DHVTSU-CCS

Department of Information Technology CSS 113: Computer Systems Servicing

Note: The registry contains information about applications, users,
OPERATING SYSTEMS hardware, network settings, and file types.
B. FILE AND FOLDER MANAGEMENT
WHAT IS AN OPERATING SYSTEM? The operating system creates a file structure on the hard disk drive to
All computers rely on an operating system (OS) to provide the allow data to be stored. A file is a block of related data that is given a
interface for interaction among users, applications, and hardware. The single name and treated as a single unit. Program and data files are
operating system also manages the file system. grouped together in a directory. The files and directories are
organized for easy retrieval and use. Directories can be kept inside
Almost all modern operating systems can support more than one other directories. These nested directories are referred to as
user, task, or CPU. subdirectories. Directories are called folders in Windows operating
Roles of an operating system include: systems, and subdirectories are called subfolders.
a) Control hardware access
b) Manage files and folders The file structure on the hard drive is stored in a table called a file
c) Provide user interface allocation table for Windows. This table contains the location where
d) Manage applications all the separate blocks, or clusters, that make up a file are located on
the physical hard drive. The table format and cluster size for Windows
A. CONTROL HARDWARE ACCESS vary depending on how the hard drive was formatted. The format for
The operating system manages the interaction between applications the file structure can be FAT, FAT32, and NTFS.
and the hardware. To access and communicate with the hardware,
the operating system installs a device driver for each hardware C. USER INTERFACE
component. A device driver is a small program written by the The operating system enables the user to interact with software and
hardware manufacturer and supplied with the hardware component. hardware. There are two types of user interfaces:
When the hardware device is installed, the device driver is also 1) Command-line interface (CLI): The user types commands at a
installed, allowing the OS to communicate with the hardware prompt.
component. 2) Graphical user interface (GUI): The user interacts with menus
and icons.
The process of assigning system resources and installing drivers can
be performed with Plug and Play (PnP). The PnP process was D. APPLICATION MANAGEMENT
introduced in Windows 95 to simplify the installation of new The operating system locates an application and loads it into the RAM
hardware. All modern operating systems are PnP compatible. With of the computer. Applications are software programs, such as word
PnP, the operating system automatically detects the PnP-compatible processors, databases, spreadsheets, games, and many other
hardware and installs the driver for that component. The operating applications. The operating system ensures that each application has
system then configures the device and updates the registry, which is a adequate system resources.
database that contains all the information about the computer.

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Department of Information Technology CSS 113: Computer Systems Servicing
An application programming interface (API) is a set of guidelines 1) Desktop operating systems: A desktop operating system is
used by programmers to ensure that the application they are intended for use in a small office/home office (SOHO) with a
developing is compatible with an operating system. limited number of users.
2) Network operating systems: A network operating system (NOS) is
Two examples of APIs are: designed for a corporate environment serving multiple users with
1) Open Graphics Library (OpenGL): Cross-platform standard a wide range of needs.
specification for multimedia graphics.
2) DirectX: Collection of APIs related to multimedia tasks for DESKTOP OPERATING SYSTEMS
Microsoft Windows. A desktop OS has the following characteristics:
 Supports a single user
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS  Runs single-user applications
To understand the capabilities of an operating system, it is important  Shares files and folders on a small network with limited security
to understand some basic terms. The following terms are often used
when comparing operating systems: In the current software market, the most commonly used desktop
operating systems fall into three groups:
a) Multiuser: Two or more users can work with programs and files
and share peripheral devices at the same time. 1) Microsoft Windows: Windows is one of the most popular
b) Multitasking: The computer is capable of operating multiple operating systems today developed by Microsoft. The following
applications at the same time. products are desktop versions of the Microsoft Windows
c) Multiprocessing: The computer can have two or more central operating systems:
processing units (CPU) that programs share.  Windows XP Professional: Used on most computers that will
d) Multithreading: A program can be broken into smaller parts that connect to a Windows server on a network.
can be loaded as needed by the operating system. Multithreading  Windows XP 64-bit Edition: Used for computers with 64-bit
allows individual programs to be multitasked. processors
 Windows Vista: It contains a number of new features, from a
Almost all modern operating systems are multiuser and multitasking, redesigned shell and user interface to significant technical
and they support multiprocessing and multithreading. changes, with a particular focus on security features.
 Windows 7: It was intended to be a more focused,
incremental upgrade to the Windows line, with the goal of
OPERATING SYSTEMS PURPOSE, LIMITATIONS, AND
being compatible with applications and hardware. Windows 7
COMPATIBILITIES has multi-touch support, a redesigned Windows shell with a
A technician can be asked to choose and install an operating system new taskbar, referred to as the Superbar, a home networking
for a customer. The type of OS selected depends on the customer’s system called Home Group, and performance improvements.
requirements for the computer.  Windows 8: It is an operating system which is completely
redesigned. It moves away from the traditional interface to a
There are two distinct types of operating systems: completely new interface known as Metro User Interface. The

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 DHVTSU-CCS
Department of Information Technology CSS 113: Computer Systems Servicing
familiar start menu is now gone. Icons and windows are Open-source programs allow the source code to be distributed
replaced with live tiles and magazine styled interface. and changed by anyone as a free download or from developers at
 Windows 10: It introduces what Microsoft described as a much lower cost than other operating systems.
"universal apps"; expanding on Metro-style apps. The  Edubuntu
Windows user interface was revised to handle transitions  Ubuntu
between a mouse-oriented interface and a touchscreen-  Linux Mint
optimized interface; both interfaces include an updated Start  Fedora
menu which incorporates elements of Windows 7's traditional  Deepin
Start menu with the tiles of Windows 8. The first release of  Corel
Windows 10 also introduces a virtual desktop system, a
window and desktop management feature called Task View, NETWORK OPERATING SYSTEMS
the Microsoft Edge web browser, support A network OS has the following characteristics:
for fingerprint and face recognition login, new security  Supports multiple users
features for enterprise environments, and DirectX  Runs multiuser applications
12 and WDDM 2.0 to improve the operating system's graphics  Is robust and redundant
capabilities for games.  Provides increased security compared to desktop operating
systems
2) Apple Mac OS: Apple computers are proprietary and use an
operating system called Macintosh OS. Mac OS is designed to be a The most commonly used network operating systems are as follows:
user-friendly GUI operating system. Current versions of Mac OS 1) Microsoft Windows: Network operating systems offered by
are now based on a customized version of UNIX. Microsoft are Windows 2000 Server, Windows Server 2003, and
Windows Server 2008. Windows Server operating systems use a
 Classic Mac OS: System 1, System 6, System 7, Mac OS 8, central database called Active Directory to manage network
and Mac OS 9. resources.
 macOS: Mac OS X 10 (Cheetah, Puma, Jaguar), MacOS X 2) Novell NetWare: Novell NetWare was the first OS to meet
(Panther, Tiger, Leopard, Snow Leopard, Lion), OS X network OS requirements and enjoy widespread deployment in
(Mountain Lion, Mavericks, Yosemite, El Capitan), macOS PC-based LANs back in the 1980s.
Sierra. 3) Linux: Linux operating systems include Red Hat, Caldera, SuSE,
Debian, and Slackware.
3) UNIX/Linux: UNIX, which was introduced in the late 1960s, is one 4) UNIX: Various corporations offered proprietary operating systems
of the oldest operating systems. There are many different based on UNIX.
versions of UNIX today. One of the most recent is the extremely
popular Linux.

Linux was developed by Linus Torvalds in 1991, and it is designed

as an open-source operating system.

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