How do operating systems report on resource usage?

Operating systems report on resource usage through built-in tools that monitor and display system performance metrics.

Operating systems, such as Windows, Linux, and macOS, have built-in tools that provide detailed reports on the usage of system resources. These tools monitor and display metrics related to the performance of the CPU, memory, disk usage, network activity, and other hardware components. They provide real-time data, allowing users to understand how their system is performing and how resources are being utilised.

In Windows, the Task Manager is the primary tool for reporting resource usage. It provides information about the processes running on the system, the percentage of CPU and memory each process is using, and overall system performance. The Performance tab gives a graphical representation of CPU, memory, disk, and network usage over time. The Resource Monitor, another tool in Windows, provides more detailed information about resource usage by each process.

In Linux, there are several command-line tools for reporting resource usage. The 'top' command provides a real-time, dynamic view of the processes running on the system, along with their CPU and memory usage. The 'vmstat' command reports on virtual memory statistics, while 'iostat' provides statistics for CPU usage and I/O statistics for storage devices. The 'free' command gives information about the total amount of free and used physical and swap memory in the system.

macOS has a built-in utility called Activity Monitor that reports on resource usage. It provides a detailed overview of system resource usage, including CPU usage, memory usage, energy usage, disk activity, and network activity. It also lists all the processes running on the system, along with the amount of resources they're using.

These tools are essential for system administrators and developers to monitor and manage system resources effectively. They can help identify processes that are consuming too much resources, detect potential system bottlenecks, and troubleshoot performance issues. Understanding how to read and interpret these reports is a crucial skill in managing and optimising computer systems.