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An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware and software resources, and provides common services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also include accounting software for cost allocation of processor time, mass storage, peripherals, and other ...
Kernel (operating system) The kernel is a computer program at the core of a computer 's operating system and generally has complete control over everything in the system. The kernel is also responsible for preventing and mitigating conflicts between different processes. [1] It is the portion of the operating system code that is always resident ...
Machine code is a strictly numerical language, and it is the lowest-level interface to the CPU intended for a programmer. Assembly language provides a direct map between the numerical machine code and a human-readable mnemonic. In assembly, numerical opcodes and operands are replaced with mnemonics and labels.
Process (computing) In computing, a process is the instance of a computer program that is being executed by one or many threads. There are many different process models, some of which are light weight, but almost all processes (even entire virtual machines) are rooted in an operating system (OS) process which comprises the program code ...
Process control block. A process control block (PCB), also sometimes called a process descriptor, is a data structure used by a computer operating system to store all the information about a process. When a process is created (initialized or installed), the operating system creates a corresponding process control block, which specifies and ...
Arrows indicate the direction of flow. In computer science and computer engineering, computer architecture is a description of the structure of a computer system made from component parts. [1] It can sometimes be a high-level description that ignores details of the implementation. [2] At a more detailed level, the description may include the ...
Machine code. In computer science, an instruction set architecture (ISA) is an abstract model that generally defines how software controls the CPU in a computer or a family of computers. [1] A device or program that executes instructions described by that ISA, such as a central processing unit (CPU), is called an implementation of that ISA.
A block diagram is a diagram of a system in which the principal parts or functions are represented by blocks connected by lines that show the relationships of the blocks. [1] They are heavily used in engineering in hardware design, electronic design, software design, and process flow diagrams. Block diagrams are typically used for higher level ...