Shell and Kernel

Computers are complex machines. They originated with the need to calculate but have grown to become the door to artificial intelligence. People study different types of computers, their operating systems as well as software and one thing which is consistent in all that is the complexity of this ever-growing machine. Computers are small but consist of so many components that discussing them will need a dozen books. As of this article, the topic of concern will be the operating system and its two major components, known as shell and kernel.

Operating System

Every computer has its language, and it cannot understand any other human communication. The operating system acts as the communicator between computers and their users and helps run all the other applications. No computer can run any application with an operating system. Some of the significant work that the operating system does is discussed below.

• All the memory management work is done by the operating system of the computer, like allocating and deallocating the primary memory. Also, it keeps a constant track of memory usage as well
• The computer’s operating system deals with the management of processes which have to be done by different applications. For example, it decides which part will do what input of work
• It manages the files downloaded or transferred to the computer and provides space for the same
•  One of the major functions of the operating system is to maintain coordination between all the devices and applications of the computer to avoid any friction

The most popular operating systems today are apple macOS, Microsoft, apple OS and Linux.

Shell

A shell is a command interpreter that accepts the information and instructions that a user enters and communicates the same further. It is the outermost layer of the operating system, which majorly deals with all the communication tasks involved to complete a process. It accepts the inputs and reflects the output to the user when the task is completed. The shell of an operating system is equally complicated with many components as the operating system. Some of these are discussed below.

• Shell Prompt- This component reads all the instructions from the user and executes the same after pressing enter. It is customizable and can be done in whatever way the user wants it. There are two types of shell known as bourne shell, whose prompt symbol is $ and C type shell, whose prompt symbol is %. The bourne shell has many categories, such as Korn shell and bourne again shell. Same way. The c type shell also has subcategories known as TENEX c shell
• Shell script- When the shell prompt accepts the commands from the user, there is a certain list of pre-recorded commands used for execution. In most cases, the default sign is #. All the commands used in a shell script cannot be customized
• Extended shell scripts- These are the additional commands that are more complicated than the other ones listed below

Kernel

The kernel is the centre of the computer operating system. The kernel is the core of all the operating systems, which is often the innermost layer of the operating systems. It acts as the most prominent component, a link between the operating system and the hardware. It takes all the information from the shell, which is the outermost layer of the operating system and handles all the management and execution of the task provided by the user. However, the kernel is not just into performing tasks or providing the output or acting as a link, but the most major part of its work is performing memory management. It manages all the core memory usage and decides which component and task requires what amount of memory.

Conclusion

Both the components belong to the computer’s operating system and are equally significant for its operations. It should be kept in mind that neither can be absent. Shell is needed to take inputs and reflect outputs, and a kernel is needed to handle the core.