Operating Systems Concepts

Flashcards covering key concepts related to operating systems.

Operating System

A software that acts as an interface between users and computer hardware.

User Interface

A system that allows users to interact with a computer's hardware without needing technical knowledge.

Direct Memory Access (DMA)

An access method that allows hardware to access main memory independently of the CPU.

Kernel

The core part of the operating system that manages communication between hardware, software, and memory.

Process Management

The handling of the creation, scheduling, and termination of processes in an operating system.

Multitasking

An operating system ability to run multiple tasks simultaneously.

Scheduling Algorithm

A method that an OS uses to determine the order in which processes will be executed.

Page Replacement Algorithm

A strategy used by an OS to decide which memory pages to replace when new pages are needed.

Virtual Memory

A memory management capability that provides an 'idealized abstraction' of the storage resources that are actually available.

Disk Thrashing

A condition where excessive paging operations cause the system to slow down due to high disk activity.

First Come First Served (FCFS) Scheduling

A non-preemptive scheduling method where processes are executed in the order they arrive.

Shortest Job First (SJF) Scheduling

A scheduling method where the process with the smallest execution time is executed first.

Round Robin Scheduling

A preemptive scheduling method that allocates a fixed time slice for each process in a cyclic order.

Interrupt Handling

The process by which an operating system manages incoming interrupt signals from hardware or software.

Segmentation

A memory management technique where processes are divided into variable-sized segments.

Paging

A memory management scheme that eliminates the need for contiguous allocation of physical memory.