History of operating systems

An operating system (OS) is the set of programs of a computer system that manages hardware resources and provides services to software application programs. On early computers, which did not have an operating system, each program needed the most detailed hardware specification to run correctly and perform standard tasks, and its own drivers for peripheral devices such as printers and punch card readers. The increasing complexity of hardware and application programs finally made the operating system a necessity.

The first operating systems were developed by each user for the use of their own central computer, and it is in 1956 that General Motors develops what is today considered the first system, the GM-NAA I/O, for his IBM 704.

The 1940s

In the late 1940s, what could be considered the world's first generation of computers appeared. There was direct access to the computer console from which a series of microswitches was actuated that allowed the program to be entered directly into the computer's memory.

The 1950s (Batch System)

In the early 1950s, with the goal of facilitating human-computer interaction, operating systems make an unobtrusive and fairly simple appearance, with concepts such as the resident monitor and temporary storage.

Resident Monitor

Its operation was quite simple, it was limited to loading programs into memory, reading them from a tape or punched cards, and executing them. The problem was finding a way to optimize the time between the removal of one job and the assembly of the next.

The first Operating System in history was created in 1956 for an IBM 704 computer, and basically all it did was start executing a program when the previous one finished.

Temporary storage

Its objective was to decrease the loading time of the programs, making the loading of the program or the output of data simultaneous with the execution of the next task. To do this, two techniques were used, buffering and spooling.

The 1960s

In the 1960s, notorious changes took place in various fields of computing, with the appearance of the integrated circuit, most of which were aimed at continuing to increase the potential of computers. For this, the most diverse techniques were used.

Multiprogramming operating system

In a "multiprogrammed" main memory houses more than one user program. The CPU executes instructions of a program, when the one that is in execution performs an I/O operation; instead of waiting for the I/O operation to finish, another program is executed. If this performs, in turn, another I/O operation, the appropriate orders are sent to the controller, and another one starts to be executed. In this way it is possible, having stored an adequate set of tasks at all times, to use the available resources in an optimal way.

Timeshare

At this point we have a system that makes good use of the available electronics, but suffers from a lack of interactivity; To achieve it, it must become a multi-user system, in which there are several users with an online terminal, using the time-sharing mode of operation. In these systems the same as in multiprogramming. But, unlike this, when a program has been running for a certain time, the operating system stops it so that another application can be executed.

Real time

These systems are used in environments where a large number of events must be accepted and processed in a very short time, mostly external to the computer. If the system does not respect the time restrictions in which the operations must deliver their result, it is said to have failed. The response time, in turn, should be used to solve the problem or fact raised. File processing is done continuously, as the file is processed before the next one enters. Its first uses were and continue to be in telecommunications.

Multiprocessor

Design not found in uniprocessor computers. These problems stem from the fact that two programs can run simultaneously and potentially interfere with each other. Specifically, in what refers to readings and writings in memory. There are two architectures that solve these problems:

NUMA architecture, where each processor has exclusive access and control to a portion of memory. The SMP architecture, where all the processors share all the memory. The latter must deal with the cache coherence problem. Each microprocessor has its own local cache memory. So when a microprocessor writes to a memory address, it does so only to its local cached copy. If another microprocessor has the same memory address stored in its cache, it will turn out to be working with an obsolete copy of the stored data.

The 1970s

Operating systems developed

In addition to Atlas Supervisor and OS/360, the 1970s marked the beginning of UNIX, in the mid-1970s Multics appeared, a multi-user - multitasking operating system developed by AT&T and Unix Bell Laboratories, making it one one of the few OS written in a high level language. In the field of logic programming, the first implementation of Prolog was born, and in the revolutionary object orientation, Smalltalk.

Disadvantages of Operating Systems

These were large, complex and expensive systems, since nothing similar had been built before and many of the projects developed ended up with costs well above budget and well after the completion date. In addition, although they formed a layer between the hardware and the user, the latter had to know a complex control language to carry out their work. Another of the drawbacks is the great consumption of resources that they caused, due to the large spaces of main and secondary memory occupied, as well as the processor time consumed. This is why an attempt was made to emphasize the improvement of existing multiprogramming and time-sharing techniques. .

Operating systems developed

• Multics (Multiplexed Information and Computing Service)
• BDOS (Basic Disk Operating System): Translator of instructions on calls to the BIOS.
• CP/M: (Control Program for Microcomputers) was an operating system developed by Gary Kildall for the Intel 8080 microprocessor (Intel 8085 and Zilog Z80 could directly run the 8080 code, although it was normal to deliver the recompiled code for the machine microprocessor). It was the most popular operating system among personal computers in the 1970s. Although it was modified to run on an IBM PC, the fact that IBM chose MS-DOS, failing negotiations with Digital Research, caused the use of CP/M to decrease until it disappeared. CP/M originally meant Control Program/Monitor. He was later renamed Control Program for Microcomputers. At the time, the tilted bar (/) had the meaning of "designed for". However, Gary Kildall redefined the meaning of the acronym shortly thereafter. CP/M became an industry standard for the first micro-orders.

The 1980s

With the creation of LSI (Large-Scale Integration) circuits, chips that contained thousands of transistors on a square centimeter of silicon, the rise of personal computers began. In these, performance was left a bit aside and the operating system was sought more to be friendly, emerging menus and graphical interfaces. This reduced the speed of the applications, but they became more practical and simple for the users. At this time, existing languages continued to be used, such as Smalltalk or C, and new ones were born, of which we could highlight: C++ and Eiffel within the object-oriented paradigm, and Haskell and Miranda in the field of declarative programming.. A major breakthrough that was established in the mid-1980s was the development of networks of personal computers running networked operating systems and distributed operating systems. In this scene, two operating systems were the majority: MS-DOS (Micro Soft Disk Operating System), written by Microsoft for the IBM PC and other computers that used the Intel 8088 CPU and its successors, and UNIX, which dominated personal computers. that made use of the Motorola 68000.

SunOS

SunOS was the version of the Unix and BSD-derived operating system developed by Sun Microsystems for its workstations and servers until the early 1990s. It was based on BSD UNIX with some additions of System V UNIX in later versions.

SunOS 1.0 was basically based on BSD 4.1 and was released in 1982. SunOS 2.0, which came out in 1985, used BSD 4.2 as a base and introduced a Virtual File System (VFS) layer and the NFS protocol. SunOS 3.0 coincided with the release of the Sun-3 series in 1986 and incorporated several System V utilities. Released in 1989, SunOS 4.0 migrated to the BSD 4.3 base, introduced a new virtual memory system, dynamic linking, and a implementation of the System V STREAMS I/O architecture.

SunOS 5.0 and later are based on UNIX System V Release 4.

MS-DOS

In 1981 Microsoft purchased an operating system called QDOS which, after a few modifications, became the first version of MS-DOS (Micro Soft Disk Operating Ssystem). From then on, a series of changes followed until version 7.1, version 8 in Windows Millennium, from which MS-DOS ceased to exist as a component of the Operating System.

In 1983, with the appearance of MSX computers, an adaptation was made for this system that used the Z-80 processor called MSX-DOS. It was a cross between the MS-DOS version 1.25 and CP/M. In 1988, after Microsoft disassociated itself from the project, ASCII Corporation published the MSX-DOS 2.0 version that added, among other things, support for the use of directories.

Macintosh

The official launch of the Macintosh computer in January 1984, priced at US$1,995 (later changed to US$2,495)[1]. It included its operating system Mac OS whose novel features were a GUI (Graphic User Interface), Multitasking and Mouse. It caused different reactions among users accustomed to the command line and some dismissing the use of the Mouse as toy.

AmigaOS

AmigaOS is the name given to the whole family of window managers and ROMs that included Commodore Amiga personal computers as the operating system by default. It was originally developed by Commodore International, and initially introduced in 1985 along with the Amiga 1000.

OS/2

OS/2 is an operating system from IBM that attempted to succeed DOS as the operating system for personal computers. It was initially developed jointly between Microsoft and IBM, until the former decided to go its own way with its Windows and IBM took care of OS/2 alone.

OS/2 is no longer marketed by IBM, and IBM standard support for OS/2 was discontinued on December 31, 2006. It has continued ever since with relatively few new features under the eComStation name.

The 1990s

BeOS

BeOS is a PC operating system developed by Be Incorporated in 1990, mainly oriented to provide high performance multimedia applications. Despite the common belief fostered by the inclusion of the Bash command interface in the operating system, the design of BeOS was not based on UNIX.

Originally (1995-1996) the operating system ran on its own hardware, known as the BeBox. Later (1997) it was extended to the PowerPC platform and finally (1998) compatibility with x86 processors was added.

GNU/Linux

This system appears to be an improved version of Unix, based on the POSIX standard, a system that originally worked in command mode. Nowadays it has Windows, thanks to a graphical server and window managers like GNOME, KDE among many others. GNU/Linux recently has an application that converts windows into a 3D environment such as Beryl or Compiz. This allows you to use Linux in a visually appealing way.

There are many current Gnu/Linux distributions (Debian, Fedora, Ubuntu, Slackware, etc.) where all of them have in common that they use the same Linux kernel. Within the qualities of Gnu/Linux, one can characterize the fact that browsing through the web is without the risk of being affected by viruses, due to the permission system implemented, which does not allow any application to run without the necessary permissions., permissions that are granted by the user. To all this is added that the viruses that come in removable devices do not affect the system either, due to the same system of permissions.

Solaris

Solaris is a Unix-like operating system developed since 1992 initially by Sun Microsystems and currently by Oracle Corporation as a successor to SunOS. It is an officially certified system as a version of Unix. It works on SPARC and x86 architectures for servers and workstations.

Microsoft Windows NT

Windows NT is a family of operating systems produced by Microsoft, of which the first version was released in July 1993.

Prior to the appearance of the famous Windows 95, the Microsoft company conceived a new line of operating systems oriented to workstations and network servers. An operating system with its own graphic interface, stable and with characteristics similar to UNIX network systems. The letters NT come from the product designation as "New Technology" (New Technology).

The released versions of this system are: 3.1, 3.5, 3.51 and 4.0. In addition, Windows NT was distributed in two versions, depending on the utility that was going to give it: Workstation to be used as a workstation and Server to be used as a server.

FreeBSD

FreeBSD is a multiuser operating system, capable of preemptive and multithreaded multitasking on multiprocessor-compatible platforms; FreeBSD's operation is inspired by the 4.4 BSD-Lite variant of UNIX. Although FreeBSD cannot properly be called UNIX, having not been properly licensed by The Open Group, FreeBSD is made to be POSIX compatible, as are several other "UNIX clones" systems.

The FreeBSD system includes the kernel, the system file structure, C API libraries, and some basic utilities. Version 6.1 It brought important improvements such as greater support for Bluetooth devices and drivers for sound and network cards.

Version 7.0, released on February 27, 2008, includes support for Sun's ZFS file system and ARM architecture, among other new features.

The most notable distribution is PC-BSD.

Microsoft Windows

Windows is the name of a family of operating systems developed and sold by Microsoft based on MS-DOS. Windows was never really a true graphical operating system until Windows 95. Until version 3.11 Windows was a desktop environment for MS-DOS.

Windows 95 is a hybrid 16-bit to 32-bit GUI operating system. It was launched on the market on August 24, 1995 by the Microsoft software company with notable sales success. During its development it was known as Windows 4 or by the code name Chicago. This Windows series ended with Windows Me.

ReactOS

ReactOS (React Operating System) is an open source operating system intended to achieve binary compatibility with software applications and device drivers made for Microsoft Windows NT versions 5.x onwards (Windows XP and its successors).

In 1996 a group of free software programmers and developers started a project called FreeWin95 which consisted of implementing a clone of Windows 95. The project was under discussion for the design of the system, having already developed the layer compatible with MS-DOS, but unfortunately this was a situation that was not completed. By 1997 the project had not released any version, so its members, coordinated by Jason Filby, were able to revive it. It was decided to change the kernel of the system compatible with MS-DOS and from now on base it on one compatible with Windows NT, and thus the project could continue with the current name of ReactOS, which began in February 1998, developing the bases of the kernel and some basic drivers.

FreeDOS

FreeDOS is a project that aims to create a free operating system that is fully compatible with MS-DOS applications and drivers.

The program has already reached a high degree of maturity and has some features that did not exist in MS-DOS. Some FreeDOS commands are identical to or better than their MS-DOS equivalents, but some are still missing from the original operating system.

The command line interpreter used by FreeDOS is called FreeCOM.

2000s

SymbOS

SymbOS is an operating system originally developed in 2001 for Amstrad CPC computers. It is a graphical operating system with an aesthetic and interface similar to Windows 95. Despite the low power that these computers develop, around 4MHz, it is thoroughly optimized for the hardware on which it runs, so performance is more how acceptable

Due to its careful modular programming, it has been subsequently migrated to MSX, Amstrad PCW and Enterprise 128 computers which, with adapted and recompiled versions in each case, are capable of executing the same applications without any modification.

Although it may seem like an outdated system, there is a large community involved in the project. The original developers continue to update and support the system today.

SymbOS is a clear example of optimized software, in such a way that with a minimum of hardware, features similar to those of other current major operating systems are obtained. This makes it the antagonist of modern operating systems, which waste most of the resources relying on the high power of current hardware.

MorphOS

MorphOS is a part proprietary and part open source operating system produced for computers based on PowerPC (PPC) processors. The operating system itself is proprietary, but many of its libraries and other components are open source, such as Ambient (the desktop interface). The blue butterfly is the characteristic logo of this operating system. It is based on the Quark Microkernel.

Darwin

Darwin is the system behind Mac OS X, the first final version of which came out in 2001 to run on Macintosh computers.

Integrates the XNU microkernel and BSD 4.4-based UNIX-like operating system services (particularly FreeBSD) that provide greater stability and performance than previous versions of the Mac OS. It is an evolution of the NEXTSTEP operating system (based on Mach 2.5 and BSD 4.3 code) developed by NeXT in 1989 and bought by Apple Computer in December 1996.

Darwin brings modern features to Mac OS X, such as protected memory, evict multitasking, advanced memory management, and symmetric multithreading.

Mac OS

mac OS, formerly Mac OS X, is a Unix-based operating system developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc.

The first version of the system was Mac OS X Server 1.0 in 1999, and for the desktop it was Mac OS X v10.0 "Cheetah" (released March 24, 2001).

The server variant, Mac OS X Server, is architecturally identical to its desktop counterpart, as well as including tools for managing workgroups and providing access to network services. These tools include a mail server, a Samba server, an LDAP server, and a domain server among others.

Haiku

Haiku is an open source operating system currently under development that is specifically focused on multimedia and personal computing. Inspired by BeOS (Be Operating System), Haiku aspires to become a system that is fast, efficient, easy to use and easy to learn, without neglecting its power for users of all levels.

OpenSolaris

OpenSolaris was a free operating system released in 2005 based on the proprietary version of Solaris by Sun Microsystems, now part of Oracle Corporation. OpenSolaris is also the name of a project started in 2005 by Sun to build and develop a user community around the operating system technologies of the same name. After the acquisition of Sun Microsystems, in August 2010, Oracle decided to discontinue the publication and distribution of OpenSolaris, as well as its development model, based on the availability of compiled development releases every two weeks and stable releases every six months. However, the terms of its free license have not been modified, so the source code affected by it will be published when Oracle releases new versions of Solaris.

The 2010s

IllumOS

Illumos is a free software project derived from OpenSolaris. It was announced via web conference from New York on August 3, 2010. The name of the project is a neologism from the Latin "Illum" (light) and of "OS" (operating system, operating system).

This is the base code from which anyone can create their own software distribution based on the OpenSolaris operating system. But Illumos is not a distribution, nor a fork, at least for the moment, insofar as it does not intend to separate from the main trunk, but rather a derivative of the "consolidation" OS/Net (better known as ON), which basically consists of the kernel source code (SunOS), drivers, network services, system libraries, and basic operating system commands.

OpenIndiana

OpenIndiana is a Unix-like operating system released as free and open source software. It is a fork of OpenSolaris conceived after Oracle's purchase of Sun Microsystems and is intended to continue the development and distribution of the OpenSolaris codebase. The project operates under the patronage of the Illumos Foundation. The stated goal of the project is to become the de facto OpenSolaris distribution installed on production servers where security and bug fixes are required for free.