Memory Management - contiguous allocation, swapping, paging, segmentation, demand paging, page replacement, thrashing, memory-mapped files - One Line Questions

1. What is a Translation Lookaside Buffer (TLB)? — A cache for page table entries to speed up address translation
2. What is 'thrashing'? — A state where a process spends more time paging than executing instructions
3. In contiguous memory allocation, what is a fixed-size partition? — A partition with a predefined, unchanging size allocated to a process
4. What is a 'hole' in the context of contiguous memory allocation? — A free block of memory that can be allocated to a process
5. What is a 'page fault'? — When a requested page is not found in physical memory
6. In segmentation, what does a segment table typically contain? — Base address and limit of each segment
7. Which algorithm places the first process into the first available hole that is large enough? — First-fit
8. Which memory management technique allows a process to be non-contiguous in physical memory? — Paging
9. Swapping involves moving entire processes between: — Main memory and secondary storage
10. When a page with a dirty bit set to '1' is replaced, what must the operating system do? — Write the page back to secondary storage before loading a new page
11. What is segmentation in memory management? — Dividing a program into logical units of varying sizes called segments
12. What is the fundamental concept behind paging? — Dividing memory into fixed-size blocks called frames and processes into fixed-size blocks called pages
13. A high page fault rate can indicate: — A process accessing too many pages, potentially leading to thrashing
14. Which of the following is a potential problem with demand paging? — Thrashing if the degree of multiprogramming is too high or pages are too large
15. A system with a low degree of multiprogramming is less likely to experience: — Thrashing
16. Which page replacement algorithm is often considered a good approximation of LRU? — Second-Chance (Clock) algorithm
17. Which of the following is NOT a common page replacement algorithm? — Round Robin
18. Which mechanism is essential for demand paging to work efficiently? — Paging and a page fault handler
19. The FIFO page replacement algorithm replaces the page that: — Has been in memory the longest
20. Thrashing is often caused by: — Having too many processes with large memory footprints
21. If a TLB miss occurs, where does the system look for the page table entry? — In main memory (the actual page table)
22. What is a common strategy to prevent or recover from thrashing? — Reduce the degree of multiprogramming
23. What is a key advantage of segmentation over paging? — It provides a natural way to share code and data among processes
24. What is the main advantage of dynamic partitioning over fixed partitioning? — It eliminates internal fragmentation
25. In the Second-Chance (Clock) page replacement algorithm, what is the role of the reference bit? — It indicates if the page has been recently accessed
26. What is the primary advantage of the Optimal page replacement algorithm? — It results in the fewest page faults
27. What is a disadvantage of pure segmentation? — It suffers from external fragmentation
28. What is demand paging? — Loading pages into memory only when they are needed
29. What is the main challenge in implementing pure segmentation efficiently? — Managing variable-sized segments and avoiding external fragmentation
30. In a segmented paging system, what is the logical address composed of? — Segment number, page number, and offset
31. Which memory allocation strategy aims to solve external fragmentation by moving processes in memory? — Swapping
32. What is the primary difference between paging and segmentation? — Paging divides memory into fixed-size pages, while segmentation divides it into variable-size segments based on logical program structure.
33. Which memory management technique allows sharing of memory segments between processes? — Segmentation
34. Which of the following is a common implementation detail for paging hardware? — Memory Management Unit (MMU)
35. What is the 'working set' of a process? — The set of pages that a process has accessed recently and is likely to access again soon
36. What is the 'degree of multiprogramming' in the context of memory management? — The number of processes currently residing in main memory
37. The Best-fit algorithm for contiguous memory allocation attempts to minimize: — The size of the smallest remaining hole
38. Worst-fit algorithm in contiguous memory allocation allocates the process to: — The largest available hole
39. How do memory-mapped files interact with the operating system's memory management? — They are treated like regular pages by the paging system, loaded on demand
40. What is the primary purpose of 'locality of reference' in relation to memory management? — To exploit the tendency of processes to access a subset of memory locations frequently over short periods
41. What is the primary benefit of using memory-mapped files? — To allow processes to access file content as if it were in memory, simplifying I/O operations
42. What is the primary role of the 'dirty bit' (or modification bit) in a page table entry? — To indicate if the page has been modified since it was loaded into memory
43. What is the primary goal of memory management in an operating system? — To manage and allocate main memory efficiently among competing processes
44. In demand paging, when a page fault occurs, what is the operating system's responsibility? — To locate the page on secondary storage, load it into a free frame, and restart the instruction
45. In paging, what is a 'page table' used for? — To map logical page addresses to physical frame addresses
46. Which of the following is a common technique to reduce the overhead of page table lookups? — Implementing a Translation Lookaside Buffer (TLB)
47. LRU (Least Recently Used) page replacement algorithm aims to replace the page that: — Has not been referenced for the longest period of time
48. What is internal fragmentation? — Wasted memory within allocated blocks due to fixed partition sizes or page/segment sizes
49. What is external fragmentation? — Wasted memory in free blocks that are too small to satisfy a request
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