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Y10-04-P22: OS: Peripherals and User Management

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26 views12 pages

Y10-04-P22: OS: Peripherals and User Management

peripherals

Uploaded by

molaposk10
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We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Y10-04-P22:

OS: peripherals and user management


Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Learning objectives
In this lesson you will learn to:

• Describe how an OS uses drivers to communicate with and


manage peripherals
• Explain the purpose of a user interface, and describe features
of a GUI and a CLI
• Explain the need for access control and describe methods of
authentication
• Select suitable access rights for specified individuals.

For more information and additional student activities see Topic 3.2
of the student book.

© Pearson Education Ltd 2020. Copying permitted for purchasing institution only.
Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Operating systems
• Previously you learned the main functions of operating systems:
• process management
• file management
• user management
• peripheral management.
• You learned that the OS stores files in directories organised in
hierarchies.
• You learned that the OS schedules processes to be executed by
the CPU, gives pages of memory to processes, and moves pages
to virtual memory when RAM is full.
• In this lesson, you will learn how the OS manages peripherals and
users.

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Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Peripheral device
• The word peripheral means ‘on the edge’ or ‘secondary to
something else’.
• Peripheral devices are additional hardware that are connected to
a computer.
• Peripherals can be inside or outside the computer case itself.
• There are many types of peripheral devices used in modern
computing systems.

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Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Devices speaking the same language


• As you have seen, there is a huge variety of peripheral devices.
• It would be impossible for operating systems to contain the right
code to communicate with them all correctly.
• In order to overcome this problem, devices have specialist pieces
of software called drivers that are installed on the hard disk.
• The driver provides an interface between the peripheral device
and the operating system so that they are able to communicate.
• Drivers have to be kept up to date to ensure that peripheral
devices work as expected.
• Most of the hardware components in a computer require a driver –
this includes internal devices such as graphics cards or wireless
internet receivers.

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Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

The purpose of an OS

‘An operating system must provide an environment in which a


user can execute programs conveniently and efficiently.’

• What does this statement mean?


• How is this achieved?

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Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

The user interface


• The user interface (UI) of an operating system is the point at
which you, the human user, and the system interact.
• There are several different types of UI.
• The most common and familiar to you will be the graphical user
interface (GUI).
• The other most common interface (used particularly in industry) is
the command line interface (CLI).
• Other types of interface exist, such as menu-driven interfaces (for
example, the menu you see on an ATM). These are less common.

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Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Graphical user interfaces (GUIs)


• There are many styles of GUI.
• Each operating system has a particular style of GUI, some of which you
may be familiar with.

• Most GUIs use the WIMP format. This stands for:


• Windows - programs that open in frames that can be moved around
and overlaid
• Icons – pictures to represent programs you can execute or actions
you can do
• Menus – lists of options to choose from. These usually expand in
layers
• Pointer – using a mouse to click on items.
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Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Command line interfaces (CLIs)


• This will probably be less familiar to you.
• CLIs are commonly used by people who need to
control the function of a computer, server or
network at a more complex level than most
users.
• There are no icons or pointers in a CLI. The
user can only interact with the computer by
typing in commands to be executed.
• CLIs are more challenging to use, but give the
user more control over the function of the
computer.
• Machines running a CLI tend to run more
quickly as the user interface is not competing
for machine resources.
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Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Access control

• When you log into a computer at school, you may have a slightly
different experience to when you log in at home.
• This is due to the level of access control each system has in
place.
• Access control is the job of the OS.
• The OS enforces the rules of access associated with each
individual user.
• This is related to the access permissions you learned about when
you looked at file management.

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Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Logging in
• The amount of access you have to a computer will depend on the
rights that the system administrator has given your user account.
• When you log in at school, you may have to enter a username and
password.
• This process is called authentication – proving you are the
account holder.
• In some systems (particularly online systems such as social media
or email accounts) multi-factor authentication may be required.
• This may include a passcode sent to a different device, a
password and an ID card, or even biometrics.
• This is done to make computer systems more secure.

© Pearson Education Ltd 2020. Copying permitted for purchasing institution only.
Y10-04-P22: OS: peripherals and user management

Wrap up: you have learned how to…


 Describe how an OS uses drivers to communicate with and
manage peripherals.
• Peripherals are additional hardware devices connected to a
computer.
 Explain the purpose of a user interface, and describe features of a
GUI and a CLI.
• Enables users to interact with a computer and run programs.
 Explain the need for access control
• To control access to systems and files.
 Describe methods of authentication.
• Username/password combinations, multi-factor authentication
with ID cards, biometrics, additional one-off passcodes, etc.

© Pearson Education Ltd 2020. Copying permitted for purchasing institution only.

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