(Unit 1.4) Practice: Essay - Exploring your System Architecture

Exploring your System Architecture

Essay Practice Activity

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• Describe the differences between a 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems

• Evaluate different operating systems across computing scenarios

By completing this activity, you will:

LearningOutcomes

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Essay Introduction

Now it’s your turn to investigate your device and connect the concepts you have learned to a real system. Earlier in this unit, you learned that the architecture of an operating system determines how much memory the system can address and use. You will explore your own computer system to identify whether it runs on a 32-bit or 64-bit architecture and the amount of installed RAM. Once you collect this information, you will analyze how the system’s architecture affects the amount of memory the operating system can support.

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Essay Task

Please follow the directions below before answering the essay prompt.

Start by selecting your system architecture from the options below. Once you have made the selection, follow the directions for your specific system architecture to access information needed to answer the essay question.

Windows

macOS

Linux

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Essay Prompt

After completing the essay task on the prior page, use the information you gathered to answer the questions below.

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Essay Response Guide

Take a moment to review your response using the criteria below. Assess how many of these points you addressed in your response. Once you’re ready to move forward, click “Next” button below to continue.

Part 2 Response Guide

Part 3 Response Guide

Part 4 Response Guide

Part 1 Response Guide

Click on the arrows to learn more!

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Thank you for completing this essay activity!

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Windows

Use the system information tool available on your device.

1. Press Windows + R
2. Type msinfo32
3. Locate:
1. System Type
2. Installed Physical Memory (RAM)

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Part 3 Response Guide

A 32-bit operating system would not be able to fully utilize the installed memory because it can address only about 4 GB of RAM. Since my system has more than 4 GB of memory, a large portion would remain unused under a 32-bit system.

Part 4 Response Guide

A 64-bit architecture supports a much larger address space. Modern operating systems use 64-bit architectures because they allow systems to address much larger amounts of memory. This enables computers to run memory-intensive applications such as databases, virtualization systems, and large-scale data processing tasks.

Linux

Use the system information tool available on your device.

1. Open a terminal and run:
1. uname -m
1. This shows system architecture.
2. free -h
1. This shows installed RAM.

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Part 2 Response Guide

Most modern computers have 16GB of installed RAM, as shown in the system information panel.

macOS

Use the system information tool available on your device.

1. Click the Apple menu
2. Select About This Mac
3. Locate:
1. Processor/Chip information
2. Installed memory

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Part 1 Response Guide

Most modern computers report x86-64, AMD64, or ARM64, which indicates a 64-bit architecture.