Does the OS handle "details" of the operation of hardware?

Question

Would you say that the OS handles the details of the operation of hardware?

I think the key word in this question is "details"...

Wouldn't this be the device driver instead?

Answer 1

Hi there! Good queston; basically, the inner workings of a computer can be broken down into the following:



Applications

Compilers

OS

Architecture(ISA)

Micro-architecture

Digital Design

Circuits

Device Physics



with each lower level getting more and more raw (and so less and less like a computer like we think in the traditional sense). Most of the hardware interfacing is down in the architecture or micro-architecture level, and a little bit above. The operating system doesn't typically handle all hardware directly. That job is usually left up to the BIOS along with system drivers, which connect the two layers together. Arguably, that is a part of the operating system, but it depends if you're among friends or not, so to speak.



The best answer is that there is a better, more specific answer than "operating system" when you're asked what handles the hardware directly in a computer, although that is not a necessarily wrong answer. Hope that helps.

Answer 2

Basically, yes.

One might argue that the device driver is part of the OS.



In Linux, the kernel handles one level of abstraction so that an application can just open a "file" and write to it without worrying if it's a disk or a terminal or a loudspeaker.

The device drivers handle a lower level of abstraction so that /dev/dsp plays out the sound card regardless of model

Answer 3

Drivers are essentially OS extensions that deal with hardware operation.

Answer 4

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