Linux is a set of programs that act as a link between computer and the end user.
Operating System (OS) is a computer program that allocate the system resources and coordinate all the details of the computer`s internals. It is also know as Kernel
Brief History about Linux Operating System
Linux was developed as an alternative to other operating systems such as Unix, Windows Mac OS etc. It was developed by Linus Torvalds will he was studying at University of Helsinki.
- Linus Torvalds developed his own kernel and few programs around it in 1991 which later became a full flagged OS and soon it was accepted widely by the Computer Engineers in Corporates, Universities and other Institutes.
- Today Linux is among the most widely used OS and it come in various variants like Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora, Debian, OpenSUSE, RedSUSE, RedHat, MX Linux etc
- Unix is a multi user system- several people can use Unix computer at the same time
- Unix is a multi tasking environment- several users can rung multiple programs at the same time
Users communicate with the kernel through a program know as the shell. The shell is a command line interpreter; it translates commands entered by the user and converts them into a language that is understood by the kernel.
How does Linux Architecture look like ?
The below diagram shows a Linux system
Lets look at the following term and there meaning
Kernel- It is the heart of the Linux Operating System. It interacts with the hardware and most of the tasks like memory management, task scheduling and file management.
Shell – It is the utility that processes your requests. When a user types any command in the terminal the shell interprets the command and calls the necessary program that you want.
Command and utilities – There are various commands and utilities which you can make use in your day to day activities. eg ftp,ssh,mv etc.
Files and Directories – All the data of Unix is organised into files . Files are then organised into directories. These directories are further organized into a tree-like structure called the filesystem.
Quizes
Do the follow questions to test you understaning
- What is the primary role of the Linux Kernel?
- Interpret user commands
- Run application software
- Manage system resources and coordinate computer internals
- Provide a user interface
- Who developed the Linux Operating system?
- Erick Ruo
- Bill Gates
- Steve Jobs
- Linus Torvalds
- Which of the following is NOT a common Linux distribution
- CentOs
- Ubuntu
- Fedora
- iOS
- What is the primary role of the Linux Kernel?
- Interpret user commands
- Run application software
- Manage system resources and coordinate computer internals
- Provide a user interface
