COURSE DESCRIPTION
 
Department:  Computer Science

Course Number: 3013
                       
Course Coordinator: Mark Claypool (MLC)

Course Title: Operating Systems
            
Total Credits: 1/3 unit
 

Current Catalog Description: 

  This course provides the student with an understanding of the basic
  components of a general-purpose operating system.

  Topics include processes, process management, synchronization,
  input/output devices and their programming, interrupts, memory
  management, resource allocation, and an introduction to file systems.

  Students will be expected to design and implement a large piece of
  system software.

  Intended audience: computer science majors and others interested in
  studying the software and hardware components of computer systems.

  Recommended background: CS 2005 and CS 2011. 
 

Textbook:

  Modern Operating Systems. 2nd edition. by Andrew S. Tanenbaum.
  Prentice Hall, 2001.

References:

  http://www.cs.wpi.edu/~claypool/courses/3013-B01/


Course Goals:


This is an undergraduate course as an introduction to operating
systems.  The intent is to familiarize stduents with OS theory past
and present, while exposing them to some practical issues in OS
implementation.  Students study the design and theory of
multiprogrammed operating systems, concurrent processes, process
communication, input/output devices, memory management, resource
allocation and scheduling are studied.  Part of the course deals with
bookwork, part with implementation projects and part with OS research
papers.

Prerequisites by Topic:

  Prerequisites are a working knowledge of common data structures such
  as stacks, queues, and linked lists; a knowledge of computer
  organization; a strong programming background; and an interest in
  learning about operating systems. 

  Recommended background: CS 2005 and CS 2011. 

Major Topics Covered in the Course:

  OS History, Concepts and Structure (2 hours)
  Process Scheduling (4 hour)
  Synchronization  (4 hours)
  Memory management (12 hours)
  I/O Devices (2 hours)
  File Systems (1 hour)

Laboratory projects:

  There are 3-4 projects in this course, typically something like:

  Project 0: 1 week

  Build and Install the Linux OS.  This project gets students set up
  on their own Linux machine for the course.  Students work in pairs.

  Project 1: 2.5 weeks.

  Design and implement a new process scheduling system  in the Linux kernel.
  Students work in pairs.

  Project 2: 2.5 weeks.

  Design and implement a new synchronization mechanism in the Linux
  kernel. Students work in pairs.

  Project 3: 1 week

  Design and implement a virtual device driver in the Linux kernel.
  Students work in pairs.


Estimate CSAB Category Content:
 
                      CORE       ADVANCED
                 ---------------------------------                  
  Data
  Structures          -          1
  
  Algorithms          -          -
                                                               
  Software 
  Design              -          2

  Computer
  Organization and
  Architecture        -          -
                     
  Concepts of
  Programming
  Languages           -          -       
                                  
  Foundations         -          -

  Other               -          - 

     
Oral and Written Communications:
 
  Every student is required to submit at least __0___ written reports
  (not including exams, tests, quizzes, or commented programs) of
  typically __0__ pages and to make __0___ oral presentation of
  typically ___ minutes duration. 

 
Social and Ethical Issues:
 
  Not a principal focus of the course.

Theoretical Content:
 
  Some discussion on complexity of various approaches to scale.


Problem Analysis:
 
  Problem analysis occurs in all the projects, as well as in class
  discussion about interface design problems. 
 

Solution Design:
 
  Solution design occurs in Projects 1, 2 and 3.
 
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