CSC 553 - Operating Systems

Dr. R. M. Siegfried

Assignment #2 - Questions on Operating Systems Overview

Due Thursday, September 14, 2023

Question 1

Suppose we have a multiprogrammed computer in which each job has identical characteristics. In one computation period, T, for a job, two-thirds the time is spent in I/O, and the remaining third in processor activity. Each job runs for a total of N periods. Assume a simple round-robin scheduling is used, and I/O operations can overlap with processor operation. Define the following quantities:

Turnaround time = actual time to complete a job

Throughput = average number of jobs completed per time period T

Processor utilization = percentage of time that the processor is activer (not waiting)

Compute these quantities for one, two, and four simultaneous jobs, assumingr that the period T is distributed in each of the following ways:

  1. I/O first third, processor second third, I/O final third
  2. I.O first third, processor second and final third

Question 2

What is the purpose of system calls, and how do system calls relate tor the OS and to the concept of dual-mode (kernel-mode and user-mode) operation?

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