Introduction to Operating Systems

A computer system has many resources (hardware and

software), which may be required to complete a task. The
commonly required resources are input/output devices,
memory, file storage space, CPU, etc. The operating
system acts as a manager of the above resources and
allocates them to specific programs and users, whenever
necessary to perform a particular task. Therefore the
operating system is the resource manager i.e. it can
manage the resource of a computer system internally. The
resources are processor, memory, files, and I/O devices. In
simple terms, an operating system is an interface
between the computer user and the machine.

It is very important for you that every computer must have

an operating system in order to run other programs. The
operating system mainly coordinates the use of the
hardware among the various system programs and
application programs for various users.

An operating system acts similarly

like government means an operating system performs
no useful function by itself; though it provides an
environment within which other programs can do
useful work.

Below we have an abstract view of the components of the

computer system:
In the above picture:

 The Computer Hardware contains a central

processing unit(CPU), the memory, and the
input/output (I/O) devices and it provides the basic
computing resources for the system.
 The Application programs like spreadsheets,
Web browsers, word processors, etc. are used to
define the ways in which these resources are used to
solve the computing problems of the users. And the
System program mainly consists of compilers, loaders,
editors, OS, etc.
 The Operating System is mainly used to control the
hardware and coordinate its use among the various
application programs for the different users.
 Basically, Computer System mainly consists of
hardware, software, and data.

OS is mainly designed in order to serve two basic purposes:

1. The operating system mainly controls the allocation

and use of the computing System’s resources among
the various user and tasks.
 2. It mainly provides an interface between the computer
hardware and the programmer that simplifies and
makes feasible for coding, creation of application
programs and debugging

Two Views of Operating System

1. User's View
2. System View

Operating System: User View

The user view of the computer refers to the interface being

used. Such systems are designed for one user to
monopolize its resources, to maximize the work that the
user is performing. In these cases, the operating system is
designed mostly for ease of use, with some attention paid
to performance, and none paid to resource utilization.

Operating System: System View

The operating system can be viewed as a resource

allocator also. A computer system consists of many
resources like - hardware and software - that must be
managed efficiently. The operating system acts as the
manager of the resources, decides between conflicting
requests, controls the execution of programs, etc.

Operating System Management Tasks

1. Process management which involves putting the

tasks into order and pairing them into manageable
size before they go to the CPU.
2. Memory management which coordinates data to
and from RAM (random-access memory) and
determines the necessity for virtual memory.
3. Device management provides an interface between
connected devices.
 4. Storage management which directs permanent data
storage.
5. An application that allows standard communication
between software and your computer.
6. The user interface allows you to communicate with
your computer.

Types of Operating System

Given below are different types of Operating System:

1. Simple Batch System

2. Multiprogramming Batch System
3. Multiprocessor System
4. Desktop System
5. Distributed Operating System
6. Clustered System
7. Realtime Operating System
8. Handheld System

Functions of Operating System

1. It boots the computer

2. It performs basic computer tasks e.g. managing the
various peripheral devices e.g. mouse, keyboard
3. It provides a user interface, e.g. command line,
graphical user interface (GUI)
4. It handles system resources such as the computer's
memory and sharing of the central processing
unit(CPU) time by various applications or peripheral
devices.
5. It provides file management which refers to the way
that the operating system manipulates, stores,
retrieves, and saves data.
6. Error Handling is done by the operating system. It
takes preventive measures whenever required to
avoid errors.

Advantages of Operating System

Given below are some advantages of the Operating
System:

 The operating system helps to improve the efficiency

of the work and helps to save a lot of time by reducing
the complexity.
 The different components of a system are independent
of each other, thus failure of one component does not
affect the functioning of another.
 The operating system mainly acts as an interface
between the hardware and the software.
 Users can easily access the hardware without writing
large programs.
 With the help of an Operating system, sharing data
becomes easier with a large number of users.
 We can easily install any game or application on the
Operating system easily and can run them
 An operating system can be refreshed easily from time
to time without having any problems.
 An operating system can be updated easily.
 There are various operating systems that are
accessible in open source. Example: Unix/Linux these
can easily run on the personal computer with no cost
that means Free.
 An operating system is mainly used to hide the
complexity of the hardware.
 AN operating system easily manages the computer as
programming becomes easier.
 With the help of an operating system, multitasking
becomes easier.

Disadvantages of an Operating system

Given below are the drawbacks of using an operating

system:

 Expensive There are some open-source platforms like

Linux. But some operating systems are expensive.
Also, users can use free operating systems but
generally, there is a bit difficulty to run them than
 others. On the other hand, operating systems like
Microsoft Windows having GUI functionality and other
in-built features are very expensive.
 Virus Threat Operating Systems are open to virus
attacks and sometimes it happens that many users
download the malicious software packages on their
system which pauses the functioning of the Operating
system and also slows it down.
 Complexity Some operating systems are complex in
nature because the language used to establish them is
not clear and well defined. If there occurs an issue in
the operating system then the user becomes unable to
resolve that issue.
 System Failure An operating system is the heart of
the computer system if due to any reason it will stop
functioning then the whole system will crashes.

Examples of Operating System

 Windows
 Android
 iOS
 Mac OS
 Linux
 Window Phone OS
 Chrome OS