CIS 415         Operating Systems

Course Description

Operating systems are undergoing a renaissance of interest within computer science. With the rise of open-source operating systems such as Linux and the BSD distributions, the commodification of operating system functionality through cloud computing, and the new approaches to device management from smartphone and tablet-based operating systems such as Android and Apple iOS, an understanding of operating system fundamentals is perhaps more important than ever. Knowledge of the theory and practice of operating system design is also a fundamental prerequisite for understanding critical systems issues such as networking and security.

This course is an introduction to the theory and practice behind modern computer operating systems. Topics will include what an operating system does (and doesn't) do, system calls and interfaces, processes, concurrent programming, resource scheduling and management (e.g., CPU, memory, devices), virtual memory, deadlocks, and security. We will approach the subject from both a theoretical perspective (what are the abstractions and algorithms?) as well as a practical one (what are the mechanisms and how are they built?). A detailed list of lecture by lecture contents, assignments, and due dates (subject to change as the term evolves) is available from the Canvas syllabus.

Instructor

Joe Sventek, jsventek@uoregon.edu

Lectures and Labs

Two 80-minute lectures are delivered each week. Mandatory attendance at a 50-minute lab each week is also required.

Prerequisites

• CIS 330 - C/C++ & Unix

Textbooks and Readings

• (Required) Abraham Silberschatz, Greg Gagne, and Peter B. Galvin. Operating System Concepts, 10e. ISBN-13: 978-1119800361.
• (Recommended) Brian W. Kernighan and Dennis M. Ritchie, The C Programming Language 2e, ISBN 978-0131103627.
• (Required) Jane W. S. Liu. Real-Time Systems. Chapter 6, available on Canvas as PDF.
• (Required) Joseph S. Sventek. C and Data Structures: a Well-Structured Approach. Chapters 3 and 4, available on Canvas as PDF.
• Randal E. Bryant and David R. O'Halloran. Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective, 2e. Chapter 9, available on Canvas as PDF.
• P. Barham et al. Xen and the Art of Virtualization. Available on Canvas as PDF.

Slack invitation

DebianLinux download links

Download the following files onto your Windows, MacOS, or Linux host system.

• SHA1 signature for the ZIP file that follows
• Zipped version of the Debian Linux disk image for Intel-based host machines
• If your host is a Windows system, also download the following file
  Application to compute the SHA1 checksum

Note that there is a document available here that describes VirtualBox (for Intel-based host machines), Debian GNU/Linux, UTM for M1-based Macintosh host machines, BitBucket as a server for private source repositories, and the set of Git programs to use to access source repositories.

If you possess an M1-based Macintosh host machine, you must follow the directions in the UTM chapter of this document to install and configure your Debian GNU/Linux virtual machine.

Major Topics

• Intro and Heap/ADT Review: 1 lecture
• OS Overview: 1 lecture
• OS Structures and System Calls: 1 lecture
• Processes: 1 lecture
• Inter-process Communication: 1 lecture
• Threads and Thread-safe ADTs: 1 lecture
• CPU Scheduling: 1 lecture
• Real-time Systems: 1 lecture
• Synchronization and Deadlocks: 1 lecture
• Random access memory: 1 lecture
• Paging/Virtual memory: 1 lecture
• Virtual Machines and Containers: 1 lecture
• Networking: 1 lecture
• File system interface: 1 lecture
• File system implementation: 1 lecture
• IO and Mass-storage systems: 1 lecture
• Protection and Security: 1 lecture

Expected Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, students will understand:

• OS concepts and practices in system calls and interfaces
• OS concepts and practices in process and process management
• OS concepts and practices in CPU scheduling
• OS concepts and practices in memory systems and memory management
• OS concepts and practices in file systems and file management
• OS concepts and practices in I/O systems and I/O management

Acquired Skills

Upon successful completion of the course, students will have acquired the following skills:

• Demonstrate mastery using the Linux software development environment
• Demonstrate ability to program using processes and threads
• Demonstrate ability to use Linux system calls

Course Requirements and Grading

This course will be taught as two 80-minute live lectures and one 50-minute lab each week. Aside from the required textbook, all course materials (project assignments, lab assignments, tutorial videos, sample exam material) will be available from Canvas. We will be using Slack for asynchronous questions and answers.

Grading will be based on the following criteria:

CIS majors and minors, and DSCI majors, must take CIS 415 graded; others may take it graded or P/N.

Grading Scale