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Chapter 12
System Management
Understanding Operating Systems,
Fourth Edition
Objectives
You should be able to describe:
• The tradeoffs to be considered when attempting to
improve overall system performance
• The roles of system measurement tools such as
positive and negative feedback loops
• Two system monitoring techniques
• The importance of sound accounting practices by
system administrators
• The fundamentals of patch management
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Evaluating an Operating System
• To evaluate an operating system, you need to
understand:
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Its design goals and history
How it communicates with users
How resources are managed
Tradeoffs made to achieve goals
• An operating system’s strengths and weaknesses
need to be weighed in relation to:
– Users
– Hardware
– Purpose
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Cooperation Among Components
• Performance of any one resource depends on
performance of other system resources
• Any system improvement can be made only after
extensive analysis of:
– Needs of the system’s resources, requirements,
managers, and users
• System changes often result in trading one set of
problems for another
• Consider performance of entire system and not just
individual components
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Role of Memory Management
• Before making memory related changes, consider
actual system operating environment
• There’s a tradeoff between memory use and CPU
overhead
– As memory management algorithms grow more
complex, CPU overhead increases and overall
performance can suffer
– Some operating systems perform remarkably better
with additional memory
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Role of Processor Management
• Multiprogramming requires synchronization among
Memory Manager, Processor Manager, and I/O
devices
– Tradeoff: Better use of CPU versus increased
overhead, slower response time, and decreased
throughput
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Role of Processor Management
(continued)
• System saturation point could be reached if CPU is
fully utilized but allowed to accept additional jobs
– Results in higher overhead and less time to run
programs
• Under heavy loads, CPU time required to manage
I/O queues could dramatically increase time
required to run jobs
• With long queues forming at channels, control
units, and I/O devices, CPU could be idle waiting
for processes to finish I/O
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Role of Device Management
• Ways to improve I/O device utilization include
buffering, blocking, and rescheduling I/O requests
to optimize access times
– Tradeoffs: Increased CPU overhead and additional
memory space used
• Blocking reduces number of physical I/O requests,
but increases overhead
• Buffering helps CPU match slower speed of I/O
devices but requires memory space
– Tradeoff: Reduced multiprogramming versus better
use of I/O devices
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Role of Device Management
(continued)
• Rescheduling requests helps optimizing I/O times
– Overhead function
– Speed of both CPU and I/O device must be weighed
against time to execute reordering algorithm
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Role of Device Management
(continued)
Table 12.1: System with three CPUs and four disk drives of
different speeds. Assuming system requires 1,000 instructions
to reorder I/O requests, advantages of reordering vary
depending on combination of CPU and disk.
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Role of Device Management
(continued)
A system consisting of CPU 1 and Disk Drive A has to
access Track 1, Track 9, Track 1, and then Track 9, and
the arm is already located at Track 1.
Without reordering, data access requires: 35 + 35 + 35 =
105 ms,
Figure 12.1: Combination of CPU 1 and Disk Drive A
without reordering
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Role of Device Management
(continued)
After reordering, the arm can perform both accesses on Track 1
before traveling, in 35 ms, to Track 9
With reordering, data access requires: 35 + 30 = 65 ms
Figure 12.2: Combination of CPU 1 and Disk Drive A
with reordering
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Role of Device Management
(continued)
• Reordering requests aren’t always warranted
– Consider CPU 1 and much faster Disk Drive C
• Without reordering, access time: 5 + 5 + 5 = 15 ms
• With reordering, access time: 5 + 30 = 35 ms
• Reordering algorithm is either always on or always
off
– Can’t be changed by systems operator without
reconfiguration
– Initial setting must be determined by evaluating
system on the average
Understanding Operating Systems, Fourth Edition
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Role of File Management
• Secondary storage allocation schemes help user
organize and access files on system
– Different schemes offer different flexibility, but
tradeoff for increased file flexibility is increased CPU
overhead
• Example: Accessing all records of a file stored
noncontiguously could be time-consuming and require
compaction, which takes CPU time
• Volume’s directory location affect retrieval time
• File management is closely related to device on
which files are stored
Understanding Operating Systems, Fourth Edition
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Role of File Management (continued)
If file’s directory is loaded into memory, access speed affects
only initial retrieval and not subsequent retrievals
Table 12.2: A system with four disk drives of different speeds
and a CPU speed of 1.2 ms
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Role of Network Management
• The Network Manager
– Routinely synchronizes the load among remote
processors
– Tries to select most efficient communication paths
over multiple data communication lines
– Allows network administrator to monitor use of
individual computers and shared hardware
– Ensures compliance with software license
agreements
– Simplifies updating data files and programs on
networked computers
Understanding Operating Systems, Fourth Edition
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Measuring System Performance
• Total system performance can be defined as
efficiency with which a computer system meets its
goals
• System efficiency is not easily measured
– Affected by three major components: user programs,
operating system programs, and hardware
• System performance can be very subjective and
difficult to quantify
Understanding Operating Systems, Fourth Edition
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Measurement Tools
• Most designers and analysts rely on following
measures of system performance:
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Throughput
Capacity
Response time
Turnaround time
Resource utilization
Availability
Reliability
Understanding Operating Systems, Fourth Edition
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Measurement Tools (continued)
• Throughput: Composite measure that indicates
productivity of system as a whole
– Usually measured under steady-state conditions
– Reflects quantities such as “the number of jobs
processed per day” or “the number of online
transactions handled per hour”
– Can also be a measure of volume of work handled
by one system unit
– Can be monitored by either hardware or software
Understanding Operating Systems, Fourth Edition
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Measurement Tools (continued)
• Capacity: Maximum throughput level
– Resource becomes saturated and processes in
system aren’t being passed along
• Thrashing is a result
– Main memory has been over-committed and level of
multiprogramming has reached a peak point
– Can be monitored by either hardware or software
– Bottlenecks can be detected by monitoring queues
forming at each resource
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Measurement Tools (continued)
• Response time: Interval required to process user’s
request
– From when user presses key to send message until
system indicates receipt of message
– Depends on:
• Workload handled by system at time of request
• Type of job or request being submitted
– Should include both average values and variance
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Measurement Tools (continued)
• Turnaround time: Response time for batch jobs
– Time from submission of job until output is returned
to user
– Same dependencies and measurement
requirements as response time
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Measurement Tools (continued)
• Resource utilization: Measure of how much each
unit is contributing to overall operation
– Usually given as percentage of time a resource is
actually in use
• Example: Is CPU busy 60 percent of time?
– Helps analyst to determine:
• If there is a balance among system units
• If system is I/O-bound or CPU-bound
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Measurement Tools (continued)
• Availability: Indicates likelihood that resource will
be ready when user needs it
– Influenced by two factors:
• Mean time between failures (MTBF): Average time
unit is operational before it breaks down
• Mean time to repair (MTTR): Average time needed to
fix failed unit and put it back in service
MTBF
Availabili ty(A) 
MTBF  MTTR
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Measurement Tools (continued)
Table 12.3: Availability of certain platforms based on
24 hours, 365 days/year use
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Measurement Tools (continued)
• Reliability: Measures probability that unit will not
fail during given time period
– Function of MTBF
R(t )  e (1 MTBF )( t )
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Measurement Tools (continued)
• Measures of performance can’t be taken in
isolation from workload being handled by system
• Overall system performance varies with time
– Important to define the actual working environment
before making generalizations
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Feedback Loops
• Feedback loop: A mechanism to monitor system’s
resource utilization so adjustments can be made
– Prevents processor from spending more time doing
overhead than executing jobs
• Types of feedback loops:
– Negative feedback loop
– Positive feedback loop
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Feedback Loops (continued)
• Negative feedback loop: Causes the arrival rate
of processes to decrease when system becomes
too congested
– Helps stabilize system
– Keeps queue lengths close to estimated mean
values
• Positive feedback loop: Causes arrival rate to
increase when system becomes underutilized
– Used in paged virtual memory systems
– More difficult to implement than negative loops
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Feedback Loops (continued)
Figure 12.3: Negative feedback loop
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Feedback Loops (continued)
Figure 12.4: Positive feedback loop
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Monitoring
• Implemented using hardware or software
– Hardware monitors are more expensive
• Have minimum impact on system because they’re
outside of it and attached electronically
– Examples: counters, clocks, and comparators, etc.
– Software monitors are relatively inexpensive
• Can distort results of analysis because they become
part of system
• Must be developed for each specific system
• Difficult to move from system to system
Understanding Operating Systems, Fourth Edition
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Monitoring (continued)
• In early systems, performance measurements
monitored only CPU speed
• Today’s measurements include other hardware
units,OS, compilers, and other system software
• Measurements are made in a variety of ways
– Using real programs, usually production programs
• Run with different configurations of CPUs, operating
systems, and other components
• Results are called benchmarks
– Using simulation models
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Monitoring (continued)
• Benchmarks demonstrate specific advantages of
a new CPU, operating system, compiler, or piece of
hardware
– Useful when comparing systems that have gone
through extensive changes
– Results highly dependent upon:
• System’s workload
• System’s design and implementation
• Specific requirements of applications loaded on
system
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Monitoring (continued)
Table 12.4: Benchmarking results
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Monitoring (continued)
Table 12.4 (continued): Benchmarking results
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Accounting
• Pays bills and keeps system financially operable
• In a single-user environment easy to calculate
cost of system
• In a multiuser environment, computer costs are
usually distributed among users
– Based on how much each one uses system’s
resources
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Accounting (continued)
• For distribution, operating system must be able to:
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Set up user accounts
Assign passwords
Identify which resources are available to each user
Define quotas for available resources, such as disk
space or maximum CPU time allowed per job
• Pricing policies vary from system to system
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Accounting (continued)
• Pricing policies include some or all of the following:
– Total amount of time spent between job submission
and completion
– CPU time, main memory usage
– Secondary storage used during program execution
– Secondary storage used during billing period
– Use of system software, number of I/O operations
– Time spent waiting for I/O completion
– Number of input records read, output records
printed, page faults
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Accounting (continued)
• Pricing policies often used as a way to achieve
specific operational goals
• Pricing incentives can be used to encourage users
to access more plentiful and cheap resources
• Method of billing information depends on
environment
• Maintaining billing records online:
– Status of each user can be checked before the
user’s job is allowed to enter the READY queue
– Results in increased overhead
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Patch Management
• Systematic updating of the operating system and
other system software
• Patch: Piece of programming code that replaces or
changes code that makes up software
• Primary reasons for software patches:
– Need for vigilant security precautions against attacks
– Need to assure system compliance with government
regulations
– Need to keep systems running at peak efficiency
• Among top eight technologies used most
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Patch Management (continued)
Table 12.5: 2004 E-Crime Watch survey results of
security and law enforcement executives
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Patching Fundamentals
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Essential steps to take before patch installation:
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Identify the required patch
Verify patch’s source and integrity
Test patch in a safe environment
Deploy patch throughout system
Audit system to gauge success of patch
deployment
Never patch operating system without a recent
data backup in hand
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Patching Fundamentals (continued)
• Patch Availability: Identify the criticality of patch
– If critical, plan to apply patch as soon as possible
– If not critical, possible to delay installation until a
regular patch cycle begins
• Patch Integrity: Validate source and integrity
– Check digital signature or validation tool that comes
with software
– Validate digital signature used by vendor to send
new software on a regular basis
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Patching Fundamentals (continued)
• Patch Testing: Test new patch on a sample
system or an isolated machine
– Test to see:
• If system reboots after patch is installed
• If patched software performs its assigned tasks
– Tested system should resemble complexity of target
network
– Test contingency plans to uninstall patch and
recover old software if something goes wrong
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Patching Fundamentals (continued)
• Patch Deployment: Installation of patch
– On single-user computer, patch deployment is a
simple task
• Install software and reboot computer
– On multiplatform system with many users, task is
exceptionally complicated
• Should have an accurate inventory of all hardware
and software
– Can be gleaned from network mapping software
• Can launch deployment in stages
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Patching Fundamentals (continued)
• Audit the Finished System: Confirm resulting
system meets expectations
– Verifying all computers are patched correctly and
perform fundamental tasks as expected
– Verifying no users had unauthorized versions of
software on computers and thus ineligible for patch
– Verifying no users left with unpatched software on
computers
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Patching Fundamentals (continued)
• Audit the Finished System (continued)
– Should include:
• Documentation of changes made to system
• Success or failure of each stage of process
– Keep a log of all system changes for future
reference
– Get feedback from users to verify deployment’s
success
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Software Options
• Patches can be managed in two ways:
– Manually, one at a time
– Automatically using software
• Deployment software falls into two groups:
– Agent-based software
• Agent must be installed on all target systems before
patches can be deployed
– Agentless software
• Attractive for administrators of large, complex networks
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Timing the Patch Cycle
• Critical patches must be applied immediately
• Less-critical patches can be scheduled at
convenience of systems group
• Routine patches can be:
– Applied monthly or quarterly
– Timed to coincide with vendor’s service pack release
• Advantage of routine patch cycles:
– Allow for thorough review of patch and testing cycles
before deployment
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Summary
• The operating system is the orchestrated
cooperation of every piece of hardware and
software
• When one part of the system is favored, it’s often at
the expense of others
• System’s managers must make sure they are using
appropriate measurement tools and techniques to
verify effectiveness of the system
• System’s managers must evaluate degree of
improvement
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