compaction issues:
▪ What goes on behind the scenes when relocation and compaction
take place?
▪ What keeps track of how far each job has moved from its original
storage area?
▪ What lists have to be updated?

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RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)
▪ What lists have to be updated?
▪ Free list
▪ Must show the partition for the new block of free memory
▪ Busy list
▪ Must show the new locations for all of the jobs already in process that
were relocated
▪ Each job will have a new address
▪ Exception: those already at the lowest memory locations

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RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)
▪ Special-purpose registers used for relocation:
▪ Bounds register
▪ Stores highest location accessible by each program
▪ Relocation register
▪ Contains the value that must be added to each address referenced in the
program
▪ Must be able to access the correct memory addresses after relocation
▪ If the program is not relocated, “zero” value stored in the program’s
relocation register

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RELOCATABLE DYNAMIC PARTITIONS
(CONT'D.)
▪ Compacting and relocating optimizes use of memory
▪ Improves throughput

▪ Options for timing of compaction:

▪ When a certain percentage of memory is busy
▪ When there are jobs waiting to get in
▪ After a prescribed amount of time has elapsed

▪ Compaction entails more overhead

▪ Goal: optimize processing time and memory use while
keeping overhead as low as possible

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SUMMARY
▪ Four memory management techniques
▪ Single-user systems, fixed partitions, dynamic partitions, and
relocatable dynamic partitions
▪ Common requirements of four memory management
techniques
▪ Entire program loaded into memory
▪ Contiguous storage
▪ Memory residency until job completed

▪ Each places severe restrictions on job size

▪ Sufficient for first three generations of computers

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 SUMMARY (CONT'D.)
▪ New modern memory management trends in late 1960s and early
1970s
▪ Discussed in next chapter
▪ Common characteristics of memory schemes
▪ Programs are not stored in contiguous memory
▪ Not all segments reside in memory during job execution

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