CS311

OPERATING SYSTEMS
COURSE OUTLINE

1.SEMESTER/YEAR: Semester 1, 2023

2.MODE OF DELIVERY/LOCATION: Face to Face - Laucala Campus

3.PRE-REQUISITES: CS211

4.COURSE CO-ORDINATOR: Mr. Jashvir Bir

5.TEACHING TEAM:

Name: Mr. Jashvir Bir

Phone: 7275861 | 9304124
Email: Jashvir.bir@usp.ac.fj | birjashvir@gmail.com
Consultation Hours: Via Email & During Tutorials

6. LECTURE TIMES & VENUE:

Monday: 11:00am 014 – 024

Tuesday: 5:00pm 136 – 001
Wednesday: 1:00pm 014 – 024

7. EMERGENCY CONTACT:

Name: Dr MGM Khan

Office: ICT Building, Level 3
Phone: 3232507
Email: khan_mg@usp.ac.fj

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8. COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course provides an overview of architecture of different operating systems
such as UNIX, Windows, IOS and Android. This course includes resource
allocation and optimization, process and thread management, coordination and
scheduling, virtual and real memory management, disk schedulers and file
management. The students will be able to understand the functionality and
services provided by the operating system.

9. COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Solve synchronization problems inherent in inter-process communication

and multi-threaded applications.
2. Evaluate various techniques for efficient management of operating system
resources.
3. Explain protection and security mechanisms used in operating system
design.

10. USP GRADUATE OUTCOMES

The USP graduate outcomes are as follows:

1. Communication: Graduates will be able to communicate ideas clearly and

persuasively in structured formats using language and other modes of
communication that are appropriate for context, audience and specific
Disciplinary conventions.

2. Creativity: Graduates will extend boundaries of current knowledge in a

particular discipline or profession.

3. Critical thinking and quantitative reasoning: Graduates will be able to

evaluate multiple perspectives and arrive at a reasonable independent
judgement based on evidence.

4. Ethics: Graduates will demonstrate a commitment to high ethical

standards in scholarly, professional and socio-cultural practices.

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 5. Pacific consciousness: Graduates will recognize the cultural heritage and
diversity of Pacific societies for sustainable development in a contemporary
environment.

6. Professionalism: Graduates will demonstrate the ability to carry out tasks

to acceptable standards within their profession and occupations.

7. Teamwork: Graduates will work together in a respectful and collaborative

manner to complete tasks within teams to achieve an outcome.

11. COURSE CONTENT

WEEKLY SCHEDULE
1 INTRODUCTION
2 SYSTEM STRUCTURES
3 PROCESS CONCEPTS
4 MULTI-THREADED PROGRAMMING
5 PROCESS SCHEDULING
6 SYNCHRONIZATION
7 DEADLOCKS
MID SEMESTER BREAK
8 DEADLOCKS
9 MEMORY MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
10 VIRTUAL MEMORY MANAGEMENT
11 FILESYSTEMS
12 IMPLEMENTING FILE SYSTEMS
13 I/O SYSTEMS
14 PROTECTION & SECURITY

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12. PRESCRIBED TEXTBOOK & OTHER RESOURCES

CORE RESOURCES SUPPORTING

• OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS RESOURCES
By Silberschatz, Galvin & Gagne, 9th Edition, John • Lecture Notes, Slides &
Wiley and Sons 2011, ISBN: 81-265-0962-7 Tutorials
• All Other Resources Will
Be Available In Moodle

13. ALIGNMENT OF LEARNING OUTCOMES, ACTIVITIES & ASSESSMENT

The following table demonstrates the alignment of the course learning
outcomes to appropriate activities and assessments and the links to
programme and USP graduate outcomes

COURSE
ASSOCIATED LEARNING & USP GRADUATE
LEARNING ASSESSMENT
TEACHING ACTIVITIES OUTCOMES
OUTCOMES
Teamwork

1 Assignment 1 - 2 Communication
Professionalism

Concepts are explained Communication

Test 1
2 in Lectures and questions Test 2 Critical Thinking &
related to this is given in Final Exam Quantitative Reasoning
Tutorials
Communication
Teamwork
3 Final Exam
Professionalism
Ethics

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14. ASSESSMENT

COURSE
TYPE OF WEIGHT
COMMENTS LEARNING
ASSESSMENT (%)
OUTCOMES
CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT – 55%
Two tests which will be 50 mins in

Test 20% duration. Check for announcements in 2

Moodle.
There will be two assignments to be
completed individually.Assignments will
comprise of theoretical questions as well

Assignment 35% as assembly language programming. 1

Specifications and submission guidelines
will be announced in class and made
available on Moodle.
FINAL EXAMINATION – 45%
This examination will consist of a three (3)
hour paper at the end of your course. You
Final Exam 45% 1, 2 & 3
must score a minimum of 40% in this
exam in order to pass the course.

▪ PASSING THE UNIT

In order to be awarded a pass in this unit, students must:

1. Attend at least 60% of the Labs/Tutorial.

2. Achieve an overall mark of at least 50% in the Course.
3. Achieve at least 40% (18/45) in the Final Exam.
If you DO NOT comply with the criteria mentioned above, you are automatically
deemed to have failed the course although you will be allowed to attempt all
assessments

▪ GRADE DISTRIBUTION

A+ A B+ B C+ C D E

85 – 100 78 – 84 71 – 77 64 – 70 57 – 63 50 – 56 40 – 49 0 – 39
▪ ASSESSMENT POLICIES AND REGULATIONS

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For detailed regulations, please refer to the USP Handbook and Calendar.
Plagiarism, copying materials from other sources without proper referencing and
acknowledge of the source is a serious offence and will be dealt with severely. In
the Regulations Governing Academic Misconduct section of the USP Handbook
& Calendar, plagiarism is defined as “the copying of another person’s creative
work and using it as one’s own – without explicitly giving credit to the original
creator. Work copied without acknowledgement from a book, from another
student’s work, from the internet or from any other source”. If the Lecturer is
satisfied that plagiarism has occurred, they will report the matter to the Head of
School. They can reduce marks appropriately. If the matter is seen as serious
enough it can be taken to the Student Disciplinary Committee by the Head of
School.

15. IMPORTANT DATES

ACTIVITY WEEK WEIGHT (%)

Test 1 6 10

Assignment 1 8 15

Assignment 2 12 20

Test 2 14 10

16. STUDENT SUPPORT

All information and material will be provided on Moodle for CS311 Operating
Systems Course in the website: http://elearn.usp.ac.fj
You will need to use your SOLS username and password. Should you have any
queries regarding logins, feel free to reach out on helpdesk@usp.ac.fj
▪ CFL STUDENT LEARNING SUPPORT (SLS) SERVICES
CFL Student Learning Specialists provide you with professional assistance for
successful study and help you develop as an independent active learner. Student
Learning Support services are provided at the Hub. The student support staff will:

o help you to adapt to the new environment and expectations of students at

the USP.
o have one-to-one consultations with you to discuss any challenges that you
may be facing in your studies.

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 o connect you to mentors (study buddies) who will guide you and facilitate group
discussions with other students in your courses
o conduct special workshops to upskill and equip you for your assessments and
examinations. (e.g. Literature Review, Report Writing, Presentation Skills, etc.) NB
Check your student webmail for advertisements.
o help you unpack and understand your assignments and tutorial questions.
o assist you with English language and mathematics basic skills.
o provide specific assistance for students with disability
o assist students who have left school for some years (mature students).
o assist students who are not performing up to par.

▪ AT RISK STUDENTS (ARS)

ARS Programmes are compulsory for students who have demonstrated prior weak
performance. Extra Help Sessions must be taken in addition to regular tutorials, and a
minimum attendance of 60% in these sessions is required to pass the course. Students
who qualify for Extra Help Sessions will be notified by the Course Coordinator during the
mid-semester break. The purpose of these sessions is to provide students who have
struggled in the past (“C“ grade or less in prerequisite courses) by providing additional
contact with teaching staff to help them succeed in the course. The type of extra help
offered in these sessions is determined by the Course Coordinator. Qualifying students will
be identified by the Faculty. Based on student marks at mid-semester, the Course
Coordinator may require struggling students to attend Extra Help Sessions during the
second half of the semester. These sessions can include extra tutorials, workshops, peer
mentoring, etc.

17. STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES

Students are expected to:

o Spend enough time on Moodle and other activities required in the course.
o Attend all lectures, tutorials, team meetings etc. unless hampered by illness in
which case you must inform your course coordinator and team members.
o Arrange with the team members to work in their own times on the project.
o Facilitate the course coordinator with any proof that he/she was sick and unable
to attend classes or assessment at the earliest possible time to avoid getting a
zero mark for the missed assessment.

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▪ STUDENT WORKLOAD

ACTIVITY HOURS COMMENTS

Tutorial/ Lab Participation 43 2hr Lab plus preparation Time

Lecture Notes & Slides 42 14 * 3hrs

Twenty hours to be spent on each
Assignments 40
assignment.
Two 1hr 30min Test plus preparation
Test Participation 40
Time.
Three hour examination plus
Final Exam Participation 40
preparation Time.
Total Student Hours 205 Hours

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