Systems Software - The OS Flashcards
What is Systems Software?
Software designed to run + maintain a computer system
Name two types of System Software
Operating System (OS) -> most important
Utility Software
What do Operating Systems do generally?
It manages hardware and run Software
What does an Operating System do?
Communicate with internal + external hardware via device drivers
Provide a user interface (for user to interact with computer and vice versa
Provide a platform for different applications to run
Allow the computer to multi-task (by controlling CPU + memory resources)
Deal with file + disk management
Manage system security + use accounts
What is device driver software used for?
To communicate with internal hardware or peripherals
All hardware needs in a device driver
What do device drivers do?
translate signals between the OS and hardware
When the computer is booted up the OS will choose the relevant OS for the hardware
They can updated to fix bugs manually by the user or by the OS
Operating Systems use a user interface. What is a user interface?
Allows the user to interact with a computer system
Most common type of user interface
GUI (Graphical User Interface) - designed to make them visual, interactive for users
Optimised for specific input methods -> WIMP + touchscreen + finger gestures
Name other type of User Interface
Command-line interface
Suitable for advanced users
More efficient + powerful than GUI
can be used to automate process using script (simple programs)
What does an OS do when an application is opened?
moves necessary parts of the application to memory -< if they are not recently used it will be removed from memory
What does a memory manager do?
make sures when running multiple applications that they don’t overwrite/interfere with eachother by allocating certain memory addresses to ensure processes are placed in separate locations
What does the OS do in relation to the CPU?
Divides CPU time between open applications in use so it can be prioritised -> more efficient
a CPU can only process one application at a time
How does an OS handle file + disk management
Data is stored as files
The OS manages the hard disk by splitting the physical disk into sectors to write data, and keeps tract of free space
The OS does this using utility software
