Operating System Concepts: What You Need to Know

Table of Contents

Introduction

The operating system runs into several thousand to millions of lines of program instructions that occur in many versions and scales, starting with the monitor, which is a small operating system used to manage a small system, such as a controller, and scaling up the network operating system that manages a network of several computers. In this article, we present a basic introduction to the operating system (OS).

Definition of Operating System (OS)

An operating system is software that controls all the application programs on a computer after being installed into the device by a boot program. By requesting services through a predefined Application Program Interface (API), application programs use the operating system. Through a user interface such as the Command Line Interface (CLI) or Graphic User Interface (GUI), users can also interact with the operating system directly.

Also, the supervisory programs, boot loader, shells, and window system are core parts of the operating system.

Without the operating system, one has to be a good and tireless electronics engineer to be able to use the computer, and even then, one would not be able to achieve much in his computing lifetime. No computer system operates without an operating system, and as a result, one does not need to have any special abilities to use a computer.

Examples of operating systems

Characteristics of Operating System

It serves as a bridge between the user and the hardware and is essential to the functionality of all computers, tablets, and smartphones.
It offers protection and safeguards data and program files.
It is made simple to use and nice to the users.
It enables effective resource management for computers.
The majority demand money for a license to use.
It enables users to communicate with many gadgets.
It is progressive since new versions are continually being updated and tailored to the requirement of the user.

Functions of Operating System

Here are some functions of the operating system, such as;

It Manages Input and Output (I/O) to and from connected hardware, including hardware disks, printers, and dial-up ports.
Memory management: It allocates the memory space or storage space of a computer.
It determines how inputs are made in the system and how outputs are generated.
Interrupt handling management: The operation system (OS) all interrupts based on the priority of the job.
Booting process: The operating system is in charge of the booting process of the computer.

Note: Booting is the process by which the computer system prepares itself for work; during booting the system performs Power-On Safe Test (POST) and during this process opens possible tacks.

Device management: The task of finding, setting up, and granting programs common access to the underlying computer hardware component falls to an operating system. As soon as the operating system detects and recognizes the hardware, it will install the relevant device drivers, enabling the operating system and any other programs running on it to use the devices without having to be specifically aware of them.

Types of Operating Systems

1. Multitasking

A multi-tasking operating system enable a single user to have two or more independent tasks executing at the same time. For example, a user can be editing one file while printing a second file through a printer, while printing a third file through a second printer, transfer and collect files from one drive to another, and play some music while all the above is going on.

2. Standalone

This is the type of operating system that can be installed and run on a computer without the need for any other software or programs. It is particularly useful for people who want to use their computer for a specific purpose, such as video editing, gaming, or programming, without having to worry about other programs interfering with their work.

3. Networking

This operating system manage the usage of interconnected standalone systems and/or networks at the same time. Such an operating system must allow users at any connected station to share resources depending on the size of the network.

4. Embedded

An embedded operating system is a specially designed operating system that is typically used in embedded systems such as mobile devices, home automation systems, and industrial machines. Unlike general-purpose operating systems, like Windows or MacOS, embedded operating systems are built to be lightweight, efficient, and reliable.

5. Time-sharing/Multi-user

A time-shared operating system allows many users to simultaneously share the computer. Since each command in a time-shared system tends to be short, only a little CPU time is needed for each user. As the system switches rapidly from one user to the next, each user has the illusion that he/she has his/her computer, while one computer is shared among the user.

6. Real-time

A real-time operating system is used when operations have well-defined fixed-time constrained. Real-time operations are those in which the machine’s activities proceed at the same rate as a physical or external process.

A real-time system is often used as a control device in a dedicated application. Sensors bring data to the computer. The computer must analyze the data and possibly adjust controls to modify the sensor inputs.

It controls scientific experiments, medical computer systems, and industrial control systems e.g. air ticket control systems and process control systems.