Linux Course Introduction

Introduction to Linux Operating System

Linux is a community of open-source Unix like operating systems that are based on the Linux Kernel. It was initially released by Linus Torvalds on September 17, 1991. It is a free and open-source operating system and the source code can be modified and distributed to anyone commercially or noncommercially under the GNU General Public License.

Initially, Linux was created for personal computers and gradually it was used in other machines like servers, mainframe computers, supercomputers, etc. Nowadays, Linux is also used in embedded systems like routers, automation controls, televisions, digital video recorders, video game consoles, smartwatches, etc. The biggest success of Linux is Android(operating system) it is based on the Linux kernel that is running on smartphones and tablets. Due to android Linux has the largest installed base of all general-purpose operating systems. Linux is generally packaged in a Linux distribution.

Linux Distribution

Linux distribution is an operating system that is made up of a collection of software based on Linux kernel or you can say distribution contains the Linux kernel and supporting libraries and software. And you can get Linux based operating system by downloading one of the Linux distributions and these distributions are available for different types of devices like embedded devices, personal computers, etc. Around 600 + Linux Distributions are available and some of the popular Linux distributions are:

• MX Linux
• Manjaro
• Linux Mint
• elementary
• Ubuntu
• Debian
• Solus
• Fedora
• openSUSE
• Deepin

Architecture of Linux

Linux architecture has the following components:

Kernel: Kernel is the core of the Linux based operating system. It virtualizes the common hardware resources of the computer to provide each process with its virtual resources. This makes the process seem as if it is the sole process running on the machine. The kernel is also responsible for preventing and mitigating conflicts between different processes. Different types of the kernel are:

• Monolithic Kernel
• Hybrid kernels
• Exo kernels
• Micro kernels

System Library: Isthe special types of functions that are used to implement the functionality of the operating system.

Shell: It is an interface to the kernel which hides the complexity of the kernel’s functions from the users. It takes commands from the user and executes the kernel’s functions.

Hardware Layer: This layer consists all peripheral devices like RAM/ HDD/ CPU etc.

System Utility: It provides the functionalities of an operating system to the user.