Module: Operating Systems

Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

Module Title	Operating Systems
Module Code	EEN1019 (ITS: EE206)
Faculty	Electronic Engineering	School	Engineering & Computing
NFQ level	8	Credit Rating	5

Description

The course will cover the UNIX/Linux environment and shell programming. It will also cover computer operating systems and examine the interaction of concurrent processes using C code developed on a Linux system. In particular, the course will focus on the interaction of concurrent processes: means of realising concurrency, and the use of modern interaction primitives, e.g. semaphores, message passing.

Learning Outcomes

1. Work in a UNIX environment and write shell scripts and C programs.
2. Develop code to implement key real-time optimisation techniques.
3. Apply the principles associated with process management and inter-process communications.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of the hardware architecture of modern computer platforms.

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full time hours per semester
Lecture	24	Classroom lecture.
Tutorial	12	Tutorial exercises and assignment support
Assignment Completion	24	Programming assignments.
Independent Study	65	Independent learning.
Total Workload: 125

Section Breakdown
CRN	20507	Part of Term	Semester 2
Coursework	0%	Examination Weight	0%
Grade Scale	40PASS	Pass Both Elements	Y
Resit Category	RC1	Best Mark	N
Module Co-ordinator	Robert Sadleir	Module Teacher

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Assessment Breakdown
Assignment	The purpose of this assignment is to make the students more familiar with the Linux operating system and environment by using its commands and by creating shell scripts.	10%	Week 4
Assignment	The purpose of this assignment is to assess the students' ability to write C programs that utlilise shared memory and pipes for interprocess communication.	15%	Week 7
Formal Examination	End-of-Semester Final Examination	75%	End-of-Semester

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; RC1: A resit is available for both^* components of the module. RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module. RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element. ^* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Introductory UNIX/Linux
Overview of the UNIX/Linux operating system. UNIX/Linux implementations. Basic operations and commands. File redirection. Command shells. Communicating with remote systems. Manipulating processes.

Embedded Operating Systems
eCos. TinyOS.

Scheduling
Batch. Interactive. Real Time.

Memory Management
Memory Abstraction. Swapping. Virtual Memory. Paging.

Concurrent Processes
Meaning of a process. Difference between a process and a thread. Analysis of real world applications in terms of interacting concurrent processes. Solutions based on parallel hardware architecture and/or pseudo-parallelism by time-slicing a single sequential processor. Process interaction.

Inter-Process Communication
Synchronisation and communication. Use of semaphore synchronisation and shared memory communication. Critical section implementation. Examples using C code fragments. Producer/consumer problem. Problems of unintended side-effects and deadlocks. Use of message passing for synchronisation and communication in distributed systems.

Deadlock
Formal analysis. Deadlock conditions. Resource allocation graph. Handling deadlock.

Input/Output Architecture
I/O device classification. I/O hardware architecture. Controller/CPU interface.

Indicative Reading List

Books:

Andrew S. Tanenbaum: 2009, Modern Operating Systems, 3, Pearson Education, 0138134596
William Stallings: 2011, Operating Systems: Internals and Design Principles, 7, Pearson Education, 593 - 626, 0273751506

Articles:
None

Other Resources

None