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1.3.5
Operating
System
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1.3.6 Operating systems

Have Revised
Have Read
To Revise

Prepared
Learning Outcome To Read

1.3.6: Operating systems

• describe the purpose of an operating system (Candidates will
be required to understand the purpose and function of an
operating system and why it is needed. They will not be
required to understand how operating systems work.)
• show understanding of the need for interrupts
Software:
Data and programs of computer are known as software.
There are two main types of software: systems software and application software
System Software
System software is a software that provides platform to other software.
Systems software includes the programs that are dedicated to managing the computer itself, such
as the operating system and utility software.
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Operating System
An operating system (OS) is a type of system software that manages computer’s hardware and
software resources.
It provides common services for computer programs. An OS acts a link between the software and
the hardware. It controls and keeps a record of the execution of all other programs that are
present in the computer, including application programs and other system software.
Most operating systems comprise a large set of programs, only some of which are stored in the
computer’s memory all the time. Many of the routines available in the OS are stored on the hard
drive so that they can be accessed when required. This saves space in the computer’s main
memory.
When you are using applications software, you are not communicating directly with the computer
hardware. Your applications software communicates with OS program modules that communicate
with the computer hardware on its behalf. Without an operating system, a computer is useless no
matter how many programs you have.

Why an operating system is need?

An operating system is the most important software that runs on a computer. It manages
the computer's memory and processes, as well as all of its software and hardware. It also allows
you to communicate with the computer without knowing how to speak the computer's language.
The hardware is unusable without an OS. Operating system hides complexity of hardware from
user. It acts as an interface/ controls communications between user and hardware, hardware and
software. It provides software platform / environment on which other programs can be run.

Do all computer need operating system?

Not all computers have operating systems. The computer that controls the microwave oven in your
kitchen, for example, doesn't need an operating system. It has one set of tasks to perform, very
straightforward input to expect (a numbered keypad and a few pre-set buttons) and simple, never-
changing hardware to control. For a computer like this, an operating system would be
unnecessary baggage, driving up the development and manufacturing costs significantly and
adding complexity where none is required. Instead, the computer in a microwave oven simply runs
a single hard-wired program all the time.
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The management tasks performed by the operating system are

1. Memory Management: The OS keeps track of every memory location and is responsible for
making memory available for different processes, such as allocating free space in memory to
programs. The OS also deals with virtual memory and swapping pages in and out of RAM.The OS
keeps track of the primary memory and allocates the memory when a process requests it.
Memory protection to ensure that two programs do not try to use the same space
Use of virtual memory
Deciding which processes need to be in main memory at any one time
Location of processes within the memory
By example, e.g. when process terminates, memory is made available
2. File Management: Allocates and de-allocates the resources and decides who gets the
resources.
Maintains directory structures
Provides file naming conventions
Controls access
3. Security: Prevents unauthorized access to programs and data by means of passwords.
Makes provision for recovery when data is lost
Provides usernames and passwords /encryption / user accounts
Prevents unauthorised access
Ensures privacy of data
4. Hardware Management
Programmers write software and users run this software. The software uses the hardware. The
operating system has to ensure that the hardware does what the software wants it to do. Program
development tools associated with a programming language allow a programmer to write a
program without needing to know the details of how the hardware, particularly the processor,
actually works. The operating system then has to provide the mechanism for the execution of the
developed program.
5. Process /resource management
A program, during execution is referred as a process. Many process are running in computer at a
time and each process needs access to computer resources.
The OS must manage the physical resources of the computer. Some resources are limited and
must be managed to maximise the use of the computer system:
- A simple system has only one processor.
- Secondary storage is of a fixed size.
- Some input/output devices (e.g. printers) are shared.
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Following process management tasks are done by operating system:

Scheduling of processes / multi-tasking / multi-programming etc.
Resolution of conflicts when two or more processes require the same resource
6. Provision of a software platform/ environment
The OS provides a platform on which the applications software can run.
7. Interrupt handling
Interrupts are signals sent be a hardware or a software or a user to seek attention of operating
system. Interrupts are handled by operating system like:
Identifies priorities of interrupts
Save current memory / process values /saves data on power outage
Loads appropriate Interrupt Service Routine (ISR)
8. User- system interface
The OS provides a means of communication (the user interface) between the human user, or the
outside world, and the computer. A user interface is needed to allow the user to get the software
and hardware to do something useful. An operating system should provide at least the following
for user input and output:
• a command-line interface
• a graphical user interface (GUI).
9. Error-detecting Aids: Production of dumps, traces, error messages, and other debugging and
error-detecting methods.
10. Scheduling: The OS schedules process through its scheduling algorithms.
11. Device management
Every computer system has a variety of components that are categorised as 'devices'. Examples
include the monitor screen, the keyboard, the printer and the webcam. The management of these
requires:
installation of the appropriate device driver software
control of usage by processes.
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User interface
A user interface, or human-computer interface (HCI), consists of all the hardware and software
through which a user provides input to a computer or receives information from it. Types of user
interface controlled by the OS include:
Command Line Interface
A Graphical User Interface:

A Command Line Interface (CLI):

A command-line interface allows the user to interact with the computer by typing in commands.
The computer displays a prompt, the user keys in the command and presses enter.
In the early days of personal computers, all PCs used command-line interfaces.

Features of a command-line interface

Commands must be typed correctly and in the right order or the command will not work.
Experienced users who know the commands can work very quickly without having to find
their way around menus.
An advantage of command driven programs is that they do not need the memory and
processing power of the latest computer and will often run on lower spec machines.
Command driven programs do not need to run in Windows.
A command-line interface can run many programs, for example a batch file could launch
half a dozen programs to do its task.
An inexperienced user can sometimes find a command driven program difficult to use
because of the number of commands that have to be learnt.
An example of a common command driven interface is MS-DOS. The MS-DOS command to
display all files on c:\ would be: dir c:\
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A Graphical User Interface:

Graphical user interface is sometimes shortened to GUI. The user chooses an option usually by
pointing a mouse at an icon representing that option.
Features of GUIs include:
They are much easier to use for beginners.
They enable you to easily exchange information
between software using cut and paste or 'drag and
drop'.
They use a lot of memory and processing power. It can
be slower to use than a command-line interface if you
are an expert user.
They can be irritating to experienced users when simple tasks require a number of
operations.
When discussing user interfaces, it is important to note that Windows XP, Windows Vista, Apple
OSX and Ubuntu all have graphical user interfaces.
A Menu Driven Interface:
The user is offered a simple menu from which to choose an option. One menu often leads to a
further menu. Part of the screen may have an instruction followed
by a numbered list of options to choose from.
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Peripheral device control

Methods of communication between the OS and peripheral devices include the use of:
Buffers: Temporary memory area in memory used to compensate the difference in speed of
two devices.
Spooling: Acronym for simultaneous peripheral operations on-line, spooling refers to putting
jobs in a buffer, a special area in memory or on a disk where a device can access them when it
is ready. Spooling is useful because devices access data at different rates.
Interrupts: A signal sent from a peripheral device (hardware) or program event (software) to
the printer to indicate that the sender needs attention.
Polling: The process carried out by an operating system of periodically interrogating each
peripheral device in turn to discover whether it needs the attention of operating system.
Handshaking: The process by which two devices negotiate the protocol, (rules) they will use to
communicate for the rest of the session, or signal their readiness to send or receive data.
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Summer 2014 P11:

(a) (i) A student wrote: “batch processing can be used when making airline bookings”.
Why is this statement incorrect? [1]

............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
...........................................................................................................................................................

(ii) The same student also wrote: “to launch an application, a graphical user interface (GUI)
requires typing the name of the application using a keyboard”.
Why is this statement incorrect?
…........................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................. …………………………………….[1]
(b) A user interface is a function of a typical operating system.
Write down four other functions of a typical operating system.
1: ……….………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2: ……….………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3: ……….………………………………………………………………………………………………………
4: ….……………………………………………………………………………………………………… [4]

Most operating systems provide a user interface.

(a) User interfaces can be either command line interfaces (CLI) or graphical user interfaces (GUI).
Give ONE advantage and ONE disadvantage of both types of interface.
Advantage CLI: ………………………………………………………………….....................……………..
Disadvantage CLI: …………………………………………………………………………….....................
Advantage GUI: ………………………………………………………………………………......................
…………………………………………….........................…………………………

1: ……….………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2: ……….………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3: ……….…………………………………………………………………………………………………[3]
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(a) What is meant by an interrupt?

…........................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................. …………………………………….[1]

(b) A user starts the printing of a document, and then carries on editing a second
document while printing continues.
Explain how interrupts make this possible.
………….……….………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………….…………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………….……………………………………………………………………………………………………
…….……………………………………………………………………………………………………… [4]
(c) Once a week the user runs a virus checker.
What action will be taken if the virus checker detects a virus in a file?
............................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................................................................................... [2]
(d) The computer is running a single-user operating system.
Describe what this means.
............................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................................................................................... [2]

(a) Describe the terms buffer and interrupt.

Buffer: _______________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________ [2]
interrupt: _____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________ [2]

(b) (i) Explain the role of the buffer and interrupts when a large document of over 200
pages is sent to a laser printer.
_____________________________________________________________________
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4 Six computer terms and six descriptions are shown below.

Draw a line to link each term to its appropriate description.[5]
Signal sent to a processor which may cause a
Browser break in execution of the current routine,
according to priorities

Company that provides individual’s access to the

HTML Internet and other services such as webhosting
and emails

Software application used to locate, retrieve and

Internet service display content on the World Wide Web e.g. web
provider pages, videos and other files

Hardware identification number that uniquely

Interrupt identifies each device on a network; it is
manufactured into every network card and
cannot be altered

Authoring language used to create documents on

IP address the World Wide Web; uses tags and attributes

Location of a given computer/device on a

MAC address network; can be a static or dynamic value

Examiners Comments Question 4

Many candidates demonstrated a good level of knowledge about the computer terms, correctly matching a term to the most
suitable definition.

8 State three features of a typical operating system.

1: .........................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................
2: ......................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................3: ...........
.............................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................................[3]

Examiners Comments Question 8

Most candidates were able to state one feature of an operating system, this was most commonly that it provides a user interface.
Some were able to give two, but very few candidates could provide three.
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4 (a) Nikita wishes to print out some documents and connects her printer to the computer using one of the
USB ports.
(iii) The printer runs out of paper while it is printing the documents. A signal is sent to the
processor to request that the problem is dealt with.
Name this type of signal.
.......................................................................................................................................[1]

6 The diagram shows five operating system functions and five descriptions.
Draw a line between each operating system function and its description. [4]

Function Description
Interrupt Many processes appear to run simultaneously

Utility Data are temporarily held in a buffer waiting

for an output device to access it

Memory A signal that causes the operating system to

management take a specified action

Spooling A program that performs a specific task

required for the operation of a computer
system

Multitasking A process of assigning blocks of memory to

programs running in a computer

Examiner Report
Nearly all candidates identified the correct description for most of the operating system functions. Common errors
included mixing up, ‘Interrupt’, ‘Memory management’ and/or ‘Spooling’

6 Selma writes the following four answers in her Computer Science examination.
State which computer terms she is describing.
“It is a signal. When the signal is received it tells the operating system that an event has occurred.”
Selma is describing ..............................................................................................................
“It takes source code written in a high level language and translates it into machine code. It transla
tes the whole of the source code at once.”
Selma is describing ..............................................................................................................
“The part of the central processing unit (CPU) that carries out calculations.”
Selma is describing ..............................................................................................................
“When data is transmitted, if an error is detected in the data received a signal is sent to ask for the
data to be retransmitted. This continues until the data received is correct.”
Selma is describing ..........................................................................................................[4]
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13 State four functions of an operating system.

Function 1 ...............................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................................................
Function 2 ...............................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................................................
Function 3 ...............................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................................................
Function 4 ...............................................................................................................................
...........................................................................................................................................[4]
Comments on Question 13
Many candidates provided a good level of knowledge about the functions of an operating system.

8 Describe the purpose of an interrupt in a computer system.

............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................[4]

7 (b) Computer systems often use interrupts.

Five statements are given about interrupts.
Tick ( ) to show if each statement is True or False. [5]
True False
Statement
( ) ( )
Interrupts can be hardware based or software based
Interrupts are handled by the operating system
Interrupts allow a computer to multitask
Interrupts work out which program to give priority to
Interrupts are vital to a computer and it cannot function without them
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Marking Scheme
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