operating system

Also known as OS, operating systems

software that manages computer hardware resources

AI overview

An operating system is software that manages your computer's hardware resources, like the processor, memory, and storage devices. It matters because it acts as a intermediary between you and the machine, handling the technical details so you can run applications and accomplish tasks without needing to understand the underlying hardware.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Wikidata facts

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Commons category: Operating systems
Stack Exchange tag: stackoverflow.com/tags/operating-system
short name: OS
P13411: Antarctica

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Article

An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware and software resources, and provides common services for computer programs.

Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also include accounting software for cost allocation of processor time, mass storage, peripherals, and other resources.