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1
SYSTEM SOFTWARE AND COMPUTER MANAGEMENT Module 1.5
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SYSTEM SOFTWARE AND COMPUTER MANAGEMENT Module 1.5
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Content
•Operating systems •Operating system utilities•Security tools •Factors influencing performance•Troubleshooting using utility software•Test and improve your knowledge
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OPERATING SYSTEMS System software that controls all activities that take place in a computer
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What happens when a computer is switched on
Process of loading the operating system is called booting the computer
Load operating system into memory - control of the computer handed over to operating system
Find the operating system
Instructions perform some basic hardware tests
Computer looks for instructions to follow (on ROM)
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The role of the operating system
To allow us to interact with the computer via a GUI
Providing the user interface
Manage which programs and tasks can use the CPU
Managing programs
Disk management
Memory management
Input/Output management
Managing hardware
User and password control
Basic protection against threats
Providing basic security
Multitasking: ability of the operating system to load and process multiple tasks at the same time
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The Task Manager• Provides some information
about the computer’s performance and the applications and processes running.
• Most often used to terminate a process or program that is not responding.
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Single‑user versus multi‑user operating systems
• Single‑user operating system• Can only be used by a single user at a time
• Multi‑user operating systems• Allows multiple users to access a computer system at the same
time
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Written module activity
• Read pages 61 – 63
• Study first section of summary on page 72 (until
Task Manager)
• Complete questions 1 – 11 on page 74
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OPERATING SYSTEM UTILITIESPrograms that perform system maintenance and administration tasks
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File management • Naming files
File names• file name & file extension (full stop & 3 – 5 letters)
File extensions and file types• identifies the file type or format and is automatically added• also determines which program will open the type of file by
default
Path• ‘succession’ of folders that leads to the location of a file
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Common file types and extensions
Gra
ph
ics
file
s
JPEG, BMP, GIF, WMF, TIF, PNG
Created by a graphics program or it can be inserted into a file by most programs such as MS-Word
Off
ice
file
sDOCX, XLXS, PPTX, ACCDB
Word processing (Word), spreadsheets (Excel), presentations (PowerPoint) and databases (Access)
Au
dio
fil
es
MP3, MP4, WAV, CDA, WMA
Created by any media player program
Vid
eo f
iles
MPEG, ASF, WMV, AVI, MKV
Created by any media player program
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Text
fil
es
TXT
Similar to word processing files, except that no fonts, styles, colours or formatting is saved Ric
h t
ext
file
s
RTF
Allows basic formatting to be applied and saved. Can be opened in any word processor or a utility like WordPad
Pro
gra
m f
iles
EXE or COM
Actual programs, not data files, that run (or execute) when opened
Common file types and extensions
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Po
rtab
le
Do
cum
ent
Fo
rmat
Used to distribute document files, read by free utility program, cannot be edited.
Co
mp
ress
ed f
iles
ZIP or RAR
Compressed to save space. The files in a compressed or ‘zipped’ folder have to be decompressed or ‘unzipped’ in order to open and use them.
Hyp
erte
xt M
arku
p
Lan
gu
age
file
s
HTML
Web page which can be opened in a web browser.
Common file types and extensions
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File management • Information about files
File property• File name, size and date modified
File attribute• A property of a file that can be set• Read‑only & Hidden
Metadata• Additional data stored about a file that describes the
contents of the file, i.e. author & title properties
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File management • File manager functions
Searching• Searching for a file based on criteria: file size, type of file,
partial file name, file type, date accessed and text in the contents of the file.
Compressing• The process of reducing the size of a file by producing a
smaller, compressed version of the file.
Decompressing• Converting a compressed or zipped set of files back to
their original size.
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Updates
We update software to
• download patches and service packs to fix errors or bugs
in our programs
• close security loopholes
• add new features and improvements
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Updates
Most software publishers will automatically notify you when an update or new version of a program
is available. This is normally done via the Internet.
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Updates
Many programs such as the Windows operating system can be scheduled to check for updates at
fixed intervals (as specified by you).
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Scheduling• Why schedulers are useful:
• automatically check for updates• set schedulers to run at off‑peak times
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Printer management
Print filePrint job send
to disk: spooling
Printer queue
View information about the documents waiting to print and manage by
deleting tasks pausing the tasks
restarting the tasks (paper jam)
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Backup – why?
• files can be accidentally overwritten or deleted
• hardware failures – a disk drive crashes
• hardware can be stolen
• disasters – fires, earthquakes and floods can destroy
hardware
• files can be corrupted by power fluctuations
• files can be deleted or corrupted by viruses, etc.
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Backup
Backup software• Most operating systems provide backup utilities.
• Third‑party vendors have specialised backup programs• scheduling when to back up the files
• choosing to do a full backup of all the files or just those that have been changed since the last backup
• compressing the files to save space on the backup media, etc.
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Backup
Backup tips• Use software that automatically manages your backup process.
• Only back up your data not programs.• Back up your files onto external portable media.• Keep the backups off‑site.• Perform ‘housekeeping’.• Consider archiving large files.• Check that the backups are actually working.
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Written module activity
• Read pages 64 – 68
• Study Operating system utilities in summary
(page 72, 73)
• Complete questions 12 – 26 on Page 74 – 76
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SECURITY TOOLS Security measures and facilities to help control and prevent the spread of malware.
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Access control
• Access control means that the operating system specifically asks your permission before any software can be installed.
• The purpose of access control is to try to make it impossible for malware to be secretly installed on your computer without your knowledge.
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Firewall• A firewall is software or hardware that acts as a barrier
between your computer and the Internet.• Built into the operating system.
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Security• Action/Security Center in Windows operating systems
warns you about settings that could make your system insecure. You can check settings for • firewall • Windows automatic updates• anti-malware (virus and spyware) software settings.
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FACTORS INFLUENCING PERFORMANCE
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Memory (RAM) • Programs and data need to be loaded
from disk into RAM (memory).• If memory is full, parts of the data/programs that the
computer is not currently busy with are stored on an area on the hard disk.
• These have to be loaded back into memory again when needed – slows down the computer.
The more memory you have available, the better.
Adding more RAM is often the cheapest and most effective upgrade.
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Memory (RAM)
• Caching • Cache memory is built into various components on a
computer, including the processor. • It stores frequently or recently accessed data, based on
the assumption that it will probably be accessed again soon.
• This memory is more expensive, because it is faster than normal memory (RAM) but it can increase the overall performance of a computer quite dramatically.
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CPU
The speed (measured in
GHz)
• In general, the higher the speed, the faster the CPU.
The number of cores, e.g. dual-
core or quad core
• Number of physical processors included in a single ‘chip’.
• Each core is a complete processor that can work independently of any other core on the CPU chip.
Cache size
• A special high-speed memory used to store recently or frequently accessed data.
• The larger the cache memory on the CPU, the faster it is likely to perform.
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Hard drive• Data and programs need to be loaded from disk into
memory.• Changes to files need to be written back to disk. • A ‘faster’ hard drive can improve the overall performance
of a computer system.
• Remember also:When a hard drive is fragmented, the files will take longer to retrieve.
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Influence of malware
• Malware can slow your computer down by using up resources such as free memory and hard drive space.
• Spyware can slow your Internet connection down if it frequently connects to the Internet.
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TROUBLESHOOTING USING UTILITY SOFTWARE
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Disk scanning • Generally, it is not recommended that you repair a hard
drive that you suspect is faulty unless you are sure you know how to do it.
• Problems on flash drives can be fixed quite easily by running a disk scanner.
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Disk defragmentation
• A disk defragmenter is a tool that reorganises the parts of files and speeds your computer up again.
• Defragmentation does not free up disk space.
• Possible to schedule the running of a defrag operation.
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Disk filling up (too little space)• Windows - Disk Cleanup Wizard:
• Removes temporary files downloaded from the Internet or temporary files created by Windows.
• Removes installed programs that you no longer or seldom use.
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Written module activity
• Read pages 68 – 72
• Study last section from summary on page 73
(Security tools to the end)
• Complete questions 27 – 35 on page 76
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TEST AND IMPROVE YOUR KNOWLEDGE
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Written module activity