G53OPS - Operating Systems

This course is run at the The University of Nottingham within the School of Computer Science & IT. The course is run by Graham Kendall (EMAIL : gxk@cs.nott.ac.uk)

G53OPS Course Summary

Course Structure

Module Code : G53OPS
Level : 3
Semester Available : 2
Credits : 10

Course Aims

Overview

Operating systems provide a software interface to make the hardware of a computer more readily usable, and to provide cost effective use of that hardware. This module covers the concepts of multi-user operating systems and, although not concentrating on a specific operating system, we discuss in detail general concepts.

Aims

This module aims to teach the theoretical background and practical implementation of traditional operating systems. The objectives are for students to learn:

· What facilities users expect of a computer;
· How these facilities can be provided and the problems these cause the operating systems designer;
· How many of the components of an operating system have mutually conflicting requirements, and how a compromise has often to be accommodated.

Description

The operating system of a modern computer is the interface between the user and the computer. It is responsible for process scheduling and management, input/output, memory management, the file system, the security of the system, and communications with other systems.

We shall briefly look at the history of operating systems and why they are necessary. We shall then study various aspects of operating systems and how they inter-relate in detail.

Web Site

There is a web site for this course. The URL is

http://www.cs.nott.ac.uk/~gxk/courses/g53ops/

Assessment

2 hours unseen examination (4 questions from 6). Only four questions will be marked. Unlike some other examinations where all your attempted questions are marked and you are given credit for the best four, this course only marks the first four questions in your answer book.
The exam counts for 75% of the course assessment.

The other 25% is done by a coursework assignment.

Textbooks

The textbook I am working from is

· Modern Operating Systems (Andrew Tanenbaum)

If you want to do some reading then reading the first five chapters (1. Introduction, 2. Processes, 3. Memory Management, 4. File Systems, 5. Input/Output) of this book will give you enough information to allow you to pass the course.

Other books that also cover much of the material are

· Operating Systems incorporating UNIX & Windows (Colin Ritchie)
· Operating System Concepts (Abraham Silberschatz and Peter Galvin)
· Operating Systems (H. M. Deitel)

Lecture Schedule

Note

There is a guest lecturer coming on the 19th to 22nd March. I am still making the final arrangements for this visit and will let you know the lecture schedule as soon as I have it.

 Last Updated : 08/01/2002