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Quizzes > Computers & IT

OS Quiz: Test Your Operating System Concepts

Quick, free operating system quiz. Instant results.

Editorial: Review CompletedCreated By: Peter HopkissonUpdated Aug 23, 2025
Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper art illustration for Operating System quiz on sky blue background

This OS quiz helps you check core operating system concepts and see where you need practice. Answer quick questions on processes, memory, files, and scheduling, then view your score right away. Want more practice? Try our operating system quiz next, or build confidence with an os practice test.

What is the primary function of an operating system?
Provide internet connectivity
Manage hardware and software resources
Develop application software
Store user data directly
The operating system is responsible for managing hardware and software resources such as CPU, memory, and I/O devices. It acts as an intermediary between applications and the physical hardware. Without the OS, applications would have to control hardware directly, which would be inefficient and unsafe. .
What is the main goal of CPU scheduling?
Optimize file system layout
Increase network throughput
Maximize CPU utilization
Minimize disk I/O
CPU scheduling algorithms aim to maximize CPU utilization by deciding which process runs next, ensuring the CPU is kept busy. Optimizing other metrics like turnaround time or waiting time often helps achieve high utilization. .
What does virtual memory allow an operating system to do?
Increase CPU clock speed
Use disk storage as an extension of RAM
Encrypt all memory pages
Eliminate the need for physical RAM
Virtual memory enables the OS to use disk storage to simulate additional RAM, allowing processes to operate as if there is more physical memory than actually installed. This facilitates running larger applications and simplifies memory management. .
What is the 'ready' state of a process?
Waiting in queue for CPU time
Currently executing on the CPU
Terminated and awaiting cleanup
Blocked on I/O operation
A process in the 'ready' state has all necessary resources and is waiting for CPU allocation to execute. It is not blocked by I/O or other events. The scheduler selects from the ready queue when assigning the CPU. .
Which component handles system calls in an OS?
BIOS
User application
Kernel
Shell
System calls are requests from user-space applications to the kernel for privileged operations. The kernel provides the necessary interfaces to perform functions like file I/O or process control. .
Which of the following is non-volatile storage?
CPU cache
Register file
RAM
Hard disk drive
Non-volatile storage retains data even when power is removed. Hard disk drives (and SSDs) store data permanently until explicitly erased. RAM and caches are volatile and lose their contents without power. .
What does it mean if a process is I/O-bound?
It never waits for resources
It spends more time performing I/O operations than CPU computations
It only performs computations and no I/O
It has the highest CPU priority
An I/O-bound process makes frequent I/O requests and often waits for devices. It spends more time waiting for I/O than executing on the CPU. In contrast, CPU-bound processes use the CPU heavily. .
What is a thread in an operating system?
The smallest unit of CPU scheduling within a process
Physical core of the CPU
A filesystem structure
A separate program running on the OS
A thread is the smallest unit of execution that can be scheduled by the OS, existing within a process and sharing its resources. Multiple threads in a process share memory but have independent execution contexts. .
Which scheduling algorithm selects the process with the smallest estimated run-time to completion?
Shortest Remaining Time First
Round Robin
First-Come, First-Served
Priority Scheduling
Shortest Remaining Time First (SRTF) always picks the process with the least amount of time remaining until completion. It preempts the current process if a shorter job arrives. This can minimize average waiting time. .
Which page replacement algorithm approximates LRU by giving each page a second chance?
Optimal
FIFO
Random
Second-Chance (Clock)
The Second-Chance or Clock algorithm cycles through pages, checking a reference bit. If the bit is set, it clears it and gives the page a second chance by moving on. This approximates LRU with low overhead. .
Which memory allocation scheme is free from external fragmentation?
Buddy system
Contiguous allocation
Segmentation
Paging
Paging divides memory into fixed-size pages avoiding external fragmentation since any free frame can be allocated to any page. Internal fragmentation can still occur. Segmentation and contiguous allocation suffer from external fragmentation. .
Which protection mechanism uses hierarchical privilege levels known as rings?
Role-based access control
Access control matrix
Capability lists
Ring-based protection
Ring-based protection divides CPU privileges into rings, typically four levels from ring 0 (kernel) to ring 3 (user). Each ring has different access rights, enhancing security. .
What is saved and restored during a context switch?
Kernel modules
Entire memory image
CPU registers and program counter
All user-level file descriptors
A context switch involves saving the current process's CPU registers, program counter, and other state to its PCB and loading another process's state. This allows interruption and later resumption of execution. .
In a monolithic kernel, where do most OS services run?
Firmware
Hypervisor
User space
Kernel space
Monolithic kernels run device drivers, file systems, and other services all in kernel space, allowing fast communication but risking system stability. User-space services are characteristic of microkernels. .
What is the primary use of semaphores in operating systems?
Process synchronization
I/O buffering
File system journaling
Memory allocation
Semaphores are signaling mechanisms used to synchronize processes or threads, managing access to shared resources and preventing race conditions. They can be binary or counting semaphores. .
Which filesystem commonly used by Linux supports journaling?
NTFS
ext4
FAT32
FAT16
ext4 is a widely used Linux filesystem that includes journaling to protect against corruption during crashes by recording metadata changes. FAT filesystems lack a journal, and NTFS is native to Windows. .
What is the correct sequence of stages during the PC boot process?
BIOS initialization ? Bootloader ? Kernel loading ? init process
Kernel loading ? BIOS initialization ? Bootloader ? init process
init process ? BIOS initialization ? Bootloader ? Kernel loading
Bootloader ? BIOS initialization ? Kernel loading ? init process
On startup, the BIOS performs hardware initialization, then transfers control to the bootloader (e.g., GRUB), which loads the kernel. Finally, the kernel starts the init process to begin system services. .
Which necessary condition for deadlock describes a circular chain of resource requests?
Hold and wait
Mutual exclusion
Circular wait
No preemption
Circular wait occurs when a set of processes are each waiting for a resource held by the next process in the chain. It's one of the four Coffman conditions required for deadlock. .
Which of these is a primary advantage of microkernel architecture?
Improved modularity and fault isolation
Better single-address-space performance
Simpler driver integration
No context switches required
Microkernels run minimal services in kernel space, moving others to user space, which enhances modularity and isolates faults in user-space servers. Monolithic kernels integrate more functionality directly. .
In segmentation, how is a logical address typically represented?
Segment number and offset
Base address and limit
Frame number and offset
Page number and offset
Segmentation uses a logical address composed of a segment number and an offset within that segment. The segment table maps segments to physical memory regions. .
What does NUMA stand for in modern multiprocessing systems?
Networked Unified Memory Architecture
Non-User Mode Access
Numerical Unified Memory Allocation
Non-Uniform Memory Access
NUMA (Non-Uniform Memory Access) describes architectures where memory access time depends on the memory location relative to a processor. Local memory is faster than remote. .
In virtualization, what is 'trap-and-emulate'?
Swapping virtual machines between hosts
Intercepting privileged instructions and handling them in the hypervisor
Preemptively scheduling guest OS processes
Copying pages lazily on write
Trap-and-emulate is a virtualization technique where privileged instructions from a guest OS trap into the hypervisor, which emulates their behavior safely. This allows running unmodified OSes. .
Which mechanism helps prevent priority inversion by temporarily raising a lower-priority task's priority?
Priority aging
Priority inheritance
Round-robin scheduling
First-Come, First-Served
Priority inheritance raises the priority of a lower-priority task holding a resource needed by a higher-priority task, preventing inversion. Once the resource is released, the priority is restored. .
What is 'copy-on-write' in memory management?
Writing data directly to the disk cache
Delaying the copying of shared pages until a write occurs
Copying memory pages to disk when not in use
Duplicating kernel code segments for isolation
Copy-on-write allows parent and child processes to share the same physical pages until one writes to a page, at which point a private copy is made. This optimizes memory usage during forks. .
In the Linux kernel, what is the primary data structure used to represent a process's virtual memory areas?
vm_area_struct
mm_struct
task_struct
proc_dir_entry
In Linux, each process's virtual address space is described by a linked list of vm_area_struct structures, each representing a contiguous memory region with distinct permissions. The mm_struct holds overall memory management info. .
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Study Outcomes

  1. Understand OS Core Functions -

    You'll be able to describe essential operating system functions such as process management, memory allocation, and file handling through targeted quiz questions.

  2. Identify Process States and Transitions -

    You'll learn to recognize and differentiate between various process states and transitions, improving your grasp of scheduling concepts in an OS quiz context.

  3. Analyze Memory Management Techniques -

    You'll apply knowledge of paging, segmentation, and virtual memory to solve memory management scenarios in our operating system functions quiz.

  4. Apply System Call and Kernel Interaction -

    You'll gain practical insight into how user processes invoke system calls and interact with kernel components, enhancing your performance on OS MCQ tests.

  5. Evaluate Process Synchronization and Concurrency -

    You'll assess common synchronization tools like semaphores and mutexes and tackle concurrency problems presented in the computer OS trivia format.

  6. Differentiate User and Kernel Modes -

    You'll distinguish between user mode and kernel mode operations, solidifying your fundamental OS terminology and trivia knowledge.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Process States & Lifecycle -

    Master the five classic process states - New, Ready, Running, Waiting, Terminated - using the mnemonic "NRRWT" to lock in the sequence. Recognizing state transitions, such as I/O completion moving a process from Waiting to Ready, is a staple of many OS quiz questions (Tanembaum & Bos, Modern Operating Systems).

  2. CPU Scheduling Algorithms -

    Familiarize yourself with FCFS, SJF, Round Robin, and Priority scheduling, and compute metrics like average waiting time: Σ(waiting time)/n. When tackling Operating System Quiz MCQ test items, apply sample calculations - e.g., Round Robin with quantum q - to confidently compare turnaround times (Silberschatz et al., Operating System Concepts).

  3. Memory Management Techniques -

    Differentiate paging from segmentation and derive the Effective Access Time formula: EAT = (1 - p)×ma + p×pf, where p is page-fault rate, ma is memory access time, and pf is page-fault service time. This formula often appears in an operating system functions quiz to test your grasp of virtual memory overhead (University of Cambridge CS).

  4. File Systems & I/O Management -

    Understand inode structures, journaling vs. non-journaling FS (e.g., ext4 vs. FAT32), and the block allocation strategies that optimize throughput. Many computer OS trivia questions probe your knowledge of how directory hierarchies and buffer caches accelerate file I/O (IEEE Transactions on Computers).

  5. Synchronization & Deadlock -

    Learn the four Coffman conditions for deadlock and practice solving Banker's Algorithm scenarios to determine safe states. OS quiz questions often present resource-allocation matrices - reviewing these helps you swiftly identify potential deadlocks and propose resource allocation fixes (Stanford CS Dept.).

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