An up-to-date overview of operating systems presented by world-renowned computer scientist and author Andrew Tanenbaum. This is the first guide to provide balanced coverage between centralized and distributed operating systems. Part I covers processes memory management file systems I/O systems and deadlocks in single operating system environments. Part II covers communication synchronization process execution and file systems in a distributed operating system environment. Includes case studies on UNIX MACH AMOEBA and DOS operating systems.