Describe features of contemporary operating systems and their structures.

The three most common operating systems are Microsoft Windows, Mac Operating System, and Linux. Microsoft Windows is the most user-friendly and most used throughout businesses, governments, and personal computers. Operating systems are chosen based on how you plan to use your computer. Different Operating Systems have other pros and cons.

 

Discuss how operating systems enable processes to share and exchange information.

The Operating system's main job is to manage all the processes within the system, including hardware allocation. The Operating system moves hardware resources around between different processes and allows them to share and exchange information. It also protects the resources of each process from other methods and provides synchronization among processes. 

 

Explain how main memory and virtual memory can solve memory management issues.

The main memory is the Read All Memory which current processes utilize to run their programs. Virtual memory is extra space used on a hard drive or solid-state drive to store information not currently being used. When a process or program is minimized or removed from priority, those memory blocks are transferred to virtual memory, which cleans up the RAM space for a new process. When the first process is recalled, it pulls the information stored in virtual memory and places them back into the main memory for use. Doing so allows for more processes to be available to run at a given time and makes designing an operating system a lot easier.

 

Explain how files, mass storage, and I/O are handled in a modern computer system.

The Operating system controls all pieces of hardware, with information being run through a BUS, usually on the mainboard. Multiple buses connect mass storage and I/O devices and send data between them all. An operating system manages and controls the data sent between hardware devices.

 

Outline the mechanisms necessary to control the access of programs or users to the resources defined by a computer system.

Protection refers to a mechanism for controlling the access of programs, processes, or users to the resources defined by a computer system. Several different hardware and software systems within a computer require protection. An Access Matrix is a general protection model for a computer operating system. The matrix is made up of rows of domains and columns of objects. You can design your protection to focus on either the objects or the domain. One way is faster in determining who can access what, but the other way offers more protection for files.

 

Recommend how you will use these concepts about operating systems theory in future courses and/or future jobs.

Throughout this course, I have learned about Operating Systems theory. Understanding resource and process management have opened my eyes to more about what an Operating System does and has helped me differentiate between Operating Systems, firmware, and software. Helping me understand the concepts of an Operating System will help me with my current job. We use three different types of Computer Operating Systems depending on what we are working on or fixing. I now understand why we use other Operating Systems for various projects because of protection, memory allocation, and I/O. Moving into more advanced classes, knowing and understanding Operating Systems will increase my knowledge and hopefully give me an advantage. Whether you are getting your degree in Information Technology or not, anyone interested in computers and how they work should take this class.