Lesson 1: Computer
systems and system
software
KS4 - Computer systems
Starter activity
What makes a computer?
What characteristics does a device
need to have to be considered a
computer?
Discuss with the person next to you.
Starter activity
What makes a computer?
Which of these devices are
computers? Do they have the
characteristics you discussed?
● Mobile phone
● Video game console
● A tablet
● Calculator
● Smart watch
● Laser pointer
● Coffee machine
Starter activity
What is a computer?
A programmable device that takes
Input Process Output
in data, processes it into useful
information, and then outputs the
information so it can be used.
Storage
This is often described in the
computing cycle you can see on the
right.
Objectives
Lesson 1: Computer systems and system software
In this lesson, you will:
● Define an embedded system
● Compare embedded and general purpose computer systems
● Describe the role of system software as part of a computer system
● Explain the role of the operating system and utility software
Activity 1
Spot the embedded systems
Both a mobile phone and a coffee
maker are computers, but they are
very different devices.
Computer systems can be
categorised as either:
● General purpose
● Embedded systems
How would you categorise the
mobile phone and coffee maker?
Activity 1
Spot the embedded systems
Mobile phone: General purpose
Coffee maker: Embedded system
Activity 1
Spot the embedded systems
General purpose computers are
devices that have a variety of uses,
the user chooses the task for the
computer to complete.
Embedded systems are more
specialised, they can only do a
limited number of things, but they do
them very well.
Activity 1
Spot the embedded systems
Inside this room there are lots
of computers. Some of them
are general purpose and
others are embedded
systems.
On your own, sort them into
two lists.
1. Embedded
2. General purpose
Activity 1
Spot the embedded systems
General purpose:
● Used for many different
types of tasks
● Lots of resources —
memory, storage, CPU
cores
● Most tasks require a user
Embedded systems:
● ?
● ?
● ?
Activity 1
Spot the embedded systems
Embedded systems
● Coffee machine
● Vacuum robot
● Thermostat
● Security system
● Bluetooth speaker
● …?
Activity 1
Spot the embedded systems
General purpose:
● Used for many different types
of tasks
● Lots of resources — memory,
storage, CPU cores
● Most uses require a user
Embedded systems:
● Specialised to a specific task/set
of tasks
● Limited resources
● Often function without a user
Activity 2
Embedded systems in the classroom
What computers and devices can
you spot in the classroom?
Can you find any embedded
systems?
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
Computers work due to a
combination of:
● Hardware components
● Software
You are going to examine how they
work by looking at what happens
when you press the power button.
First, you need to learn about some
important components.
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
The CPU
The central processing unit, is a
large chip inside the computer.
It is the brains of the computer: it
controls everything.
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
RAM
Random access memory
● RAM is both readable and
writable. You can add, change,
and delete data stored in RAM.
● It is volatile. When the computer
is switched off, all the data
stored in RAM is lost.
● It is fast to read/write.
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
ROM
Read-only memory
● ROM is read-only
● ROM is non-volatile memory,
which means it does not need
power to keep the data inside it
● It is also fast
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
Hard drive
The hard drive, which contains
multiple hard disks, is the main
storage device in your computer.
If you have files and folders on your
computer, they are stored on the
hard drive. The operating system is
also stored on the hard drive.
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
BIOS
Contains all the basic code for
controlling your computer hardware
(such as keyboards, mice, monitors,
and hard drives).
When you start up your computer,
you may see a black screen
displaying ‘Press F2 for Setup’. This is
the BIOS.
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
Your worksheet has the steps your
computer goes through when you
press the power button.
There is space for you to number
the steps to put them in the right
order.
You can do this with a partner, we
will go through the steps after this.
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
1. The boot sequence begins
2. CPU starts up and fetches the
BIOS from ROM
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
3. Instructions from BIOS are
loaded into RAM
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
4. BIOS starts up the monitor and
keyboard
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
5. BIOS checks your computer is
working
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
6. Operating system is fetched
from secondary storage
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
7. Operating system is loaded
into RAM
Activity 3
The start-up sequence
8. The BIOS hands over control to
the operating system
Activity 4
Operating systems and system software
Most computer systems require
more than just a program to run.
Another layer of software is required
called system software.
There are two main types of system
software
1. Operating systems
2. Utility software
Activity 4
Operating systems and system software
Software
System software
Hardware
Activity 4
Operating systems and system software
Operating systems are pieces of
software that regulate interactions
between software and hardware.
There are lots of different operating
systems. The most popular are:
● Windows
● macOS
● Linux
● Android
Activity 4
Operating systems
Roles of the operating system:
● Error handling
● Program management
● Memory management
● Interaction with the user
● Processor management
● Input and output
● Security
● File management
Plenary
The roles of an operating system
Error handling When a program fails or encounters a problem, the operating
system protects the wider system from crashing.
Program management Often our computers are running multiple processes at once. The
operating system makes sure that each application has enough
resources to accomplish its tasks.
Memory management The operating system controls where each piece of data is stored
in RAM.
Plenary
The roles of an operating system
Interaction with the user The operating system provides a graphical user interface which
makes operating the computer much simpler.
Processor management Instructions are executed by the CPU, but the operating system
controls which instructions are fed in to be executed.
Input and output The operating system captures data from peripherals and provides
data to the output devices to display to the user.
Plenary
The roles of an operating system
Security The operating system stops unauthorised individuals from
accessing data on secondary storage or the data in memory.
File management When you save data to your hard drive, the operating system will
find an available section of storage and send the data to be written
to that location.
Summary
Next lesson
Next lesson, you will… In this lesson, you…
Revise the computer systems Discovered the difference between
content covered so far embedded and general purpose
systems
Create a quiz using all the questions
you have been writing Described the role of an operating
system
Test yourselves by completing each
other’s quizzes Explained the uses of utility software