0% found this document useful (0 votes)
55 views9 pages

What Is An Operating System?

The document discusses operating systems and how they manage computer hardware and allow multiple programs to run simultaneously. Without an operating system, each program would need to directly interface with and manage the hardware. With an operating system, it acts as an intermediary that hides the hardware details and shares resources like memory, disk space, processors and peripherals between multiple programs, allowing several users to utilize a computer simultaneously in an efficient manner through time-sharing. This makes developing and using software much easier.

Uploaded by

DaWheng Vargas
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
0% found this document useful (0 votes)
55 views9 pages

What Is An Operating System?

The document discusses operating systems and how they manage computer hardware and allow multiple programs to run simultaneously. Without an operating system, each program would need to directly interface with and manage the hardware. With an operating system, it acts as an intermediary that hides the hardware details and shares resources like memory, disk space, processors and peripherals between multiple programs, allowing several users to utilize a computer simultaneously in an efficient manner through time-sharing. This makes developing and using software much easier.

Uploaded by

DaWheng Vargas
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 9

What Is An Operating System?

Before Operating Systems


 What do you do with just computer hardware?
– If someone gives you a computer with no software
whatsoever, how do you get it to do anything?
– You write a program that runs on the hardware

 In the early days, that was the way it worked ...


– You started with just the bare hardware
– You wrote a program that did everything:
 Including managing all aspects of the hardware
 Including solving your particular problem

– Your program was all the computer did!


Without an Operating System
 Each program runs directly on the
hardware
 Each program must do everything
 Each program needs to know the details
Program of the hardware and how to use it
 If the hardware changes, the program
Hardware must change as well
 The hardware supports only one
program at a time - each user must wait
until the previous program is done to
“share” the hardware with other users.
 Writing programs is incredibly complex
and expensive
With an Operating System
 Operating system runs directly on the
hardware
 Operating system is in charge of managing
Program the hardware
 Operating system hides the details of
Operating
hardware from software - provides a much
System
simpler interface for programs
Hardware  If hardware changes, software does not -
operating system must handle it
 By carefully managing hardware resources,
several programs can run at once
 Software becomes much easier and
cheaper to develop
So, What Are the Benefits of an OS?
 An operating system manages the computer
– Programming is easier
– Using a computer is easier - you no longer need to
be an expert to use it
 An operating system hides the hardware
– Programs are portable
– Programs are hardware-independent
 An operating system facilitates resource sharing
– Several users can run several programs at once
– Saves time and money
How Hardware Resources are Shared

 Memory and disk space Program A


– programs use different regions Program B

 Printers (and other peripherals)


– programs line up and wait
Program B Program A
 CPU
– programs time share
B A
– time is split into slices, with each
A
program getting several slices B
C
Time Sharing Explained

 Different
processes are run for some small
amount of time in turns.

B OS D

C
 Each task believes that it has the whole
machine to itself!
 Slower than being by itself, but quick enough.
Not Really That Slow In Reality

Is the computer
shared?!

The network is
slow today ... A
This user is a
B OS D slow typer!

C
This file is taking
forever to load! Use top to see the
busiest programs!
Exercise

 Use who to see how many users


are using the system.
 Use top to see the busiest
processes.
– press q to quit top
 Use ps to see your own processes.

You might also like