Operating Systems

Summary module description:
Operating Systems are a fundamental concept in Computer Science discipline. Their practical impact can be seen in ?all walks of life? ? from laptops, desktops, mobile phones and even powering the supercomputers that model Earth?s climate. Their theoretical foundations have taken decades of continuous insights to establish the fundamental principles with contributions from pioneers of computer science. Their outreach continues to grow in other emerging applications of computing e.g, space, automotive, etc., which in turn adds to the complexity of breadth and depth of the subject. This
module aims to provide an insight into the underlying theory and practical aspects that make up this cornerstone of computer science.

Aims:
?To introduce fundamental principles of Operating Systems, in particular, the notion of concurrency and associated concepts.
? Explore the features underlying the concepts of Operating Systems.
? Provide experience of practical aspects related to core concepts.
Assessable learning outcomes:
Fundamental design principles and virtualisation as an abstraction are studied in detail with concrete links to implementation of concepts as a complex software system. On completion of the module a student should be able to:
-Describe various virtualisation abstractions underlying operating systems.
-Identify the fundamental structures of an operating system and the notion of universality that arises in several resource management contexts.
-Demonstrate insights into notions of concurrency and their practical realisation.
-Analyze the performance of design alternatives arising in virtualisations using relevant criteria.
-Apply techniques of virtualisation in the concrete design of operating systems and application layers.

Additional outcomes:
Students will have seen a number of useful analytical techniques in the context of concurrency which can be transported to other areas of the course. Through practical work students will gain deeper insights into concurrent and multi-threading implementations of programs.

Outline content:
Operating System Structure (Virtualisation, System Calls, notion of Universality)
Concurrency (Processes, Threads)
File System (File Management, Disk Arm Scheduling, Case Study).
Inter-process Communication (shared vs. message passing, Mutual exclusion, locking algorithms).
Scheduling (Scheduler classes, Scheduling algorithms, Case study).
Memory Management( Segmentation, Paging, limits of multi-programming).
Security and Protection (Protection domain, Authentication, Multi-level Security)

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:
Lectures supported by practical sessions

Summative Assessment Methods:
Written exam 70%
Set exercise 30%

Other information on summative assessment:

Formative assessment methods:

Penalties for late submission:
Penalties for late submission on this module are in accordance with the University policy.
The following penalties will be applied to coursework which is submitted after the deadline for submission:
? where the piece of work is submitted up to one calendar week after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for the piece of work will be deducted from the mark;
? where the piece of work is submitted more than one calendar week after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.
You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.
(Please refer to the Undergraduate Guide to Assessment for further information: http://www.reading.ac.uk/internal/exams/student/exa-guideUG.aspx)

The Module Convener will apply the following penalties for work submitted late, in accordance with the University policy.
where the piece of work is submitted up to one calendar week after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for the piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of five working days;
where the piece of work is submitted more than five working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: http://www.reading.ac.uk/web/FILES/qualitysupport/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf
You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Length of examination:
One 2 hour examination paper in May/June.

Requirements for a pass:
40%