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Operating System

An Operating System (OS) is software that serves as an interface between hardware and users, managing resources and operations of a computer. Single User Operating Systems are designed for one user at a time, with types including Single User Single Tasking and Single User Multi Tasking systems. Multi-user Operating Systems allow multiple users to access resources simultaneously and include features like multi-tasking and resource sharing, with examples being Linux and Unix.

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0 views4 pages

Operating System

An Operating System (OS) is software that serves as an interface between hardware and users, managing resources and operations of a computer. Single User Operating Systems are designed for one user at a time, with types including Single User Single Tasking and Single User Multi Tasking systems. Multi-user Operating Systems allow multiple users to access resources simultaneously and include features like multi-tasking and resource sharing, with examples being Linux and Unix.

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pandumsk0236
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© © All Rights Reserved
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What is operating system?

Operating System is defined as the software that acts as the interface between the bare
hardware and the end users. An Operating System is a System software that manages all the
resources of the computing device.
1. Acts as an interface between the software and different parts of the computer or the computer
hardware.
2. Manages the overall resources and operations of the computer.
3. Controls and monitors the execution of all other programs that reside in the computer, which
also includes application programs and other system software of the computer.

Examples of Operating Systems are


Windows
Linux
macOS
Android
iOS, etc.

There are different types of Operating systems present in the software industry. Here we will focus
on Single User Operating Systems. Let’s start with the definition of the Single User Operating System.

Single-User Operating Systems:


Single User Operating Systems are the types of Operating systems that were developed for use on a
computer that will only have a single user working at a given point in time. It is an operating system
that runs on a single computer and is used by only a single user. It is different from a multi-user
operating system which was designed to be used by multiple users simultaneously.
Single User Operating Systems that can perform multiple tasks at the same time are known as Single
User Multi Tasking Operating Systems. The Image given below depicts a general Single User
Operating System.

Single user operating system Examples


Windows 95 is a single-user operating system. More examples of the single-user operating system
are DOS, Windows 3x, Windows 95, 97, and 98. In mobile phones, Symbian OS is a single-user OS.

Types of Single User Operating Systems


Single User Operating Systems are of the following two different types.

 Single User Single Tasking Operating Systems

 Single User Multi Tasking Operating Systems

Single User Single Tasking Operating System


 The Single User Single Tasking Operating system is an Operating System that can only perform
one task at a time. This means that the user can only run one program at a time. When the user
wants to run another program, they must first close the first program. The Single User Single
Tasking Operating System is specially designed for wireless phones and two-way messaging
devices.

Examples of Single User Single Tasking Operating Systems: MS-DOS, Palm OS,
etc.

DOS :Disk Operating System


The correct option is MS-DOS. MS-DOS is an example of a single-tasking operating system. An
operating system that allows a single user to perform only one task at a time is called a Single-
Tasking Operating System. Palm OS is also an example of a single-tasking operating system.

Single User Multi Tasking Operating System


Single User Multi Tasking Operating System is an operating system that can perform multiple tasks at
the same time. This type of Single User Operating System is designed only for a single user, but this
single user can perform multiple programs at the same time, unlike Single User Single Tasking
Operating System.

Examples of Single User Multi Tasking Operating Systems: Microsoft Windows, Macintosh
OS, etc.

Multi user operating system:


An operating system that allows and grants permission to multiple users to access underlying
hardware resources simultaneously is a Multi-user operating system. Multi-user operating systems
get used in large organizations, e-commerce sectors, government institutions, educational
institutions, and large-scale universities. The servers grant permission to multiple users for
simultaneous access to the operating system, hardware, and kernel.

Multi-User Operating Systems: Multi-User Operating Systems are designed to support multiple users
simultaneously. Examples include Linux and Unix.

Features of the Multi-user Operating System

• Multi-tasking- Using multi-user operating system we can perform multiple tasks at


a time, i.e. we can run more than one program at a time.
Example: we can edit a word document while browsing the internet.
• Resource sharing- we can share different peripherals like printers, hard drives or
we can share a file or data. For this, each user is given a small time slice
of CPU time.
• Background processing- It means that when commands are not processed firstly,
then they are executed in the background while another programs are interacting
with the system in the real time.
A multi-user operating system is of 3 types which are as follows:
1. Distributed Systems: in this, different computers are managed in such a way so
that they can appear as a single computer. So, a sort of network is formed through
which they can communicate with each other.
2. Time-sliced Systems: in this, a short period is assigned to each task, i.e. each
user is given a time slice of the CPU time. As we know these time slices are tiny, so
it appears to the users that they all are using the mainframe computer at the same
time.
3. Multiprocessor Systems: in this, the operating system utilises more than one
processor.
Example: Linux, Unix, Windows XP

Single user Operating System Multi-user Operating System

It is an operating system in which the user can It is an operating system in which multiple users
manage one thing at a time effectively. can manage multiple resources at a time

Example: Linux, Unix, windows 2000, windows


Example: MS DOS
2003 etc.

Single user Operating System has two types: It is of three types: time-sharing operating
Single user Single task Operating System and system, distributed operating system and
Single user Multi task Operating System. multiprocessor system.

It is simple. It is complex.

It provides controlled access for the number of


It provides a platform for one user at a time.
users by maintaining a database of known users.

If another user wants to access the computer


There is no need to wait for accessing the
resources, then he/she has to wait until the
computer resources.
current process completes.

This type of operating system is used for single This type of operating system is used for
user. multiple users.

In this, sometimes CPU is utilised to its The operating system stimulates real-time
maximum limit. performance by task switching.

It supports standalone systems. It doesn’t support standalone systems.

It is the operating system which maximum


It is the operating system which is most of the
people use on their personal computers or
time used in mainframe computers.
laptops.

In this, we have to take care of balance between


In this, there is no need to take care of balance
users so that if one problem arises with one user
between users.
does not affect other users also.

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