COURSE DESCRIPTION
Department and Course
Number
Course
Title
CS 271
Computer Organization and
Operating Systems
Course
Coordinator
Total
Credits
Mark C. Temte
3.0
Current Catalog Description
Introduction to computer systems organization. Organization and functions of hardware
components including the central processor, memory, and I/O devices. Operating system
components and their function including job control and memory, processor, and device
management. Operating system services including command language interface,
libraries, and utilities. Hardware support for interrupt processing, virtual memory, and
multiprogramming. Examination of representative architectures and operating systems.
Textbook
Andrew Tannenbaum, Structured Computer Organization (4th edition), Prentice-Hall,
1999. ISBN 0-13-095990-1.
References
None.
Course Goals
The objective of this course is to understand the concepts of computer organization at the
levels of digital logic, of microarchitecture, of the machine instruction set, and of the
operating system. Study includes detailed examination of the central processor, memory,
buses, device communication, architectural support for high-level languages, virtual
memory, and process concepts.
Prerequisites by Topic
A first course in programming in a high-level language is assumed to have been taken
before this course together with a course in assembly language.
Major Topics Covered in the Course (class hours)
Binary arithmetic, two’s complement, floating point, and conversion (3 hours)
Input/output devices (4 hours)
Digital logic: Boolean algebra, gates, combinational and sequential logic (6 hours)
Memory design (2 hours)
Bus characteristics, design, and interfacing (3 hours)
Integration of components into a computer system (1 hours)
Design of the CPU and the microarchitecture level (12 hours)
Instruction set architecture, data types, instruction formats, and addressing (2 hours)
Traps and interrupts (2 hours)
Paging and virtual memory (3 hours)
Process concepts, multiprogramming, and semaphores (3 hours)
Multiprocessing computers (1 hour)
Examinations (4 hours)
Laboratory projects (specify number of weeks on each)
Simulation of two’s complement arithmethic (2 weeks)
Simulation of a RISC processor (6 weeks)
Estimate CSAB Category Content
CORE
ADVANCED
Data Structures
0
0
Algorithms
0
0
Software Design 0
0
CORE
Computer Organization and 3.0
Architecture
Concepts of Programming 0
Languages
ADVANCED
0
0
Oral and Written Communications
Every student is required to submit at least two written reports of typically 10 pages
reporting their investigation of an I/O device and reporting the difficulties they have in
the second laboratory project.
Social and Ethical Issues
No significant component.
Theoretical Content (course hours)
Binary and two’s complement arithmetic (1)
Boolean algebra and simplification of Boolean functions (1)
The working set for analyzing demand paging (1)
Process concepts and semaphores(2)
Problem Analysis and Solution design
Students perform analysis and design activity on four homework assignments involving
digital logic that involve Boolean functions, combinational logic circuits, and sequential
logic circuits. Each assignment involves analysis of the problem followed by the design
of a solution. The two programming projects also involve analysis of the requirements
followed by the design (and implementation) of a solution. Furthermore, about 20 hours
of lecture time is devoted to design of computer components, including basic digital logic
circuits, memory, buses, a simple computer system, a CPU, and the mircoarchitecture
level.