Assignment: Operating Systems
Examining mechanism to visualize memory pages of common programs in Linux:
On Linux systems /proc//maps file shows information about pages in each memory region.
In this assignment, you are required to examine the output of /proc//maps for common programs and explain the role of each field displayed in the output. You will write a report describing and explaining each step of your task.
Project requirements:
Since you have to examine actual Linux kernel, it is recommended that you install a virtual machine (something like VirtualBox) on your computer and install some version of Linux on it (if you install Linux on hardware (dedicated computer) you may skip the VM steps). The steps (assuming VM involved) are:
1. Installation of virtual machine and Linux
a. Indicate the version of VM and Linux used
b. Describe actual steps performed for both tasks so that replicating the steps would return the same result as yours.
c. You may provide screenshots together with the description
2. Select 5 common programs on your system and give brief details about them
a. You can use utilities like ‘application manager',‘task manager' or ‘top' to identify the processes. You may add a screenshot as well to identify the programs.
3. Display output of /proc//maps for each of the selected 5 programs.
a. Describe the steps (commands to be executed, or tasks to be performed) to get the output. You may add screenshot of the output you got.
b. Explaining the information (role of each field) in the output obtained.
[The following task may require knowledge of C programming at kernel level.]
Modify the kernel to show additional information about pages in each memory region. You need to add a string that represents the pages in the region. An ‘x' is used if the page is absent. If present, then a single digit (1 - 9) if the page reference count is below 10, or a ‘*' otherwise.
Provide a brief description of your modification task. Submit a document displaying the original kernel code andyour modifications, with corresponding output. You may copy-paste the code segments. To display modified output, include screenshots in your report.