UNIX Architecture

In a strict sense, an operating system can be defined as the software that controls the hardware resources of the computer and provides an environment under which programs can run. Generally, we call this software thekernel, since it is relatively small and resides at the core of the environment.

In a broad sense, an operating system consists of the kernel and all the other software that makes a computer useful and gives the computer its personality. This other software includes system utilities, applications, shells, libraries of common functions, and so on.

从严格意义上讲，可将操作系统定义为一种软件，它控制计算机的硬件资源，并且提供程序可以运行的环境。一般来说，我们称这软件为kernel，因为它相对小并且位于环境的核心处。

从广义上讲，一个操作系统由kernel和一些其他软件组成。这些软件可以使得计算机更加有用并且给予计算机个性化。这些其他的软件包含系统实用程序，应用程序，shell，公用函数库等。