Introduction to

Operating Systems
Objectives
To describe the various operating system
models
Explain the operating system structures and
their functionalities
 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
 What Is An Operating System?
▪ It provides computer abstraction and
arbitration.
Main Function of An Operating System
Abstraction
◦Hides details of different hardware configurations
◦Applications do not need to be tailored for each possible
device that might be present on a system
Arbitration
◦Manages access to shared hardware resources
◦Enables multiple applications to share the same
hardware simultaneously
Abstraction
Fact: Hardware devices manufactured by different manufacturer and
they have:
◦Different low-level instructions to operate
◦Different capabilities
If a common interface didn’t exist..
◦Variety of hardware might be limited
◦Every application would have to be programmed to use all
required devices
◦Example: 1990s – era computer games that required internal
programming for video and sound cards.
Solution: Operating Systems provide a common interface for
hardware devices manufactured by different manufacturers.
Arbitration
Fact: Hardware shared by multiple applications simultaneously.
◦A computer user can run several applications at a time.
◦It would be a big problem if the resources would not be allocated
according to application requests.
Solution: OS ensures that all applications can access resources
◦ Divides CPU core time among different programs
◦Manages access to RAM, I/O and disk
◦Enforces system and security policies to isolate applications from each
other.
Abstraction or Arbitration?
Supporting both Intel and AMD processors
Switching between applications
Separating memory allocated to different applications
Enabling video conferencing software to use different camera devices
Accessing two different hard disks
Sending and receiving messages over a network
 Operating System Definition
■No universally accepted definition.

■“Everything a vendor ships when you order an operating system”

is good approximation
● But varies wildly

■“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.
Layers of the Computer System
Application

Libraries and Utilities

Operating System

Hardware
Layers of the Computer System
Application

Userspace

Libraries and Utilities

Operating System Kernel

Hardware
 Operating System Services
One set of operating-system services provides functions that are helpful to the user:
◦ User interface - Almost all operating systems have a user interface (UI)
◦ Varies between Command-Line (CLI), Graphics User Interface (GUI), Batch
◦ Program execution - The system must be able to load a program into memory and to run that program, end
execution, either normally or abnormally (indicating error)
◦ I/O operations - A running program may require I/O, which may involve a file or an I/O device
◦ File-system manipulation - The file system is of particular interest. Obviously, programs need to read and
write files and directories, create and delete them, search them, list file Information, permission
management.
A View of Operating System Services
Operating System Services
One set of operating-system services provides functions that are helpful to the user (cont.):
◦ Communications – Processes may exchange information, on the same computer or between computers
over a network
◦ Communications may be via shared memory or through message passing (packets moved by the OS)
◦ Error detection – OS needs to be constantly aware of possible errors
◦ May occur in the CPU and memory hardware, in I/O devices, in user program
◦ For each type of error, OS should take the appropriate action to ensure correct and consistent computing
◦ Debugging facilities can greatly enhance the user’s and programmer’s abilities to efficiently use the system
Operating System Services
Another set of OS functions exists for ensuring the efficient operation of the system itself via
resource sharing
◦ Resource allocation - When multiple users or multiple jobs running concurrently, resources must
be allocated to each of them
◦ Many types of resources - Some (such as CPU cycles, main memory, and file storage) may have special allocation code, others (such as I/O
devices) may have general request and release code
◦ Accounting - To keep track of which users use how much and what kinds of computer resources
◦ Protection and security - The owners of information stored in a multiuser or networked computer
system may want to control use of that information, concurrent processes should not interfere
with each other
◦ Protection involves ensuring that all access to system resources is controlled
◦ Security of the system from outsiders requires user authentication, extends to defending external I/O devices from invalid access
attempts
◦ If a system is to be protected and secure, precautions must be instituted throughout it. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.
 Operating System Structure
■Multiprogramming needed for efficiency

● Single user cannot keep CPU and I/O devices busy at all times
● Multiprogramming organizes 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
 Operating System Structure
■Timesharing (multitasking) is logical extension in which CPU switches jobs so frequently that
users can interact with each job while it is running, creating interactive computing.
● Response time should be < 1 second
● 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
 Operating Systems Operations
■Interrupt driven by hardware
■Software 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
■Dual-mode operation allows OS to protect itself and other
system components
Operating Systems Operations
● User mode and kernel mode
● Mode bit provided by hardware
 Provides ability to distinguish when system is running user code
or kernel code
 Some instructions designated as privileged, only executable in
kernel mode
 System call changes mode to kernel, return from call resets it to
user
 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
Transition from User to Kernel Mode
System Calls
Programming interface to the services provided by the OS

Typically written in a high-level language (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)

Why use APIs rather than system calls?

 Example of System Calls
System call sequence to copy the contents of one file to another file
Example of Standard API
Consider the ReadFile() function in the Win32 API—a function for reading from a file

A description of the parameters passed to ReadFile()

◦ HANDLE file—the file to be read
◦ LPVOID buffer—a buffer where the data will be read into and written from
◦ DWORD bytesToRead—the number of bytes to be read into the buffer
◦ LPDWORD bytesRead—the number of bytes read during the last read
◦ LPOVERLAPPED ovl—indicates if overlapped I/O is being used
System Call Implementation

Typically, a number associated with each system call

◦ System-call interface maintains a table indexed according to these numbers

The system call interface invokes intended system call in OS kernel and returns status of the system
call and any return values

The caller need know nothing about how the system call is implemented
◦ Just needs to obey API and understand what OS will do as a result call
◦ Most details of OS interface hidden from programmer by API
◦ Managed by run-time support library (set of functions built into libraries included with compiler)
API – System Call – OS Relationship
Types of System Calls
Process control

File management

Device management

Information maintenance

Communications

Protection
Examples of Windows and Unix System Calls
MS-DOS execution

(a) At system startup (b) running a program

FreeBSD Running Multiple
Programs
System Programs
System programs provide a convenient environment for program development and execution. The
can be divided into:
◦ File manipulation
◦ Status information
◦ File modification
◦ Programming language support
◦ Program loading and execution
◦ Communications
◦ Application programs

Most users’ view of the operation system is defined by system programs, not the actual system
calls
System Programs
Provide a convenient environment for program development and execution
◦ Some of them are simply user interfaces to system calls; others are considerably more
complex
File management - Create, delete, copy, rename, print, dump, list, and generally
manipulate files and directories
Status information
◦ Some ask the system for info - date, time, amount of available memory, disk space,
number of users
◦ Others provide detailed performance, logging, and debugging information
◦ Typically, these programs format and print the output to the terminal or other output
devices
◦ Some systems implement a registry - used to store and retrieve configuration information
System Programs (Cont.)
File modification
◦ Text editors to create and modify files
◦ Special commands to search contents of files or perform transformations of the text

Programming-language support - Compilers, assemblers, debuggers and interpreters sometimes provided

Program loading and execution- Absolute loaders, relocatable loaders, linkage editors, and overlay-loaders,
debugging systems for higher-level and machine language
Communications - Provide the mechanism for creating virtual connections among processes, users, and
computer systems
◦ Allow users to send messages to one another’s screens, browse web pages, send electronic-mail messages, log in
remotely, transfer files from one machine to another
Operating System Design and Implementation
Design and Implementation of OS not “solvable”, but some approaches have proven successful

Internal structure of different Operating Systems can vary widely

Start by defining goals and specifications

Affected by choice of hardware, type of system

User goals and System goals

◦ User goals – operating system should be convenient to use, easy to learn, reliable, safe, and fast
◦ System goals – operating system should be easy to design, implement, and maintain, as well as flexible,
reliable, error-free, and efficient
 Operating System Design and Implementation

Important principle to separate

Policy: What will be done?
Mechanism: How to do it?

Mechanisms determine how to do something, policies decide what will be done.

◦ The separation of policy from mechanism is a very important principle, it allows maximum flexibility if policy
decisions are to be changed later.
Operating System Structure
Monolithic
Layered
Microkernels
Modular
Simple Structure (Monolithic Structure)
Monolithic Structure
◦ Do not have well-defined structure
◦ Interfaces and levels of functionality are not well separated.
◦ Example:

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
MS-DOS Layer Structure
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
Traditional UNIX System Structure
UNIX
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
Layered Structure
Technische Hogeschool Eindhoven(THE OS) – E.W Dijkstra, Netherlands
Structure

Layer Function
5 The operator
4 User programs
3 I/O management
2 Operator-process
communication
1 Memory management
0 Processor allocation and
multiprogramming
Layered Operating System
Microkernel System Structure
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
Mac OS X Structure
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 with more flexible

Solaris Modular Approach
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 host creates the illusion that a process has its own processor and (virtual memory).

Each guest is provided with a (virtual) copy of underlying computer.

Virtual Machines History and
Benefits
First appeared commercially in IBM mainframes in 1972

Fundamentally, multiple execution environments (different operating systems) can share the same hardware

Protect from each other

Some sharing of file can be permitted, controlled

Commutate with each other, other physical systems via networking

Useful for development, testing

Consolidation of many low-resource use systems onto fewer busier systems

“Open Virtual Machine Format”, standard format of virtual machines, allows a VM to run within many different
virtual machine (host) platforms
Virtual Machines (Cont.)

(a) Nonvirtual machine (b) virtual machine

Para-virtualization
Presents guest with system similar but not identical to hardware

Guest must be modified to run on paravirtualized hardwareF

Guest can be an OS, or in the case of Solaris 10 applications running in containers

Solaris 10 with Two Containers
VMware Architecture
Java
Java consists of:
1. Programming language specification
2. Application programming interface (API)
3. Virtual machine specification
The Java Virtual Machine
The Java Virtual Machine
Java portability across
platforms.
The Java Development Kit
Operating-System Debugging
Debugging is finding and fixing errors, or bugs.
OSes generate log files containing error information.
Failure of an application can generate core dump file capturing memory of the process.
Operating system failure can generate crash dump file containing kernel memory.
Beyond crashes, performance tuning can optimize system performance.
Kernighan’s Law: “Debugging is twice as hard as writing the code in the first place.
Therefore, if you write the code as cleverly as possible, you are, by definition, not smart
enough to debug it.”
DTrace tool in Solaris, FreeBSD, Mac OS X allows live instrumentation on production
systems.
◦ Probes fire when code is executed, capturing state data and sending it to consumers of those probes.
Solaris 10 dtrace Following System
Call
Operating System Generation
Operating systems are designed to run on any of a class of
machines; the system must be configured for each specific
computer site.

SYSGEN program obtains information concerning the specific

configuration of the hardware system.

Booting – starting a computer by loading the kernel.

Bootstrap program – code stored in ROM that is able to locate

the kernel, load it into memory, and start its execution.
System Boot
An operating system must be made available to
hardware so hardware can start it.
◦Small piece of code – bootstrap loader, locates the kernel,
loads it into memory, and starts it.
◦Sometimes two-step process where boot block at fixed
location loads bootstrap loader.
◦When power initialized on system, execution starts at a fixed
memory location.
◦Firmware is used to hold initial boot code.