Operating Systems

Teacher(s)

Riviere Etienne;

Language

French

Prerequisites

Main themes

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

Given the learning outcomes of the "Bachelor in Computer Science" program, this course contributes to the development, acquisition and evaluation of the following learning outcomes: S1.I4 S2.2-4 S4.3 S5.2, S5.3, S5.5 Students who have successfully completed this course will be able to explain which functions are fulfilled by the different levels of the hierarchy ranging from the physical machine to the level on which the applications are based; explain the main architectures of operating systems and processors, as well as the main devices and techniques used to realize them; use and effectively implement the various services and functions offered by processors and operating systems.

Content

The course presents the organization and use of a computer system, as well as the principles and implementation of operating systems.

Teaching methods

• Lectures;
• Exercises with automated feedback using the Inginious platform;
• Exercise sessions with tutors;
• Projects.

The Inginious exercises must be done individually. The projects must be done in pairs.

Evaluation methods

Training activities are offered on Inginious. The scores obtained on Inginious for these exercises do not count towards continuous assessment. The proportion of exercises completed, even partially, before a deadline communicated to students (i.e. with an Inginious score strictly greater than 0%) is denoted G. Completing the Inginious exercises within the set deadlines may give rise to a bonus, as described below.
Exercise and tutorial sessions are offered every week, with support from tutors and teaching assistants, to help students master the material through practice and prepare for the exams. Exercises and tutorials are not graded.
Rules for the first session
In the first session, students are assessed as follows.

• In a first part A:
  • A project P0 is to be completed in pairs and will result in a written report graded out of 2 points.
  • An exam M is organized in the middle of the term (midterm). It includes a questionnaire on understanding the material covered so far and programming exercises to be carried out on a computer without Internet access. M is graded out of 8 points.
• In a second part B:
  • A project P1 is to be completed in pairs and will result in a written report graded out of 3 points.
  • The final exam F is organized during the exam session. F covers the entire course material and is graded out of 12 points.

Part A counts for 40% of the final grade (8 points) and part B for 60% (12 points).
Projects are mandatory, and their grade will always be computed and provided to the student, but it will be included (or only partially included) only if the student reaches the threshold in the corresponding exam. Indeed, projects can only be credited if the student demonstrates sufficient mastery of the theoretical and practical foundations, assessed by the exam and mobilized by the project. In each part, the relative weights between the exam (M or F) and the project (P0 or P1) therefore use an absorbing weighting scheme, where the exam (M or F) must meet a minimum score for the project (P0 or P1) to carry any weight.
The grade for part A is computed with a weighting that depends on M (out of 8):

• If M ≥ 4, then A = M*0.75 + P0 (i.e., the two points of P0 count in full)
• If M ≥ 2 and M < 4, the grade of P0 is rescaled to x points where x = 2*(M-2)/2 and A = M*(8-x)/8 + P0*x/2 (i.e., the points of P0 count between 0, for M=2, and 2 points, for M=4, in a linearly progressive way)
• If M < 2, the grade of P0 is not taken into account and A = M.

The grade for part B is computed with a weighting that depends on F (out of 12):

• If F ≥ 6, then B = F*0.75 + P1 (i.e., the three points of P1 count in full)
• If F ≥ 4 and F < 6, the grade of P1 is rescaled to x points where x = 3*(F-4)/2 and B = F*(12-x)/12 + P1*x/3 (i.e., the points of P1 count between 0, for F=4, and 3 points, for F=6, in a linearly progressive way)
• If F < 4, the grade of P1 is not taken into account and B = F.

A bonus point O may be granted to encourage regular individual work on Inginious during part 1, as reflected in the midterm exam results. It carries no weight in the final grade, which cannot exceed 20/20. O counts for a maximum of 1 point, added to the sum of A and B, and is computed according to the following rules:

•  
• If G ≥ 80% and M ≥ 4, O = 1
• If (G ≥ 70% and G < 80%) and M ≥ 4, O = 0.5
• Otherwise, O = 0

The final grade in the first session is therefore N = min(20, (A + B + O)).
Rules for the second session
In the second session, it is not possible to retake the midterm exam M. The second-session exam F' covers the entire course material and is graded out of 20 points. Students may keep their grade for P0 and/or P1, or resubmit these projects individually, which may include an oral evaluation, in addition to submitting a software deliverable and a report. The grades kept or obtained are P0' and P1'.
The bonus point O' is recomputed according to the following rules:

• If G ≥ 80% and F' ≥ 10, O' = 1
• If (G ≥ 70% and G < 80%) and F' ≥ 10, O' = 0.5
• Otherwise, O' = 0

The second-session grade N' is computed with a weighting that depends on F':

• If F' ≥ 10, then N' = min(20, F'*0.75 + P0' + P1' + O') (i.e., the projects count for 5 points)
• If F' ≥ 6 and F' < 10, the grade of P0' is rescaled to x0' points where x0' = 2*(F'-6)/4 and the grade of P1' is rescaled to x1' points where x1' = 3*(F'-6)/4, and N' = F'*(20-x0'-x1')/20 + P0'*x0'/2 + P1'*x1'/3
• If F' < 6, continuous assessment does not count and N' = F'.

General rules
Assessments and exam statements are given in French. Students may answer in French or in English.
Exams may use all or part of the following assessment methods, in varying proportions. This proportion is announced at the exam:

• Restitution of knowledge in the form of open course questions.
• Application of knowledge in the form of a problem.
• Multiple-choice and multiple-response questions applying the "standard setting" principle: an incorrect answer to a question does not lead to a penalty, and the part cannot be graded negatively, but a minimum (announced) threshold of correct answers is required before points are actually accumulated for this part of the exam.
• Programming exercises on the Inginious platform in a controlled environment (for the midterm).

Rules regarding the use of artificial intelligence (AI).
The use of AI is encouraged to review the course material interactively. The LLL has set up an AI-based study and in-depth learning tool, fed with the content of the syllabus. Students are encouraged to test their understanding of the material using this tool.
Students may use AI to correct and improve a text they have produced, provided they mention it in the report or the content produced.
The use of AI to generate text or images (for example from a prompt or from the exercise statement) is strictly forbidden.
The use of AI to generate code is discouraged, since it is necessary to make the development effort oneself at least once in order to master the material and the system concepts covered in the course. It is not forbidden either, provided that the rules below are scrupulously followed.
The authorized uses of AI are subject to the following rules:

• Students must be fully responsible for their output and able to explain orally all the code and deliverables (documentation, deployment scripts, etc.) submitted as part of the projects.
• The use of AI must be precisely documented in the reports of projects P0 and P1, in the form of a dedicated section indicating which AIs were used and for which part. The submission of code or of part of the documentation generated partially or entirely by AI, but for which the use has not been documented, will be considered as plagiarism. Students who did not use AI must also indicate this in this section. Students must be ready to answer any question from the course instructor or the teaching assistants about the use of AI in the other exercises and projects.
• It is not permitted to ask tutors for help debugging and fixing code generated by an AI.
• A use of AI deemed abusive and undermining the acquisition of the knowledge targeted by the project may be considered as an irregularity under Section 7, articles 107 and following of the General Regulations for Studies and Exams (RGEE), with all the consequences that follow, as provided for in articles 111 and following of the RGEE. In case of suspected abusive use of AI in the submitted project, or of an incomplete or inaccurate report on the use of AI, the course instructor may summon the student concerned to an additional oral consultation and take the necessary measures in agreement with the person in charge of the EPL juries.

Online resources

The reference material is the course syllabus: https://sites.uclouvain.be/SystInfo/notes/Theorie/
The slides used during the lectures are not sufficient to review the material, but provide additional insight. They are available on the Moodle space of the course.
The AI tool allowing to query the material and to practise is available here: https://piccolo.uclouvain.be/?agent=78

Faculty or entity

> SINC