Introduction

Operating System Concepts – Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne

 Outline

 What Operating Systems Do

 Computer-System Structure
 Operating-System Operations
 Resource Management
 Distributed Systems
 Kernel Data Structures
 Computing Environments
 Objectives

 Describe the general organization of a computer system and the

role of interrupts
 Describe the components in a modern, multiprocessor computer
system
 Illustrate the transition from user mode to kernel mode
 Discuss how operating systems are used in various computing
environments
 What is an Operating System?

 A program that acts as an intermediary between a user of a

computer and the computer hardware
 Operating system goals:
• Execute user programs and make solving user problems
easier
• Make the computer system convenient to use
• Use the computer hardware in an efficient manner
 Computer System Structure

 Computer system can be divided into four components:

• Hardware – provides basic computing resources
 CPU, memory, I/O devices
• Operating system
 Controls and coordinates use of hardware among various
applications and users
• Application programs – define the ways in which the system
resources are used to solve the computing problems of the users
 Word processors, compilers, web browsers, database systems,
video games
• Users
 People, machines, other computers
Abstract View of Components of Computer
 What Operating Systems Do
 Depends on the point of view
 Users want convenience, ease of use and good
performance
• Provide an effective working environment (user
interface)
• Don’t care about resource utilization
 But the computer must keep all users happy
• Operating system is a resource allocator and
control program making efficient use of HW and
managing execution of user programs
 What Operating Systems Do (Cont.)
 Users of dedicate systems such as workstations
have dedicated resources but frequently use shared
resources from servers
 Mobile devices like smartphones and tablets are
resource poor, optimized for usability and battery life
• Mobile user interfaces such as touch screens, voice
recognition
 Some computers have little or no user interface, such
as embedded computers in devices and automobiles
• Run primarily without user intervention
 Term OS Covers Many Roles

 Because of myriad designs and uses of OSes

• Present in toasters through ships,
spacecraft, game machines, TVs and
industrial control systems
• Born when fixed use computers for military
became more general purpose and needed
resource management and program
control
 Operating System Definition
 No universally accepted definition
 “Everything a vendor ships when you order an operating system” is a
good approximation
• But varies wildly
 “The one program running at all times on the computer” is the kernel,
which is part of the operating system
 Everything else is either
• A system program (ships with the operating system, but not part of
the kernel), or
• An application program, all programs not associated with the
operating system
 Today’s OSes for general purpose and mobile computing also include
middleware – a set of software frameworks that provide additional
services to application developers such as databases, multimedia,
graphics
Overview of Computer System Structure
 Computer System Organization
 Computer-system operation
• One or more CPUs, device controllers connect through common
bus providing access to shared memory
• Concurrent execution of CPUs and devices competing for memory
cycles
 Computer-System Operation

 I/O devices and the CPU can execute concurrently

 Each device controller is in charge of a particular
device type
 Each device controller has a local buffer
 Each device controller type has an operating
system device driver to manage it
 CPU moves data from/to main memory to/from
local buffers
 I/O is from the device to local buffer of controller
 Device controller informs CPU that it has finished
its operation by causing an interrupt
 Common Functions of Interrupts

 Interrupt transfers control to the interrupt

service routine generally, through the
interrupt vector, which contains the
addresses of all the service routines
 Interrupt architecture must save the
address of the interrupted instruction
 A trap or exception is a software-
generated interrupt caused either by an
error or a user request
 An operating system is interrupt driven
 Interrupt Handling

 The operating system preserves the

state of the CPU by storing the
content of the registers and the
program counter
 Determines which type of interrupt has
occurred:
• Separate segments of code
determine what action should be
taken for each type of interrupt
 I/O Structure

 Two methods for handling I/O

• After I/O starts, control returns to user
program only upon I/O completion
• After I/O starts, control returns to user
program without waiting for I/O
completion
 I/O Structure (Cont.)

 After I/O starts, control returns to user program only upon I/O
completion
• Wait instruction idles the CPU until the next interrupt
• Wait loop (contention for memory access)
• At most one I/O request is outstanding at a time, no
simultaneous I/O processing
 After I/O starts, control returns to user program without waiting
for I/O completion
• System call – request to the OS to allow user to wait for I/O
completion
• Device-status table contains entry for each I/O device
indicating its type, address, and state
• OS indexes into I/O device table to determine device status
and to modify table entry to include interrupt
 Direct Memory Access Structure

 Used for high-speed I/O devices able

to transmit information at close to
memory speeds
 Device controller transfers blocks of
data from buffer storage directly to
main memory without CPU
intervention
 Only one interrupt is generated per
block, rather than the one interrupt per
byte
Storage Structure
 Storage Structure

 Main memory – only large storage media

that the CPU can access directly
• Typically, volatile
• Data is accessed randomly
• Typically, in the form of Dynamic
Random-access Memory (DRAM)
 Secondary storage – extension of main
memory that provides large nonvolatile
storage capacity
 Storage Structure (Cont.)
 Hard Disk Drives (HDD) – rigid metal or glass
platters covered with magnetic recording material
• Disk surface is logically divided into tracks, which
are subdivided into sectors
• The disk controller determines the logical
interaction between the device and the computer
 Non-volatile memory (NVM) devices– faster than
hard disks, nonvolatile
• Various technologies
• Becoming more popular as capacity and
performance increases, and prices drop
 Storage Definitions and Notation Review
 The basic unit of computer storage is the bit . A bit can contain one of two
values, 0 and 1. All other storage in a computer is based on collections of bits.
Given enough bits, it is amazing how many things a computer can represent:
numbers, letters, images, movies, sounds, documents, and programs, to name
a few. A byte is 8 bits, and on most computers, it is the smallest convenient
chunk of storage. For example, most computers don’t have an instruction to
move a bit but do have one to move a byte. A less common term is word,
which is a given computer architecture’s native unit of data. A word is made
up of one or more bytes. For example, a computer that has 64-bit registers and
64-bit memory addressing typically has 64-bit (8-byte) words. A computer
executes many operations in its native word size rather than a byte at a time.

Computer storage, along with most computer throughput, is generally

measured and manipulated in bytes and collections of bytes. A kilobyte , or
KB , is 1,024 bytes; a megabyte , or MB , is 1,0242  bytes; a gigabyte , or GB , is
1,0243  bytes; a terabyte , or TB , is 1,0244  bytes; and a petabyte , or PB , is 1,0245
bytes. Computer manufacturers often round off these numbers and say that
a megabyte is 1 million bytes and a gigabyte is 1 billion bytes. Networking
measurements are an exception to this general rule; they are given in bits
(because networks move data a bit at a time).
 Storage Hierarchy
 Storage systems organized in hierarchy
• Speed
• Cost
• Volatility
 Caching – copying information into faster storage
system; main memory can be viewed as a cache for
secondary storage
 Device Driver for each device controller to manage I/O
• Provides uniform interface between controller and
kernel
Storage-Device Hierarchy
 Computer Startup

 Bootstrap program is loaded at

power-up or reboot
 Typically stored in ROM or EPROM,
generally known as firmware
 Initializes all aspects of the system
 Loads operating system kernel and
starts execution
 Operating-System Operations
 Bootstrap program – simple code to initialize the system, load
the kernel
 Kernel loads
 Starts system daemons (services provided outside of the
kernel)
 Kernel interrupt driven (hardware and software)
• Hardware interrupt by one of the devices
• Software interrupt (exception or trap):
 Software error (e.g., division by zero)
 Request for operating system service – system call
 Other process problems include infinite loop, processes
modifying each other or the operating system
 Multiprogramming (Batch system)

 Single user cannot always keep CPU and

I/O devices busy
 Multiprogramming organizes jobs (code and
data) so CPU always has one to execute
 A subset of total jobs in system is kept in
memory
 One job selected and run via job
scheduling
 When job has to wait (for I/O for example),
OS switches to another job
Memory Layout for Multiprogrammed System
 Multitasking (Timesharing)
 A logical extension of Batch systems– the CPU
switches jobs so frequently that users can interact
with each job while it is running, creating interactive
computing
• Response time should be < 1 second
• Each user has at least one program executing in
memory, which is called a process
• If several jobs ready to run at the same time 
CPU scheduling
• If processes don’t fit in memory, swapping moves
them in and out to run
• Virtual memory allows the execution of processes
not completely in memory
 Dual-mode Operation

 Dual-mode operation allows OS to protect itself and

other system resources (components & processes)
• User mode and kernel mode
 Mode bit provided by hardware
• Provides ability to distinguish when system is
running user code or kernel code.
• When a user is running  mode bit is “user”
• When kernel code is executing  mode bit is
“kernel”
 Some instructions designated as privileged, only
executable in kernel mode
 Dual-mode Operation (Cont.)
 How do we guarantee that user does not
explicitly set the mode bit to “kernel”?
 When the system starts executing it is in
kernel mode
 When control is given to a user program
the mode-bit changes to “user mode”.
 When a user issues a system call it
results in an interrupt, which trap to the
operating system. At that time, the
mode–bit is set to “kernel mode”.
Transition from User to Kernel Mode
 Timer
 Timer to prevent infinite loop (or process hogging
resources)
• Timer is set to interrupt the computer after some
time period
• Keep a counter that is decremented by the physical
clock
• Operating system set the counter (privileged
instruction)
• When counter zero generate an interrupt
• Set up before scheduling process to regain control
or terminate program that exceeds allotted time
 Process Management
 A process is a program in execution. It is a unit of work within the
system. Program is a passive entity; process is an active entity.
 Process needs resources to accomplish its task
• CPU, memory, I/O, files
• Initialization data
 Process termination requires reclaim of any reusable resources
 Single-threaded process has one program counter specifying location
of next instruction to execute
• Process executes instructions sequentially, one at a time, until
completion
 Multi-threaded process has one program counter per thread
 Typically, system has many processes, some user, some operating
system running concurrently on one or more CPUs
• Concurrency by multiplexing the CPUs among the processes /
threads
 Process Management Activities
The operating system is responsible for the
following activities in connection with process
management:
 Creating and deleting both user and system
processes
 Suspending and resuming processes
 Providing mechanisms for process
synchronization
 Providing mechanisms for process
communication
 Providing mechanisms for deadlock handling
 Memory Management
 To execute a program all (or part) of the instructions must be in
memory
 All (or part) of the data that is needed by the program must be
in memory
 Memory management determines what is in memory and when
• Optimizing CPU utilization and computer response to users
 Memory management activities
• Keeping track of which parts of memory are currently being
used and by whom
• Deciding which processes (or parts thereof) and data to
move into and out of memory
• Allocating and deallocating memory space as needed
 File-system Management
 OS provides a uniform, logical view of information storage
• Abstracts physical properties to logical storage unit - file
• Each medium is controlled by a device (i.e., disk drive, tape
drive)
 Varying properties include access speed, capacity, data-
transfer rate, access method (sequential or random)

 File-System management
• Files are usually organized into directories
• Access control on most systems to determine who can access
what
• OS activities include
 Creating and deleting files and directories
 Primitives to manipulate files and directories
 Mapping files onto secondary storage
 Backup files onto stable (non-volatile) storage media
 Mass-Storage Management
 Usually, disks used to store data that does not fit in main
memory or data that must be kept for a “long” period of time
 Proper management is of central importance
 Entire speed of computer operation hinges on disk subsystem
and its algorithms
 OS activities
• Mounting and unmounting
• Free-space management
• Storage allocation
• Disk scheduling
• Partitioning
• Protection
 Caching

 Important principle, performed at many levels in a computer

(in hardware, operating system, software)
 Information in use copied from slower to faster storage
temporarily
 Faster storage (cache) checked first to determine if
information is there
• If it is, information used directly from the cache (fast)
• If not, data copied to cache and used there
 Cache smaller than storage being cached
• Cache management important design problem
• Cache size and replacement policy
 Characteristics of Various Types of Storage

Movement between levels of storage hierarchy can be explicit or implicit

 Migration of data “A” from Disk to Register

 Multitasking environments must be careful to use

most recent value, no matter where it is stored in the
storage hierarchy

 Multiprocessor environment must provide cache

coherency in hardware such that all CPUs have the
most recent value in their cache
 Distributed environment situation even more complex
• Several copies of a datum can exist
 I/O Subsystem

 One purpose of OS is to hide peculiarities of

hardware devices from the user
 I/O subsystem responsible for
• Memory management of I/O including
buffering (storing data temporarily while it
is being transferred), caching (storing
parts of data in faster storage for
performance), spooling (the overlapping of
output of one job with input of other jobs)
• General device-driver interface
• Drivers for specific hardware devices
 Distributed Systems
 Collection of separate, possibly heterogeneous, systems networked
together
• Network is a communications path, TCP/IP most common
 Local Area Network (LAN)
 Wide Area Network (WAN)
 Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
 Personal Area Network (PAN)
 Network Operating System provides features between systems
across network
• Communication scheme allows systems to exchange messages
• Illusion of a single system
Computer-System Architecture
 Computer-System Architecture

 Most systems use a single general-purpose processor

• Most systems have special-purpose processors as well
 Multiprocessor's systems growing in use and importance
• Also known as parallel systems, tightly-coupled systems
• Advantages include:
1. Increased throughput
2. Economy of scale
3. Increased reliability – graceful degradation or fault tolerance
• Two types:
1. Asymmetric Multiprocessing (Master/Slave) – each
processor is assigned a specific task.
2. Symmetric Multiprocessing (Peers) – each processor
performs all tasks
Symmetric Multiprocessing Architecture
 Dual-Core Design
 Multi-chip and multicore
 Systems containing all chips
• Chassis containing multiple separate systems
Non-Uniform Memory Access System
 Clustered Systems

 Like multiprocessor systems, but multiple systems working together

 Usually sharing storage via a storage-area network (SAN)
 Provides a high-availability service which survives failures
• Asymmetric clustering has one machine in hot-standby mode
• Symmetric clustering has multiple nodes running applications,
monitoring each other
 Some clusters are for high-performance computing (HPC)
• Applications must be written to use parallelization
 Some have distributed lock manager (DLM) to avoid conflicting
operations
Clustered Systems
PC Motherboard
Computer System Environments
 Computing Environments

 Traditional
 Mobile
 Client Server
 Pear-to-Pear
 Cloud computing
 Real-time Embedded
 Traditional
 Stand-alone general-purpose machines
 But blurred as most systems interconnect with others (i.e.,
the Internet)
 Portals provide web access to internal systems
 Network computers (thin clients) are like Web terminals
 Mobile computers interconnect via wireless networks
 Networking becoming ubiquitous – even home systems
use firewalls to protect home computers from Internet
attacks
 Mobile Computing
 Handheld smartphones, tablets, etc.
 What is the functional difference between them and a
“traditional” laptop?
 Extra feature – more OS features (GPS, gyroscope)
 Allows new types of apps like augmented reality
 Use IEEE 802.11 wireless, or cellular data networks for
connectivity
 Leaders are Apple iOS and Google Android
 Client Server Computing

 Dumb terminals supplanted by smart PCs

 Many systems now servers, responding to requests generated by
clients
• Compute-server system provides an interface to client to request
services (i.e., database)
• File-server system provides interface for clients to store and
retrieve files
 Peer-to-Peer

 Another model of distributed system

 P2P does not distinguish clients and servers
• Instead, all nodes are considered peers
• May each act as client, server or both
• Node must join P2P network
 Registers its service with central
lookup service on network, or
 Broadcast request for service and
respond to requests for service via
discovery protocol
• Examples include Napster and Gnutella,
Voice over IP (VoIP) such as Skype
 Cloud Computing
 Delivers computing, storage, even apps as a service
across a network
 Logical extension of virtualization because it uses
virtualization as the base for its functionality.
• Amazon EC2 has thousands of servers, millions of
virtual machines, petabytes of storage available
across the Internet, pay based on usage
 Cloud Computing – Many Types

 Public cloud – available via Internet to anyone willing to pay

 Private cloud – run by a company for the company’s own use
 Hybrid cloud – includes both public and private cloud components
 Software as a Service (SaaS) – one or more applications available via
the Internet (i.e., word processor)
 Platform as a Service (PaaS) – software stack ready for application
use via the Internet (i.e., a database server)
 Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) – servers or storage available over
Internet (i.e., storage available for backup use)
 Cloud Computing (cont.)

 Cloud computing environments composed of traditional Oses plus

cloud management tools
• Internet connectivity requires security like firewalls
• Load balancers spread traffic across multiple applications
 Real-Time Embedded Systems

 Real-time embedded systems most prevalent form of computers

• Vary considerable, special purpose, limited purpose OS, real-time
OS
• Use expanding
 Many other special computing environments as well
• Some have OSes, some perform tasks without an OS
 Real-time OS has well-defined fixed time constraints
• Processing must be done within constraint
• Correct operation only if constraints met
 Free and Open-Source Operating Systems

 Operating systems made available in source-code format rather than

just binary closed-source and proprietary
 Counter to the copy protection and Digital Rights Management
(DRM) movement
 Started by Free Software Foundation (FSF), which has “copyleft”
GNU Public License (GPL)
• Free software and open-source software are two different ideas
championed by different groups of people
 http://gnu.org/philosophy/open-source-misses-the-point.html/
 Examples include GNU/Linux and BSD UNIX (including core of Mac
OS X), and many more
 Can use VMM like VMware Player (Free on Windows), Virtualbox
(open source and free on many platforms - http://www.virtualbox.com)
• Use to run guest operating systems for exploration
 The Study of Operating Systems
There has never been a more interesting time to study operating systems, and it has never been
easier. The open-source movement has overtaken operating systems, causing many of them to be
made available in both source and binary (executable) format. The list of operating
systems available in both formats includes Linux, BUSD UNIX, Solaris, and part of macOS.
The availability of source code allows us to study operating systems from the inside out.
Questions that we could once answer only by looking at documentation or the behavior of an
operating system we can now answer by examining the code itself.

Operating systems that are no longer commercially viable have been open-sourced as well, enabling
us to study how systems operated in a time of fewer CPU, memory, and storage resources.
An extensive but incomplete list of open-source operating-system projects is available
from https://curlie.org/Computers/Software/Operating_Systems/Open_Source/

In addition, the rise of virtualization as a mainstream (and frequently free) computer function
makes it possible to run many operating systems on top of one core system. For example, VMware
(http://www.vmware.com) providesa free “player” for Windows on which hundreds of free
“virtual appliances” can run. Virtualbox (http://www.virtualbox.com) provides a free, open-source
virtual machine manager on many operating systems. Using such tools, students can try out
hundreds of operating systems without dedicated hardware.

The advent of open-source operating systems has also made it easier to make the move from
student to operating-system developer. With some knowledge, some effort, and an Internet
connection, a student can even create a new operating-system distribution. Just a few years ago,
it was difficult or impossible to get access to source code. Now, such access is limited only by
how much interest, time, and disk space a student has.
 End of Chapter 1

Operating System Concepts – Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne

 Characteristics of Various Types of Storage

Movement between levels of storage hierarchy can be explicit or implicit