DIPLOMA IN
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
MODULE LEARNING GUIDE
OPERATING SYSTEM
Version 1: May 2007
Olympia College
1.
Diploma in Information Technology
INTRODUCTION
This module is intended for students in the intermediate stages of the Diploma in Information Technology
program. It is to provide students with a basic understanding of the concepts and application of operating
system. During the past several decades, computing has evolved at an unprecedented pace. Computer power
continues increase at phenomenal rates as costs decline dramatically. Today, computer users have desktop
workstations that execute billions of instructions per second and supercomputers that execute over a trillion
instructions per second have been built, numbers that just a few years ago were inconceivable.
Processors are becoming so inexpensive and powerful that computers can be employed in almost every aspect
of our lives. On personal computers, users can edit documents, play games, listen to music, watch videos and
manage their personal finances. Portable devices, including laptop computers, personal digital assistant, cell
phones and MP3 players all have computers as key components. Wireless and wired network architectures are
increasing our interconnectivity allow users to communicate instantly over vast distances. The internet and World
Wide Web have revolutionized business, creating demand for networks of large, powerful computers that service
vast numbers of transactions per second. Networks of computers have so powerful that they are used to
conduct complex research and simulation projects, such as modeling the Earth’s climate, emulating human
intelligence and constructing lifelike 3D animations. Such pervasive and powerful computing is reshaping the
roles and responsibilities of operating system.
2. AIMS
Through this subject students are exposed to the important concepts that are dealt with the design of the
operating system. This subject will enable the student to understand the different types of processing that are
taking place with in the central processing unit, students will get an in-department knowledge in memory
management, concurrent and distributed programming. In addition students will also gain knowledge in real
storage and disk performance and optimization. Students will also gain experience in using different operating
systems and interfaces. Students will also be introduced to the Linux Operating through lab sessions and
application of various operating system concepts.
3.
OVERVIEW OF THE SYLLABUS:
The module is organised into three major learning sections as outlined below:
3.1. SECTION 1: Introduction
This section starts with a basic overview of operating system and explores different types of operating
systems.
3.2. SECTION 2: Concepts and Fundamentals
This is the core section of this module which comprises the operating system fundamentals (as covered
in weekly lecture topics). You will have practical lab sessions (for selected topics) to apply the principles
covered in the module.
3.3. SECTION 3: Case Study: Linux
This section explores the Linux operating system environment and develops a basic understanding of
Linux operations, terminologies, standards and concepts. You will also have sample programming and
application walkthroughs to examine its use in real-time scenario and applications.
4.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completion of this module, students will be able to:

Process Concept

Understand memory management

Understanding concurrent programming

Understand distributed programming using super computer

Understand the disk performance optimization

File and Database System

Understand the Operating System Security
5.
AUDIENCE AND PRE-REQUISITES
This module is for students who are in the intermediate stages of the Diploma program. There is no
prerequisite set for this module.
6.
LEARNING MATERIALS:

Indicative Readings:
a. Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall, ISBN 013-124696-8
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b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
7.
Diploma in Information Technology
Nutt Gary, Operating System: A Modern Prospective, Addison Wesley
Stalling, William, Operating Systems, 2nd ed., International Thomson publishing
Dhamdhere, D.M., Systems Programming and Operating Systems, 2 nd ed., McGraw Hill
Tanenbuan, Andrew S, Modern Operating Systems, Prentice Hall.
Ebooks:
Linux from scratch: http://tldp.org/LDP/lfs/LFS-BOOK-6.1.1.pdf
Linux tutorials: http://www.tutorialdownloads.com/tutorials/LINUX/linux-booksshelf1.html
Internet Resources:
http://www.iu.hio.no/~mark/os/os.html
http://physinfo.ulb.ac.be/cit_courseware/opsys/ostart.htm
http://www.cs.fsu.edu/~jtbauer/cop4610/lectures.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Process_(computing) – Practice Exercises
http://www.personal.kent.edu/~rmuhamma/OpSystems/os.html
http://srl.cs.jhu.edu/courses/600.418/2004.spring.syllabus.html
Linux Resources:
http://www.linux-tutorial.info/modules.php?name=Linux_Topics
http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/
http://www.comptechdoc.org/os/linux/usersguide/
http://linux.topdome.com/?gclid=CKPtpLzY_4oCFQ-WbgodWi6yKA
http://www.lowfatlinux.com/#INTRO
ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS:
The following is an outline of the various assessment instruments for this module:
7.1. ASSIGNMENT (20%)
An individual assignment will be given to the student on the first week and will have to be returned no
later than week 10.
Should the student fail to submit his/her assignment on week 10, the result will automatically be Zero.
7.2. PRESENTATION (20%)
The students need to present their assignment on week 10 in the form of a PowerPoint presentation or
any other presentation tools. Marks will be awarded based on the quality of the presentation, language
etc
7.3. FINAL EXAMINATION (60%)
Final Examination is included in this module. It seeks to determine participants’ individual effectiveness in
responding to specific questions under time-constrained invigilated conditions. The examination is a
closed book examination, requesting participants to demonstrate their knowledge and critical analysis
skills in responding to questions covering the module syllabus.
7.4. ASSESSMENT TIMELINES
The coursework assignment is to be distributed to students by the end of Week 1 and its submission
deadline is no later than week 10.
Presentation will be held no later than week 10.
Final examinations will be held at the end of the semester, which is on week 15
7.5. ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
Refer to assignment and final examination marking guide.
7.6. ASSESSMENT DESCRIPTOR
The following general principles should be used when marking and awarding grade:
Grade
Characteristics


Above 70%
60-69%
Excellent work which demonstrates that the student:
Possesses an authoritative grasp of the concepts, methodology and
content appropriate to the subject and to the assessment

Selects and organises material with consistent success at an exceptionally
high stage

Is able to display originality and personal insight and is capable of
expressing their argument clearly, concisely and accurately.
The student demonstrates:

An above average stage of understanding, organising, interpretation and a
clear grasp of methodology suitable focused on the topic

An ability to synthesise material and to construct responses which reveal
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


50-59%

40-49%

< 40%
insight and may offer originality
A grasp of material that enables a coherent response to the assessment
task to emerge
An ability to generate work that is accurate and appropriately organised.
The student is able to cover basic subject matter but in a relatively
unimaginative and pedestrian manner. Organisation and presentation of
material is acceptable but may display some weakness. Limitations in
understanding and interpretation and difficulty in linking to relevant material
may be evident.
The student’s performance is only just acceptable in most respects
revealing some inadequacies in the grasp of material, weak organising
ability and limited communication skills.
The student’s performance is deficient revealing inadequate grasp of
material, poor organising ability and poorly developed communication
skills.
8.
TOTAL HOURS:

49 hours of direct lecture & tutorial sessions

selected hours of lab sessions

150 hours of self and independent study
9.
INSTRUCTIONAL PLAN AND RESOURCES
The base source of material to be used in the design of the teaching-learning schedule will be the print
based module material provided to both staff and students. Other resources will be included to supplement
and fill in gaps especially latest development or recent changes which are obviously not found in the module
material.
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Diploma in Information Technology
CLASS TEACHING SCHEDULE
WEEK
1
LECTURE
Introduction to Operating
System
TUTORIALS / ACTIVITIES
Tutorials:

What is an Operating System?

What limited the size and capabilities of programs in the 1960’s?

How did the ARPA net differ from traditional computer networks?
What was its primary benefit?

Describe the advantages and disadvantages of virtual machines.

Why is it dangerous to allow users to perform read or write
operations to any region of disk it will?

Define, compare and contrast each of the following terms:
a.
Online
b.
Real time
c.
Interactive computing
d.
Timesharing
Self Assessment:

What are the primary purposes of an operating system?

How did interactive computing and its improvement in turnaround
time increase programmer productivity?

What are some of the benefits of open-source development?

Evaluate monolithic, layered and microkernel architectures
according to
a. Efficiency
b. robustness
c. extensibility
d. security
2
Hardware and Software
Concepts
Tutorials:

What is the primary function of the main board?

Why are the BIOS crucial to the Operating System?

What is the difference between persistent and volatile storage
media?

Compare and contrast CDs and DVDs.

Consider the following types of programming languages.
a. Machine language
b. Assembly language
c. High-level language
d. Object-oriented programming language
e. Structured programming language
Self Assessment:

Distinguish between hardware, software and firmware.

Compare and contrast USB and Fire Wire.

Why should the operating system prevent users from accessing
the boot sector?

How does caching improve system performance?

Describe two different techniques for handling the
communications between a processor and devices.

What is the difference between compiling and assembling?
3
Process Concepts
Mod Learning Guide: Operating Systems
Tutorials:

Give several definitions of process.

Why is a process’s address space divided into multiple regions?

In what three ways can a process get to the suspended ready
state?

Why are the locations of interrupt handlers generally not stored
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

in a linked list?
What is the major drawback of using signals for IPC?
Discuss briefly the process of suspend and resume.
Self Assessment:

What is the difference between processes that are awake and
those that are asleep?

What does it mean for an interrupt to be synchronous?

Why do distributed systems rely on message passing instead of
signals?

Explain the life cycle of a process.
4
Real Memory
Organisation and
Management
Tutorials:

When is it appropriate for a memory manager to minimize
wasted memory space?

How does a program executing a loop benefit from cache
memory?

Explain the variable partition multiprogramming?

Describe two techniques to reduce external fragmentation in
variable partition multiprogramming systems.

When is noncontiguous preferable to contiguous memory
allocation?

Discuss the types of fetch strategies.
Self Assessment:

When is noncontiguous preferable to contiguous memory
allocation?

Describe costs and benefits of overviews.

Why are system calls necessary for an operating system?

Explain the difference between internal fragmentation and
external fragmentation.

Explain in detail about memory placement strategies.
5
Virtual Memory
Organisation
Mod Learning Guide: Operating Systems
Tutorials:

Why is increasing the size of main memory an insufficient
solution to the problem of limited memory space?

Explain the various techniques used for mapping virtual
addresses to physical addresses under paging.

Explain the difference between a process’s virtual address space
and the system’s physical address space.

Why might it be difficult to implement page sharing when using
inverted page tables?

How does segmentation differ from variable partition
multiprogramming?

Discuss the similarities and differences between paging and
segmentation.
Self Assessment:

Discuss the various hardware features useful for implementing
virtual memory systems.

Discuss the benefits and drawbacks of using a multilevel paging
system instead of a direct paging system.

Compare and contrast inverted page tables to direct mapped
page tables in terms of memory efficiency and address
translation efficiency.

What special purpose hardware is required to implement
memory protection keys?

Compare and contrast pure segmentation with
segmentation/paging combined
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Virtual Memory
Management
Diploma in Information Technology
Tutorials:

Does locality favor anticipatory paging or demand paging.
Explain

Why is space time product of demand paging higher than that of
anticipatory paging?

What other factor complicates replacement strategies on system
that use pure segmentation?

Which page replacement strategy incurs more execution
overhead?

Discuss the goal of each of the following memory management
strategies in the context of virtual memory systems with paging.
a. Fetch strategy
b. Placement strategy
c. Replacement strategy
Self Assessment:

Explain why memory management in pure segmentation system
is quite similar to memory management in variable partition
multiprogramming systems.

List several reasons why it is necessary to prevent certain pages
from being paged out of main memory.
Tutorials:

What problem might occur if a priority queue were used for a
condition variable?

Compare and contrast the use of monitors and semaphore
operations.

Name the two situations in which a circular buffer is less efficient
than a single value buffer in the producer/consumer relationship.

How do condition variables differ from conventional variables?
Does it make sense to initialize condition variables?

Why must a thread wait for a resource outside a monitor?
7
8
Concurrent Programming
Distributed System
Self Assessment:

What is the difference between signal-and-continue monitors and
signal and exit monitors? Which type does Java use?

Why is it considerably more difficult to test, debug and prove
programs correctness for concurrent programs than for
sequential programs?

What problem might occur if a priority queue were used for a
condition variable?

How does a monitor prevent multiple threads from concurrently
executing inside the monitor?
Tutorials:

What are some benefits of a distributed system?

Why is a distributed system more likely to suffer faults than a
single machine?

State how network operating systems differ from distributed
operating systems.

Explain how client/server communication model works.

What advantage does CORBA have over RMI?

Distinguish FIFO broadcast, casual broadcast and atomic
broadcast.
Self Assessment:

What makes distributed systems complex and difficult to
implement and manage?

Give examples of poor state information design.

Why do distributed systems need middleware?
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


List several problems with RPC.
Explain how RPC works.
Explain the differences between process migration and process
cloning.
Tutorials:

Why are disks more appropriate than tapes for secondary
storage?

Which characteristics of disk geometry are most important to
seek optimization and rotational optimization?

Compare the overhead incurred by SSTF and FCFS.

Compare the throughput of C-SCAN with that of SCAN.

Why is sector queuing easy to implement?

How do defragmentation and disk reorganization improve
performance?
9
10
Disk Performance
Optimisation
File and Database
System 1
Self Assessment:

What are the essential goals of disk scheduling? Why is each
important?

Why is minimizing the variance of response times an important
goal in disk scheduling?

Compare and contrast FSCAN and N-Step SCAN.

What are the trade-offs when selecting the size of the system’s
disk cache buffer?

Why might data compression techniques become more practical
in the future?
Tutorials:

Compare physical records to logical records.

Discuss the responsibilities of file system.

Define path.

Explain briefly the types of file organization.

What is the primary disadvantage of linked-list noncontiguous file
allocation?
Self Assessment:

Describe the difference between hard-link and soft-link.

Explain the benefits of using a contiguous file allocation scheme.

How is tabular file allocation more efficient than linked list file
allocation?
11
File and Database
System 2
Tutorials:

Why is file access control necessary?

Explain the classification of file access?

Compare and Contrast queued access methods and basic
access methods.

Explain the differences between logging and shadow paging.

What is the primary advantage to having each client in a
distributed file system also be a server?
Self Assessment:

Compare and contrast logical backups and physical backups.

Why is security extremely important in database systems?

Explain the advantages of database system?

Why should operating systems generally avoid direct support for
database systems?
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Tutorials:

What is the difference between security and protection?

What is the primary weakness of restricted algorithms?

Discuss the common authentication methods.

Define the term biometrics.

Explain the classification of viruses.

List several techniques crackers use to penetrate systems.
12
13
Security 1
Security 2
Self Assessment:

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of secret-key
cryptography?

Define smart card.

How might MAC be more secure than DAC?

How does worm differ from viruses?

How are DNS attacks harmful?

What is firewall?
Tutorials:

Discuss the five fundamental requirements for a successful
secure transaction.

Why are public key algorithms employed to exchange secret
keys?

Compare and contrast steganography and cryptography.

Give brief definitions of each of the following terms.
a. Cryptography
b. Data Encryption Standard
c. Cipher text
d. Eavesdropper
e. Cryptanalysis
Self Assessment:

Discuss how digital signature works?

Why do companies often choose VPNs over private WANs?

What properties of wireless devices introduce challenges when
implementing secure wireless communication?

Give brief definitions of each of the following terms
a. Public key system
b. Public key
c. Private key
d. Digital signature
Documentation and operations manual:

Explore and familiarise with the Linux environment
http://www.comptechdoc.org/os/linux/usersguide/ (user guide)
http://tldp.org/LDP/Linux-Dictionary/Linux-Dictionary.pdf (Linux
dictionary)
14
Case Study: Linux
Tutorials:

Examine and conduct tutorial questions on various topics from
the following website
http://www.linux-tutorial.info/modules.php?name=Linux_Topics
http://www.yolinux.com/TUTORIALS/
http://www.linux-tutorial.info/modules.php?name=Tutorial&pageid=7

Tutorial segments
Linux Basics Topics (http://www.lowfatlinux.com/linux-basics.html)
Living in a Shell
Root and Other Users
Virtual Consoles
Logoff and Shutdown
Choosing a Shell
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The Command Prompt
Wildcards
Command History
Aliases
Redirection
Pipelines
Processes
Stopping a Program
Environment Variables
Linux Files (http://www.lowfatlinux.com/linux-files.html)
The Linux File System
Linux File Names
Linux Directories
Directory Terminology
Navigating the File System
Listing Linux Files
Displaying Linux Files
Copying and Renaming Files
Creating Files and Directories
Deleting Files and Directories
Linux Files - Wildcards
The Nine Deadly Keystrokes
Linux File Permissions
Changing File Permissions
Linux Commands (http://www.lowfatlinux.com/linux-commands.html)
Important Linux Commands
Changing Your Password
Switching Users
Who is Logged In?
Date and Time
The Echo Command
Spell Checking
Printing Linux Files
Joining Files
Searching for Files
Comparing Files
Task Scheduling
Linking Files
Linux Shell Scripting (http://www.lowfatlinux.com/linux-shellscript.html)
(http://www.freeos.com/guides/lsst/)
Linux Shell Scripts
Executing a Script
Shell Script Variables
Shell Script Logic
Shell Script Looping
Shell Script Debugging
Workshop Practice:

Hand-on practice on scripting, case studies, installation and
configuration
http://home.edu.helsinki.fi/~jsilvone/Linux/vaden.pdf
http://www.lynuxworks.com/support/courses/embedded-linux.php
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TEACHING SUGGESTIONS AND GUIDELINES
WEEK 1
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

Introduction to Operating System

Explore various types of Operating Systems
Learning outcomes to attain:

Introduction

History of OS

Core OS components

Goals of OS

OS architectures
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 6 - 39 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references: http://courses.cs.vt.edu/~csonline/OS/Lessons/Introduction/index.html
http://www.cs.fsu.edu/~jtbauer/cop4610/lectures/ch1/
http://www.howstuffworks.com/operating-system.htm
WEEK 2
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand the hardware and software concepts
Learning outcomes to attain:

Evolution of hardware devices

Hardware Components

Caching

Hardware support for operating system

Caching and Buffering

Software Overview
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 56 - 83 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://course.cs.ust.hk/comp252/web06/notes/Hardware-Software-Concepts-6.pdf
http://www.cs.nmsu.edu/~jinghe/CS474/474Spring2007/Lectures/ch2.ppt
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Diploma in Information Technology
WEEK 3
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand the process concepts
Learning outcomes to attain:

The concept of a process

The process life cycle

Process states and state transition

Process control blocks

Processor transition between processes via context switching

Hardware enables to communicate with software
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 109 - 130 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Process_(computing)
http://www.utdallas.edu/~ilyen/course/os/notes/process_eg.htm - process state transition
programming example
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Process_control_block
http://www.cim.mcgill.ca/~franco/OpSys-304-427/lecture-notes/node7.html
http://www.cs.jhu.edu/~yairamir/cs418/os2/sld007.htm
http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/compsci340s2c/lectures/lecture06.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Context_switch
http://www.bellevuelinux.org/context_switch.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inter-process_communication
WEEK 4
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand real memory organisation and management
Learning outcomes to attain:

Memory organization

Memory Hierarchy

Memory Management Strategies

Contiguous Vs Noncontiguous Memory allocation

Fixed and Variable partition Multiprogramming

Memory Placement Strategies
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the lecturer:
a. Page 379 - 404 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Conduct all activities as found in the module materials. Conduct the chapter test on the completion
of the classes.
d. Assign further readings and activities to students based on the main reference text or activities from
the module materials.
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e.
Diploma in Information Technology
Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://www.akaas.net/articles/real-memory-organization.htm
http://courses.cs.vt.edu/~cs3204/spring2004/Notes/OS3e_09.pdf
http://www.augustana.ca/~mohrj/courses/2006.fall/csc250/slides/PDFChap09.pdf
http://www.cs.stevens.edu/~quynh/courses/cs492-notes/memory_management.ppt
http://www.cs.nott.ac.uk/~acc/g53ops/lecture07.pdf
WEEK 5
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand virtual memory organisation
Learning outcomes to attain:

Concept of virtual memory

Paged virtual memory system

Segmented virtual memory system

Combined segmentation

Sharing and protection in virtual memory systems
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 413 - 459 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://www.cis.udel.edu/~sunshine/courses/F05/CIS662/class23.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_memory
http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid5_gci213300,00.html
http://citeseer.ist.psu.edu/bensoussan72multics.html
http://i30www.ira.uka.de/teaching/coursedocuments/19/2.1VirtMem.ppt
http://www.cs.umass.edu/~weems/CmpSci535/Discussion21.html
http://thns.tsinghua.edu.cn/jsj00004/Chap8.ppt
WEEK 6
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand virtual memory management
Learning outcomes to attain:

Locality

Demand paging

Anticipatory paging

Page replacement

Page-replacement strategies
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 479 - 494 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~cs333/notes/virtualmemory.pdf
http://www.cs.mun.ca/~paul/cs3725/material/web/notes/node11.html
http://www.linuxhq.com/guides/TLK/mm/memory.html (Linux)
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http://www.sm.luth.se/csee/courses/smd/149/05-06/l5-6.pdf
http://comsci.us/os/notes/ch11.html
http://www.ece.uci.edu/~jinfengl/course/ECE231_Project_Summary.pdf
http://course.cs.ust.hk/comp252/web06/notes/VMmanagement-1.pdf
http://course.cs.ust.hk/comp252/web06/notes/VMmanagement.pdf
WEEK 7
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand concurrent programming
Learning outcomes to attain:

How monitors synchronize access to data

How condition variables are used with monitors

Solutions for classic problems in concurrent programming such as readers and writers and
circular buffer

Java monitors

Remote procedure calls
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 245 - 260 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concurrent_programming
http://www.cacs.louisiana.edu/~mgr/404/burks/pcinfo/progdocs/plbook/concurre.htm (case studies)
http://g.oswego.edu/dl/cpj/index.html (Java programming)
http://www.imit.kth.se/courses/2G1915/ (course literature)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monitor_(synchronization)
http://www.cs.berkeley.edu/~duan/teaching/cs162-fa04/sp02/L08.pdf
http://www.mozilla.org/projects/nspr/reference/html/prcvar.html
http://www.cs.gmu.edu/cne/modules/ipc/pink/swmon.html
WEEK 8
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand distributed system
Learning outcomes to attain:

The need for distributed computing

Fundamental properties and desirable characteristics of distributed system

Remote communication in distributed system

Synchronization, mutual exclusion and deadlock in distributed system

Examples of distributed operating system
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 783 - 796 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distributed_computing
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Olympia College
Diploma in Information Technology
http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=807664
http://joung.im.ntu.edu.tw/teaching/distributed_systems/2000/introduction.pdf
http://www.cse.ohio-state.edu/~lauria/cse760/index.html
http://www.nd.edu/~isis/techreports/isis-99-007.pdf
http://people.engr.ncsu.edu/efg/501/sum00/lectures/links.html
http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/kerola/rio/pdf/lu12_p6.pdf
WEEK 9
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand disk performance optimization
Learning outcomes to attain:

How disk input/output is accomplished

The importance of optimizing disk performance

Seek optimization and rotational optimization

Various disk scheduling strategies

Caching and buffering

Other techniques
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the lecturer:
a. Page 528 - 551 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Conduct all activities as found in the module materials. Conduct the chapter test on the completion
of the classes.
d. Assign further readings and activities to students based on the main reference text or activities from
the module materials.
e. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://www.csd.uwo.ca/~katchab/pubs/acos2006.pdf
http://stevezero.com/eecs/cs162_fa03/IOOptimization.pdf
http://math.arizona.edu/~lega/485-585/Spring05/Burkhard02.pdf
http://www.sm.luth.se/csee/courses/smd/149/05-06/l6-6.pdf
http://www.cs.jhu.edu/~yairamir/cs418/os8/sld022.htm
http://courses.cs.vt.edu/~cs3204/spring2004/Notes/OS3e_12.pdf
http://www.cs.tcd.ie/~dondiop/teaching/disk_io.ppt
WEEK 10
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand file and database systems 1
Learning outcomes to attain:

Data Hierarchy

File Systems

File Organization

File Allocation
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 586 - 602 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
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Olympia College
Diploma in Information Technology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_hierarchy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File_system
http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Filesystems-HOWTO.html
http://www.ib-computing.com/program/topic_7/index.html
http://www.heinemann.co.uk/shared/Resources/NonSecure/00000000/alcom_sample.pdf
http://www.easydesksoftware.com/fat.htm
http://home.no.net/tkos/info/fat.html
WEEK 11
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand file and database systems 2
Learning outcomes to attain:

File Access Control

Data Access Techniques

Data Integrity Protection

File Servers and Distributed Systems

Database Systems
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 610 - 623 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms978388.aspx
http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/aix/aixuser/usrosdev/access_control_list.htm
http://www.itl.nist.gov/div897/staff/barkley/titleissues/node20.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_integrity
http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsServer/en/library/b3754814-f865-4200-9ae966785e5e87c81033.mspx?mfr=true
http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=3873&coll=portal&dl=ACM
http://infolab.stanford.edu/~ullman/dscb.html
WEEK 12
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand security concepts (Part 1)
Learning outcomes to attain:

Cryptography

Authentication

Access control

Security Attacks

Attack Prevention and Security Solutions
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 872 - 903 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptography
http://world.std.com/~franl/crypto.html
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http://www.garykessler.net/library/crypto.html
http://httpd.apache.org/docs/1.3/howto/auth.html
http://www.objs.com/survey/authent.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Access_control
http://www.comptechdoc.org/independent/security/recommendations/secattacks.html
http://www.radware.com/content/solutions/application-security/Default.asp
http://www.juniper.net/solutions/literature/white_papers/200055.pdf (whitepaper)
WEEK 13
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand security concepts (Part 2)
Learning outcomes to attain:

Secure Communications

Key Agreement Protocols

Public key infrastructure, Certificates and Certificate Authorities

Secure Communication protocols

Steganography
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 907 - 921 from the Main reference text.
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Topical references:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secure_communication
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_agreement
http://www.answers.com/topic/key-agreement-protocol
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_key_infrastructure
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steganography
WEEK 14
Over the week of lecture and tutorial, the focus will be to undertake the following:

To understand standards and concepts of Linux Operating System

To analyse sample application and case studies in Linux environment
Learning outcomes to attain:

Gain knowledge of basic operations using Linux
Readings and preparation to be undertaken by the student:
a. Page 942 – 948 (Introduction, User Interface, standards), 972 – 977 (Virtual File System), 981 –
988 (I/O Management), 998 – 1002 (locks, IPC, signal), 1005 – 1007 (shared memory), 1008 –
1011 (networking) and 1014 – 1016 (security) from the Main reference text
b. Main reference text namely:

Operating System H.M.Deitel, P.J. Deitel, D.R. Choffnes 2004 by Pearson Prentice Hall,
ISBN 0-13-124696-8
c. Visit the following websites for better understanding and study aids
Documentation and operation manuals:
http://www.comptechdoc.org/os/linux/
http://www.comptechdoc.org/os/linux/usersguide/ (user guide)
http://tldp.org/LDP/Linux-Dictionary/Linux-Dictionary.pdf (Linux dictionary)
Tutorials:
http://www.linux-tutorial.info/modules.php?name=Linux_Topics
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Diploma in Information Technology
http://www.yolinux.com/TUTORIALS/
http://www.linux-tutorial.info/modules.php?name=Tutorial&pageid=7
Workshop practice:
http://home.edu.helsinki.fi/~jsilvone/Linux/vaden.pdf
http://www.lynuxworks.com/support/courses/embedded-linux.php
WEEK 15
FINAL EXAMINATION
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