COMP 3000 A (Fall 2023): Operating Systems


General Course Information


Course Summary

Operating system implementation course stressing fundamental issues in design and how they relate to modern computer architectures. Assignments involve the modification and extension of a multitasking operating system.


Grading Scheme



Course Outline


Week Tutorials Date (2023) Topic
Week 1 Sep 4 (No class)
Sep 6 Building a small processor
Week 2 Sep 11
Sep 13
Week 3 Sep 18 A1 starts (due: Oct 11) Introduction to Operating Systems
Sep 20
Week 4 T1 Sep 25 Abstraction
Sep 27
Week 5 T2 Oct 2
Oct 4 Facilities for Users/Programmers
Week 6 T3 Oct 9 Thanksgiving (No class)
Oct 11 A2 starts (due: Nov 5) Facilities for Users/Programmers (cont.)
Week 7 Oct 16
Oct 18 Mid-term Test (in class)
Week 8 Oct 23 Fall Break (No classes)
Oct 25
Week 9 T4 Oct 30 A3 starts (due: Nov 19) File Systems and Storage Management
Nov 1
Week 10 T5 Nov 6 Inter-Process Communication and Concurrency
Nov 8
Week 11 T6 Nov 13 Kernel Modules
Nov 15
Week 12 T7 Nov 20 A4 starts (due: Dec 5) Memory Management
Nov 22
Week 13 T8 Nov 27 Containerization and Virtualization
Nov 29
Week 14 T9 Dec 4 Security and Additional OS Topics
Dec 6
Week ∞ Dec 15 Final Exam (2pm--4pm)




If you are unsure of the expectations regarding academic integrity (how to use and cite references, if unauthorized collaboration with lab- or classmates is permitted (and, if so, to what degree), then you must ASK your instructor. Sharing assignment or quiz specifications or posting them online (to sites like Chegg, CourseHero, OneClass, etc.) is ALWAYS considered academic misconduct. You are NEVER permitted to post, share, or upload course materials without explicit permission from your instructor. Academic integrity offences are reported to the office of the Dean of Science. Information, process and penalties for such offences can be found on the ODS webpage.

Late assignments are never accepted for any reason. Assignments submissions are handled electronically (i.e., through Brightspace) and there is no "grace period" with respect to a deadline - an assignment submitted even one minute after the deadline is late and will receive a mark of zero.

Notes on AI Tools

Many of the assessed activities in this course were designed to be completed by an individual working alone. Unless it is explicitly stated otherwise, the use of any will be considered academic misconduct. This includes, but is not limited to, chatbots (e.g., ChatGPT, Google Bard, Bing Chart), research assistants (e.g., Elicit), and image generators (e.g., Stable Diffusion, Dall-E).

References to any material you use but did not originate must use the IEEE/APA/MLA citation style. Failure to reference materials correctly can result in severe penalties, and the use of manufactured (i.e., falsified) or misleading references will be treated as evidence of plagiarism and considered academic misconduct.

Everything you submit for evaluation (e.g., assignments, quizzes, tutorials, and examinations) must be the result of your own work and only your own work. If you use more than five consecutive words from a single source without providing a valid reference, then that is considered plagiarism and an example of academic misconduct.

School of Computer Science Policies

Undergraduate Academic Advisor The Undergraduate Advisor for the School of Computer Science is available in Room 5302C HP; or by email at scs.ug.advisor@cunet.carleton.ca. The undergraduate advisors can assist with information about prerequisites and preclusions, course substitutions/equivalencies, understanding your academic audit and the remaining requirements for graduation. The undergraduate advisors will also refer students to appropriate resources such as the Science Student Success Centre, Learning Support Services and Writing Tutorial Services.

Graduate Academic Advisors The Graduate Advisors for the School of Computer Science are available in Room 5302 HP; or by email at grad.scs@carleton.ca. The graduate advisors can assist with understanding your academic audit and the remaining courses required to meet graduation requirements.

University Policies

Academic Accommodations. Carleton is committed to providing academic accessibility for all individuals. Please review the academic accommodation available to students here.

Academic Integrity.

Student Academic Integrity Policy: Every student should be familiar with the Carleton University Student Academic Integrity policy. A student found in violation of academic integrity standards may be sanctioned with penalties which range from a reprimand to receiving a grade of F in the course, or even being suspended or expelled from the University. Examples of punishable offences include plagiarism and unauthorized collaboration. Any such reported offences will be reviewed by the office of the Dean of Science. More information on this policy may be found on the ODS Academic Integrity page.

Plagiarism: As defined by Senate, "plagiarism is presenting, whether intentional or not, the ideas, expression of ideas or work of others as one's own". Such reported offences will be reviewed by the office of the Dean of Science. More information and standard sanction guidelines can be found here.

Unauthorized Collaboration: Senate policy states that "to ensure fairness and equity in assessment of term work, students shall not co-operate or collaborate in the completion of an academic assignment, in whole or in part, when the instructor has indicated that the assignment is to be completed on an individual basis".