An Operating System (OS) is the backbone of any computer system, acting as a bridge between the user and hardware. It manages essential functions such as memory, processes, files, and devices, ensuring smooth and efficient performance. Popular operating systems like Microsoft Windows, Linux, and macOS are widely used across desktops, laptops, and mobile devices.
In this blog, you will find carefully designed Operating System MCQs with answers that help students understand key concepts, prepare for exams, and improve their knowledge of computer fundamentals.
Operating System MCQ
1. OS stands for _.
a. Operating System
b. Operation System
c. Operator System
d. None of the above
2. When you start the computer, which of the following programs loads first?
a. Operating System
b. BIOS
c. Device Driver
d. None of the above
3. An operating system is a platform between _.
a. User to User
b. User to Computer
c. Both a) and b)
d. None of the above
4. The Linux operating system is __.
a. Proprietary software developed by Microsoft
b. An open-source, multitasking, multiuser operating system
c. A single-user operating system for personal computers
d. A real-time operating system only for embedded devices
5. Which of the following is not an example of an operating system?
a. Windows
b. UNIX
c. LINUX
d. C++
6. Which of the following services are not provided by an operating system?
a. Information Management
b. Process Management
c. Memory Management
d. None of the above
7. Which of the following services is used for modifying, storing, and retrieving the information for the various devices?
a. Information Management
b. Process Management
c. Memory Management
d. None of the above
8. The information management manages and organises the information in the term of _.
a. Files and Folders
b. Read the data from the file
c. Move the file pointer
d. All of the above
9. An operating system is a _.
a. Hardware
b. Software
c. Input device
d. Output device
10. The file allocation and deallocation can be done using _.
a. Information Management
b. Process Management
c. Memory Management
d. None of the above
11. Which of the following management systems is responsible for terminating the process?
a. Information Management
b. Process Management
c. Memory Management
d. None of the above
12. What do you mean by scheduling in process management?
a. The method of allocating memory to processes
b. The technique of deciding which process runs on the CPU at a given time
c. The process of storing and retrieving files from disc
d. The way device drivers communicate with hardware
13. Which of the following operating systems was developed by Microsoft?
a. Windows 98
b. Disc Operating System
c. Windows 10
d. None of the above
14. DOS is a _ user operating system.
a. Multi-User Operating System
b. Single User Operating System
c. GUI Operating System
d. None of the above
15. Which of the following operating systems was based on GUI (Graphical User Interface)?
a. Windows 98
b. Windows 2003
c. Windows 2010
d. All of the above
16. Which of the following features are added in Windows 95?
a. Maintenance wizard
b. Drive converter
c. Disc defragmenter
d. All of the above
17. The Windows 98 operating system is popular due to which of the following tools?
a. Web integration
b. Multiple display support
c. Universal serial bus
d. All of the above
18. Windows NT is __.
a. Multi-user OS
b. Multitasking OS
c. Multithreading OS
d. All of the above
19. Windows NT can interact with which of the following network systems?
a. Novell’s
b. Netware
c. Sun Microsystem
d. All of the above
20. Windows NT has a new high-performance file system known as _.
a. New Technology File System (NTFS)
b. File Allocation Table (FAT)
c. File Allocation Table 32 (FAT32)
d. All of the above
21. Linux is developed under the _.
a. Microsoft License
b. GNU General Public License (GPL)
c. Proprietary License
d. Apache License
22. Which of the following is a feature of an operating system?
a. Linux is a network-friendly OS.
b. Linux is a multi-user OS.
c. Linux is free to modify.
d. All of the above
23. Which of the following are the main modules of information management?
a. File system
b. Device driver
c. Both a) and b)
d. None of the above
24. A hard disc surface is made of concentric circles called ‘__‘.
a. Sector
b. Tracks
c. Block
d. None of the above
25. Each track in a hard disc is divided into __.
a. Sector
b. Tracks
c. Block
d. None of the above
26. Which of the following philosophies are used for allocation of disc space?
a. Contiguous
b. Noncontiguous
c. Both a) and b)
d. None of the above
27. In a Contiguous File System, files are stored __.
a. In scattered blocks across the disc
b. In linked lists of disc blocks
c. In consecutive blocks on the disc
d. Using indexed allocation tables
28. In a Non-Contiguous File System, files are stored __.
a. In consecutive blocks on the disc
b. In scattered blocks linked together
c. Only in the cache memory
d. Using a single continuous partition
29. Which memory allocation strategy tries to minimise wasted space by choosing the smallest block that fits?
a. First Fit
b. Best Fit
c. Worst Fit
d. Round Robin
30. In the First Fit memory allocation strategy, a process is placed in:
a. The largest available block of memory
b. The smallest available block of memory
c. The first block of memory that is large enough
d. A fixed block regardless of size
31. _ are operating system programs.
a. Application program
b. User programs
c. Process management programme
d. Antivirus program
32. In the worst-fit memory allocation strategy, a process is placed in:
a. The block with the least leftover space
b. The block with the largest available space
c. The first block found that fits
d. The block closest to the CPU
33. ‘Terminate a Process’ is the system call available in __.
a. Process
b. Information
c. Memory
d. File
34. The context switching is a term related to _ management.
a. Process
b. Memory
c. Information
d. Device
35. In Chained (Linked) Allocation, each file is stored as:
a. Consecutive blocks on disc
b. Scattered blocks linked together using pointers
c. Indexed entries in a table
d. A single continuous partition
36. Which of the following is a disadvantage of Chained Allocation?
a. Slow sequential access
b. Extra space needed for pointers in each block
c. Difficulty in direct access to a specific block
d. All of the above
37. The operating system keeps a small table which contains the information about all open files, which is known as _.
a. System table
b. Open-file table
c. Boot table
d. None of the above
38. The time lost in turning the attention of the processor from one process to another is called __.
a. Bandwidth
b. Context switching
c. Bracket switching
d. Circuit switching
39. Which of the following CPU scheduling algorithms is used __?
a. Round Robin
b. Shortest Job First
c. Priority
d. All of the above
40. In Indexed Allocation, the OS uses __ to keep track of file blocks.
a. Linked lists
b. An index block containing pointers to all file blocks
c. Contiguous memory allocation
d. A bootloader table
41. Which of the following is an advantage of indexed allocation over chained allocation?
a. Supports direct access to any block of the file
b. Requires no extra memory
c. Eliminates fragmentation completely
d. Stores files in consecutive blocks
42. Which of the following is an advantage of direct file organisation?
a. Any record in the file can be accessed randomly.
b. Access time is minimised.
c. Both a) and b)
d. None of the above
43. A __ terminal does no processing on input characters.
a. Intelligent
b. Dumb
c. RS232
d. None of the above
44. Which of the following is the type of terminals?
a. Dumb terminal
b. Intelligent terminal
c. Both a) and b)
d. None of the above
45. Which of the following can have a microprocessor inside it and limited memory?
a. Dumb terminal
b. Intelligent terminal
c. Both a) and b)
d. None of the above
46. The terminal can do processing on the upswing. So it requires more powerful hardware and software for it.
a. Dumb terminal
b. Intelligent terminal
c. Both a) and b)
d. None of the above
47. The number of processes running simultaneously competing for CPU is called _.
a. Degree of Multiprogramming
b. Context switching
c. Process state
d. None of the above
48. If there are two processes, process 1 and process 2, and there is time lost in turning from process 1 to process 2, it is known as _.
a. Degree of Multiprogramming
b. Context switching
c. Process state
d. None of the above
49. The time required for the read/write head to move to the correct track is known as __.
a. Latency time
b. Rotational delay
c. Seek time
d. All of the above
50. Which of the following is an example of a distributed operating system?
a. Network Operating System
b. Single-user operating system
c. Batch file operating system
d. None of the above
51. Which of the following defines the process state?
a. Running
b. Ready
c. Blocked
d. All of the above
52. In a real-time operating system, interrupt latency should be _.
a. Minimal
b. Maximum
c. Zero
d. None of the above
53. A process which is not waiting for any external event such as an I/O operation is known as _.
a. Running
b. Ready
c. Blocked
d. All of the above
54. Which of the following objectives are used for scheduling?
a. Fairness
b. Good throughput
c. Good CPU utilisation
d. All of the above
55. “Terminate a process” is an example of a system call which is available in __ management.
a. Process
b. Memory
c. Information
d. File
56. _ is an operating system.
a. C++
b. VB
c. LINUX
d. C
57. The Shortest Job First (SJF) scheduling algorithm selects the process with:
a. The highest priority
b. The shortest burst time
c. The longest burst time
d. The earliest arrival time
58. SJF scheduling can be classified as the following:
a. Preemptive and non-preemptive
b. Only Preemptive
c. Only non-preemptive
d. Neither preemptive nor non-preemptive
59. What is thread?
a. A big programme
b. A type of memory
c. The smallest unit of CPU work
d. None of the above
60. Why is multithreading useful?
a. It stops the program from running.
b. It uses more memory.
c. It allows multiple tasks at the same time.
d. All of the above
61. Which of the following is an example of multithreading?
a. Switching off the computer
b. A web browser loading a page and downloading a file
c. Running two operating systems together
d. None of the above
62. What do you mean by ‘time-sharing operating system’?
a. Sharing CPU time with many users
b. Running one program at a time
c. Storing data in memory
d. None of the above
63. Why is time sharing useful?
a. It makes one program faster only.
b. It stops programs from running.
c. It allows many users to use the computer at the same time.
d. None of the above
64. What does the CPU do in time sharing?
a. Gives each job a small time slice
b. Runs only background tasks
c. Work on only one task at a time
d. None of the above
65. What do you mean by contiguous memory management?
a. One process gets the entire memory space.
b. Dividing memory into many fixed parts
c. Sharing memory between many CPUs
d. None of the above
66. Which one is the advantage of contiguous memory management?
a. It is easy to implement.
b. It allows multiprogramming.
c. It supports virtual memory.
d. None of the above
67. What is non-contiguous memory management?
a. Memory used only for files
b. Program stored in one block only
c. Program stored in different blocks of memory
d. None of the above
68. Which of the following methods is used in non-contiguous memory management?
a. Swapping only
b. Paging and segmentation
c. File management
d. None of the above
69. Which of the following techniques is used for non-contiguous virtual memory?
a. Paging
b. Contiguous allocation
c. File management
d. None of the above
70. What is the role of virtual memory?
a. To store file
b. To make programs larger than RAM run.
c. To increase CPU speed
d. None of the above
71. What do you mean by fixed partition memory management?
a. Memory divided into equal fixed sizes
b. Memory given fully to one program
c. Memory divided based on program size
d. None of the above
72. Data is instantly updated in case of _ operating system.
a. Batch Processing
b. Multiprocessing
c. Real time
d. Multi-user
73. What happens if a process is smaller than the partition size?
a. Process use all the space.
b. Extra space is wasted.
c. Process cannot run
d. None of the above
74. Which of the following errors can be handled by an operating system?
a. Connection failure in the network
b. Connection failure when copying a file from one place to another
c. Computer power failure
d. All of the above
75. What is internal fragmentation?
a. Wasted space inside a fixed partition
b. Wasted space between partitions
c. Memory used only for files
d. CPU ignoring memory
76. What is external fragmentation?
a. Wasted space inside partitions
b. Free memory scattered in small blocks
c. Memory used only for cache
d. CPU not sharing memory
77. What is variable partition memory management?
a. Memory has been divided into fixed sizes
b. Memory divided into parts based on process size
c. Memory given fully to one program
d. None of the above
78. If the process fails in the operating system, then the OS writes the error in one of the following methods.
a. Any file
b. New file
c. Log file
d. All of the above
79. In paging, the chunks of memory are of __.
a. Different size
b. Same size
c. Based on file size
d. None of the above
80. In time-sharing OS, when one process is completed and switches from the current state, it is known as __.
a. Terminate state
b. Current state
c. Ready state
d. None of the above
81. What is a page fault?
a. When the page is found in memory
b. When a page is not in memory but needed
c. When CPU stops working
d. None of the above
82. What happens after a page fault?
a. CPU stops forever
b. OS brings the page from disc into memory.
c. The cache is cleared.
d. None of the above
83. What is a working set?
a. The set of all processes in the system
b. The set of pages a process is currently using
c. The set of CPU registers
d. The set of files in memory
84. What is page replacement?
a. Choosing which page to remove when memory is full
b. Copying file to disc
c. Removing a process from the CPU
d. None of the above
85. Which of the following is a page replacement algorithm?
a. LRU (Least Recently Used)
b. FIFO (First In, First Out)
c. Optimal replacement
d. All of the above
86. What is a dirty page?
a. A page that has been modified in memory but not yet saved to disc
b. A page that is unused
c. A page that is deleted
d. None of the above
87. What is a cryptic command?
a. It is an easy command.
b. Hard-to-understand command
c. A hardware instruction
d. None of the above
88. How does a GUI help compared to cryptic commands?
a. GUIs use icons and menus that are easier to understand.
b. The GUI hides all commands.
c. GUI makes commands longer.
d. GUI stops multitasking
89. What is the main advantage of a GUI over cryptic commands?
a. GUIs are faster for experts.
b. A GUI is easier for beginners to use.
c. GUI wastes more memory
d. GUI hides all features
90. Which of the following is considered a threat?
a. Unauthorised use of service (tapping)
b. Unauthorised disclosure of information (disclosure)
c. Denial of service to unauthorised users
d. All of the above
91. The security can be attacked in which of the following ways?
a. Authorisation
b. Browsing
c. Trap doors
d. All of the above
92. Linux is a(n) _ type of software.
a. Public
b. Shareware
c. Free
d. Licence
93. Which of the following programs are written to create mischief?
a. Trojan Hourse
b. Chameleon
c. Worms
d. All of the above
94. Which of the following will you consider as a virus?
a. Boot sector virus
b. Memory-resident virus
c. File virus
d. All of the above
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