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Copilot Segmentation Paging

The document discusses memory segmentation and paging techniques used in Linux and Windows operating systems. It explains that Linux primarily uses paging and does not use traditional memory segmentation, while Windows uses both paging and segmentation. Some clarification is then provided about Linux's limited use of segmentation for architectural requirements.

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Lin Jeremy
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40 views

Copilot Segmentation Paging

The document discusses memory segmentation and paging techniques used in Linux and Windows operating systems. It explains that Linux primarily uses paging and does not use traditional memory segmentation, while Windows uses both paging and segmentation. Some clarification is then provided about Linux's limited use of segmentation for architectural requirements.

Uploaded by

Lin Jeremy
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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User

Can you describe the details of segmentation and paging in Linux operating
system ?

Bing

Sure, I can provide some details about segmentation and paging in the Linux
operating system.

Paging is a memory management technique used for non-contiguous


memory allocation. It is a fixed-size partitioning scheme. In paging, both main
memory and secondary memory are divided into equal fixed-size partitions.
The partitions of the secondary memory and main memory are known as
pages and frames respectively1. The size of the page is determined by the
hardware1. Paging is faster in comparison to segmentation1. However, paging
could result in internal fragmentation1.

On the other hand, Segmentation is another non-contiguous memory


allocation scheme like paging. Unlike paging, in segmentation, the process
isn’t divided indiscriminately into fixed-size pages. It is a variable-size
partitioning scheme1. The partitions of secondary memory units are known as
segments1. The segment size is given by the user1. Segmentation could result
in external fragmentation1.

The Linux OS fully incorporates demand paging, but it does not use memory
segmentation. This gives all tasks a flat, linear, virtual address space of 32/64
bits3.

There are also two different memory management techniques that combine
the benefits of paging and segmentation: Paged Segmentation and
Segmented Paging2. Paged Segmentation divides a process’s address space
into segments and then divides each segment into pages 2. Segmented Paging,
on the other hand, divides the physical memory into pages, and then maps
each logical address used by a process to a physical page 2.

I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.

Source(s)
1. Difference Between Paging and Segmentation - GeeksforGeeks
2. operating system - Segmentation in Linux : Segmentation & Paging are redundant? - Stack
Overflow
3. Paged Segmentation and Segmented Paging - GeeksforGeeks
4. Exploring Memory Management In Linux: Paging And Segmentation For Improved Performance
And Reliability - Systran Box
5. Segmentation in Linux - Understanding the Linux Kernel, Second Edition [Book] - O'Reilly Media

User

Do Windows operating system use memory segmentation ?

Bing

Yes, the Windows operating system does use memory segmentation. Memory
segmentation is a technique of dividing a computer's primary memory into
segments or sections1. In a computer system using segmentation, a reference
to a memory location includes a value that identifies a segment and an offset
within that segment1. Segments usually correspond to natural divisions of a
program such as individual routines or data tables 1. Segmentation was
originally invented as a method by which system software could isolate
software processes and data they are using1.

In the context of Windows, a memory segment represents memory dedicated


to a GPU5. This may be VRAM on a discrete GPU or firmware/driver reserved
memory on an integrated GPU5. There can be multiple memory segments
enumerated5. A memory segment is managed as a pool of physical pages
which are either 4KB or 64KB in size5.

I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.

Source(s)
1. Memory segmentation - Wikipedia
2. GPU segments - Windows drivers | Microsoft Learn
3. Segmentation in Operating System - GeeksforGeeks
4. Segmentation in Operating System - Online Tutorials Library
5. What Is Segmentation in Operating System? - DZone

User

So the conclusion is : Linux only use paging memory allocation, while


Windows not only use paging but also use memory segmentation
techniques ?
Bing

Yes, that's correct. The Linux operating system primarily uses paging for
memory management and does not use memory segmentation. On the other
hand, the Windows operating system uses both paging and memory
segmentation techniques. It's important to note that the specific
implementation details can vary between different versions of these operating
systems. Let me know if you have any other questions! 😊

User

i'm confused. Based on this link:https://www.quora.com/What-operating-


systems-use-segmentation-instead-of-paging-for-memory-
management#:~:text=However%2C%20some%20older%20operating%20syste
ms,segmentation%20in%20conjunction%20with%20paging.

it said Linux also using memory segmentation. Are you wrong ?

Bing

I apologize for any confusion. Let's clarify this.

The Linux operating system does use a form of segmentation, but it's not in
the traditional sense of dividing the memory into different segments for
different tasks12. Instead, Linux uses a flat memory model where all processes
use the same logical addresses4. This means that segmentation and paging are
somewhat redundant in Linux, as both can be used to separate the physical
address spaces of processes1.

Linux uses segmentation only when required by the 80x86 architecture 4. In


particular, Linux uses segmentation for thread-local storage and for certain
requirements of the x86 architecture1. However, for memory protection and
isolation of userland and kernel space, Linux relies entirely on paging 123.

So, while Linux does technically use segmentation, it's primarily for specific
architectural requirements and thread-local storage. The main technique Linux
uses for memory management is paging 123.

I hope this clears up the confusion. Please let me know if you have any other
questions! 😊

Source(s)
1. Does Linux not use segmentation but only paging?
2. Linux memory segmentation - Stack Overflow
3. Segmentation in Linux - Understanding the Linux Kernel, Second Edition [Book] - O'Reilly Media
4. Linux – Does Linux not use segmentation but only paging

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