PHILOSOPHY OF OPERATING SYSTEM (OS)

History and Evolution of Operating Systems

The first computers did not have operating systems. Each program that was running on these first
computers had to include all the code needed to run on the computer, communicate with the
connected hardware and perform the calculation that the program was intended to perform. This
situation made even the simplest programs become very complex.

In response to this problem, the owners of the central computers began to develop system software
that facilitated the writing and execution of the programs included in the computer, and thus the first
operating systems were born.

The first operating system was created by General Motors in 1956 to run a single IBM central computer.
In the 1960s, IBM was the first computer manufacturer to take on the task of developing operating
systems and began distributing operating systems included in its computers.

The first operating systems were developed in the 1950s, when computers could only run one program
at a time. Later in the following decades, computers began to include more and more software
programs, sometimes called libraries, that came together to create the start of today’s operating
systems.

In the late 1960s, the first version of the Unix operating system was developed. Written in programming
language C, and available for free during its early years. Unix easily adapted to the new systems and
quickly achieved wide acceptance.

An operating system therefore is a program that controls the execution of application programs and acts
as an interface between the user of a computer and the computer hardware. It is concerned with the
allocation of resources and services, such as memory, processors, devices, and information. The
operating system correspondingly includes programs to manage these resources, such as a traffic
controller, a scheduler, a memory management module, I/O programs, and a file system.

An operating system (OS) manages all other applications and programs in a computer, and it is loaded
into the computer by a boot program. It enables applications to interact with a computer’s hardware.
Through a designated application programme interface, the application programmes request services
from the operating system (API). The kernel is the software that contains the operating system’s core
components. To run other programmes, every computer has to have at least one operating system
installed.
 OPERATING SYSTEM

Features of Operating system

Operating system has the following features:

Convenience: An OS makes a computer more convenient to use.

Efficiency: An OS allows the computer system resources to be used efficiently.

Ability to Evolve: An OS should be constructed in such a way as to permit the effective development,
testing, and introduction of new system functions at the same time without interfering with service.

Throughput: An OS should be constructed so that It can give maximum throughput(Number of tasks per
unit time).

Major Functionalities of Operating System:

Operating system has and performs various functions. Some of which includes:

Processor Management: An operating system manages the processor’s work by allocating various jobs
to it and ensuring that each process receives enough time from the processor to function properly.

Memory Management: An operating system manages the allocation and deallocation of the memory to
various processes and ensures that the other process does not consume the memory allocated to one
process.

Device Management: There are various input and output devices. An OS controls the working of these
input-output devices. It receives the requests from these devices, performs a specific task, and
communicates back to the requesting process.
File Management: An operating system keeps track of information regarding the creation, deletion,
transfer, copy, and storage of files in an organized way. It also maintains the integrity of the data stored
in these files, including the file directory structure, by protecting against unauthorized access.

Security: The operating system provides various techniques which assure the integrity and
confidentiality of user data. The security measures used to protect user data included;

 Protection against unauthorized access through login.

 Protection against intrusion by keeping Firefall active.
 Protecting the system memory against malicious access.
 Displaying messages related to system vulnerabilities.

Error Detection: From time to time, the operating system checks the system for any external threat or
malicious software activity. It also checks the hardware for any type of damage. This process displays
several alerts to the user so that the appropriate action can be taken against any damage caused to the
system.

Job Scheduling: In a multitasking OS where multiple programs run simultaneously, the operating system
determines which applications should run in which order and how time should be allocated to each
application

The process operating system as User Interface:

User

System and application programs

Operating system

Hardware

Every general-purpose computer consists of hardware, an operating system(s), system programs, and
application programs. The hardware consists of memory, CPU, ALU, I/O devices, peripheral devices, and
storage devices. The system program consists of compilers, loaders, editors, OS, etc. The application
program consists of business programs, and database programs.

Fig1: Conceptual view of a computer system

Every computer must have an operating system to run other programs. The operating system
coordinates the use of the hardware among the various system programs and application programs for
various users. It simply provides an environment within which other programs can do useful work.

The operating system is a set of special programs that run on a computer system that allows it to work
properly. It performs basic tasks such as recognizing input from the keyboard, keeping track of files and
directories on the disk, sending output to the display screen, and controlling peripheral devices.

OS is designed to serve two basic purposes:

1. It controls the allocation and use of the computing System’s resources among the various user and
tasks.

2. It provides an interface between the computer hardware and the programmer that simplifies and
makes it feasible for coding and debugging of application programs.

The Operating system must support the following tasks. The tasks are:
 1. Provides the facilities to create and modify of programs and data files using an editor.

2. Access to the compiler for translating the user program from high-level language to machine
language.

3. Provide a loader program to move the compiled program code to the computer’s memory for
execution.

4. Provide routines that handle the details of I/O programming.

Features of Operating System

The features of Operating System are but not limited to the following:

1. Provides a platform for running applications

2. Handles memory management and CPU scheduling
3. Provides file system abstraction
4. Provides networking support
5. Provides security features
6. Provides user interface
7. Provides utilities and system services
8. Supports application development

Components of Operating System

An operating system has two components which enables it to perform the functions listed above. These
are:

Shell

Kernel

Shell handles user interactions. It is the outermost layer of the OS and manages the interaction between
user and operating system by prompting the user to give input, Interpreting the input for the operating
system and handling the output from the operating system.

Shell provides a way to communicate with the OS by either taking the input from the user or the shell
script. A shell script is a sequence of system commands that are stored in a file.

The kernel is the core component of an operating system for a computer (OS). All other components of
the OS rely on the core to supply them with essential services. It serves as the primary interface
between the OS and the hardware and aids in the control of devices, networking, file systems, and
process and memory management
The kernel is responsible for performing the following tasks:

 Input-Output management
 Memory Management
 Process Management for application execution.
 Device Management
 System calls control

Types of Operating Systems –

Operating system are of various types. These includes

 Batch OS
 Distributed OS
 Multitasking OS
 Network OS
 Real-OS
 Mobile OS

1. Batch OS

Batch OS is the first operating system for second-generation computers. This OS does not directly
interact with the computer. Instead, an operator takes up similar jobs and groups them together into a
batch, and then these batches are executed one by one based on the first-come, first, serve principle.

2. Distributed OS

A distributed OS is a recent advancement in the field of computer technology and is utilized all over the
world that too with great pace. In a distributed OS, various computers are connected through a single
communication channel. These independent computers have their memory unit and CPU and are known
as loosely coupled systems. The system processes can be of different sizes and can perform different
functions. The major benefit of such a type of operating system is that a user can access files that are
not present on his system but in another connected system. In addition, remote access is available to
the systems connected to this network.

Example of Distributed OS is the LOCUS.

3. Multitasking OS

The multitasking OS is also known as the time-sharing operating system as each task is given some time
so that all the tasks work efficiently. This system provides access to a large number of users, and each
user gets the time of CPU as they get in a single system. The tasks performed are given by a single user
or by different users. The time allotted to execute one task is called a quantum, and as soon as the time
to execute one task is completed, the system switches over to another task. Example of Multitasking OS
is UNIX.

4. Network OS

Network operating systems are the systems that run on a server and manage all the networking
functions. They allow sharing of various files, applications, printers, security, and other networking
functions over a small network of computers like LAN or any other private network. In the network OS,
all the users are aware of the configurations of every other user within the network, which is why
network operating systems are also known as tightly coupled systems.

Examples of Network OS are Microsoft Windows server 2008, and LINUX.

5. Real-Time OS

Real-Time operating systems serve real-time systems. These operating systems are useful when many
events occur in a short time or within certain deadlines, such as real-time simulations. Types of the real-
time OS are Hard real-time OS and Soft real-time OS.

Examples of Real-Time OS are Medical imaging systems, robots.

6. Mobile OS

A mobile OS is an operating system for smartphones, tablets, and PDA’s. It is a platform on which other
applications can run on mobile devices. Examples of Mobile OS are Android OS, ios, Symbian OS, and
Windows mobile OS.

Examples of Operating System

The ollowing are some examples of Operating Systems:

Microsoft Windows
It is a series of graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Microsoft. The first version
of Windows was released in 1985 as a GUI add-on to MS-DOS. The first version of Windows sold as a
standalone operating system was Windows 95.

macOS

It is a series of graphical operating systems developed by Apple Inc. It is the successor to Mac OS X, and
it is the operating system that powers Apple’s Mac family of computers.

Linux

Linux is built around the Linux kernel and is a free and open-source software OS. It is one of the most
popular operating systems for servers and embedded devices. It is also used by millions of desktop users
around the world.

Android

It is a mobile OS developed by Google. It is based on the Linux kernel and designed primarily for
touchscreen mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.

iOS

Another example of a mobile OS developed by Apple Inc. iOs is the successor to iPhone OS. It is an
operating system that powers the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch products.

Advantages of Operating System

There are several advantages of operating systems. We have listed some of them below:

1. Ensuring correct and efficient use of the computer’s hardware.

2. Allowing different applications to run concurrently.
3. Managing files and folders.
4. Providing a user interface.
5. Managing security.
6. Managing resources.
7. Managing printing.
8. Providing a platform for software development.

Disadvantages of Operating System

There are several disadvantages of operating systems. We have listed some of them below:

1. They can be complex and difficult to use.

2. They can be expensive to purchase and maintain.
3. They can be vulnerable to attacks from malicious users.
References:

GeeksforGeeks (2023, May, 14th). "Introduction of operating system set1".

https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/introduction-of-operating-system-set-1/

Great learning (2023, March, 20th). "Software development". What is Operating System (OS)? Definition,
Types, and Functions. https://www.mygreatlearning.com/blog/what-is-operating-system/

Mike A. (2019, August, 20th). "History and evolution of operating system".

IEPA.https://lloogg.com/history-and-evolution-of-operating-systems/